Change to DROP program gets committee approval

A Philadelphia City Council Committee todayapproved legislation that would bar elected officials from participating in the city's Deferred Retirement Option Plan, or DROP.

Bill Green, chair of council's labor and civil service committee, said he had sponsored the bill because he "felt it was wrong for an elected official to set an example where they are taking hundreds of thousands of dollars."

DROP permits city employees to pick a retirement date and let their benefits grow in a special account. Seven members of council already have joined DROP. Green said the legislation would not affect Council members who already elected to participate in DROP because state law precluded that possibility.

The measure could be voted on by counicl as early as next week.