Philadelphia Daily Record

FOOD & WATER WATCH hosted workshop Tuesday to train local activists on skills needed for 2012

Farm Bill: running effective meetings and generating media awareness. State Rep. Babette Josephs, a

food activist, was special guest at workshop, addressed group about opportuni-

ties for change. “If not you, then who?” Josephs said, challenging FWW cam-

paigners. Josephs, right, is joined here by FWW organizer Emily Heffling.

PhiladelphiaDaily Record

Food ForThought

Vol. II No. 191. (351) Keeping You Posted With The Politics Of Philadelphia November 30, 2011

Translation/InterpretationArabic, Hebrew, English, French

For more information, call William Hanna

267-808-0287

When You Want Your Roof To Be Done Right The First Time

215-464-6425

2024 S. 10th St

Philadelphia PA 19148

215-468-5363

Meat

& DeliPrego Pizzelle Baker $29.99

Uno Panini Grill $39.99

CANDIDATES • POLITICIANSNews You Can Use!

Boost Your Popularity, Win On Election Day!

Tell Your Constituents To Read About

All the Work You Do For Them On the

Philadelphiadailyrecord.comEmail them a copy of this Publication!

T h e P h i l a d e l p h i a P u b l i c R e c o r d C a l e n d a rDec. 1-Reception honoring US Sen. Bob Casey withSpecial Guest James Carville, at Racquet Clubof Phila., 215 S. 16th St. 6 p.m. Friend$250/person. Committee Person, Young Pro-fessional $100/person. RSVP (267) 601-4450or [email protected]. 2- Local 98’s Turkeys and Toys Party, Finni-gan’s Wake, 7 p.m.Dec. 3- 10th Ward’s Christmas Holiday Gospel Break-fast hosted by Edgar Howard at Imhotep Char-ter HS, 6201 N. 21st St., 10 a.m. (Welcomehome from hospital, Edgar!)Dec. 4- Fundraiser for Tracey Gordon at 1033 Chris-tian St., 5-5:30 p.m. For info (215) 501-2197.Dec.4- Ward Leader Bob DellaValla, Esq, hosts 55thDemocrat Executive Committee ChistmasParty from 2 to 6 p.m. at Knights of Colum-bus, 3300 Knorr Street( at Rowland). For infocall (215) 335-4004.Dec. 7- United Republican Club celebrates 131st birth-day at Sheraton Society Hill, 1 Dock St., 5:30to 7 p.m. For info (215) 545-2244.Dec. 8- State Rep. W. Curtis Thomas hosts Weather-ization and Energy Forum at Temple’s Den-tistry Student Faculty Ctr., 3340 N. Broad St.(Broad & Ontario), 6-8 p.m. For info NatalieDavis (215) 560-3261.Dec. 15- Christmas Celebration in 6300 block German-town Avenue, 6-7 p.m. Corporate and com-munity donations are welcome! For more infoto make a donation A. Neal (215) 438-1768or A. Alexander (215) 844-9345.Dec. 17- Black Professionals Christmas Party atAfrican American Museum, 7th & Arch Sts.,8 p.m.-1 a.m. $50 includes live music, enter-tainment. For info Earl Harvey (267) 244-3860.Dec. 29- Friends of Council-elect majority leader CurtisJones host “Black Out Party” at 4130 MainStreet, next to Manayunk Brewery. Dress inblack. VIP Coctail 6 to 8 pm $1,000 host;$500 sponsor, $250 VIP. General admission,8 p.m. to 1 p.m. $50 guest. Fort info call Do-rian Stanley at 732-642-2163.

THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD

2 | PHILADELPHIADAILYRECORD.COM •

• PHILADELPHIADAILYRECORD.COM | 3


Toomey Lays Out

Earmark BanUS Sens. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and

Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) an-

nounced the bipartisan Earmark

Elimination Act of 2011 yesterday.

This legislation would build on the

temporary moratorium on ear-

marks scheduled to expire at the

end of 2012 and would perma-

nently ban earmarks from the leg-

islative process.

The legislation would define ear-

marks as any congressionally di-

rected spending item, limited tax

benefit, or limited tariff benefit. It

would create a point of order

against any legislation containing

an earmark, which could only be

waived by a two-thirds vote.

Unfortunately, a number of con-

gressional members are clamoring

to reinstate the wasteful earmark-

ing process that forced taxpayers

to fund such pet projects as the

Bridge to Nowhere. According to

the Washington Post, lawmakers

are trying to fund special-interest

projects by finding loopholes in

the current earmark moratorium.

“With some members of Congress

clamoring for a return to wasteful

earmark spending, it is time for

Congress to make the current

moratorium on special-interest

giveaways a permanent ban,”

Toomey said. “For years, earmarks

played a role in fueling the over-

spending in Washington and un-

dermining the integrity of our

legislative process. We cannot af-

ford to allow Congress to resume

earmarking and playing pork bar-

rel politics with taxpayer dollars.”

Senate Passes Casey Amendment To

Keep Libyan Arms From Terrorists

The US Senate yesterday unani-

mously accepted a bipartisan

amendment to the FY 2012 De-

fense Authorization bill that urges

greater action by the Obama Ad-

ministration to keep Libya’s stock-

pile of about 20,000 portable

anti-aircraft missiles, known as

MANPADS, out of the hands of

terrorists who wish to do harm to

Americans. US Sen. Bob Casey

(D-Pa.), Chairman of the Senate

Foreign Relations Subcommittee

on Near Eastern & South & Cen-

tral Asian Affairs, cosponsored the

amendment.

“It is essential that the U.S. work

with its allies to ensure that

weapons from the war in Libya do

not end up in the hands of terror-

ists,” said the Senator. “Shoulder-

launched missiles pose an

extremely dangerous threat to

commercial aircraft across the

Middle East, including to our ally

Israel. I was proud to be an origi-

nal cosponsor of this important

amendment, which will enhance

the safety of those flying interna-

tionally.”

The amendment specifically

charges the Administration to con-

duct an urgent intelligence assess-

ment of the threat these missile

pose to the American people and

our allies. It also requires the Pres-

ident to develop and implement a

comprehensive strategy to mitigate

this threat.



The Pennsylvania State Police re-

cently participated in a five-day

enforcement effort inspecting

motor coaches.

State and municipal motor carrier

enforcement personnel, including

Philadelphia and Pittsburgh police

officers and Public Utility Com-

mission staff, inspected 341 motor

coaches at popular travel destina-

tions such as casinos and amuse-

ment parks throughout the state.

“Motor-coach strike forces are just

one of the many ways we help en-

sure the safety of everyone travel-

ing throughout Pennsylvania,”

State Police Commissioner Frank

Noonan said. “Whether you’ll be

driving 20 or 200 miles this holi-

day season, it’s important to be

aware of the road and to be a safe,

courteous and patient driver.”

Troop K (Delaware, Montgomery

and Philadelphia Cos.) conducted

41 inspections. It put two vehicles

and one driver out of service, is-

sued four citations and 22 warn-

ings.

State Police Bust Local Bus Lines

PGW Set To Cut Gas Rates

The Philadelphia Gas Works today

announced it will decrease what

residential customers pay for natu-

ral gas. The average residential

heating customer will pay about

1.1% less per month for the next

three months.

The new cost for gas will change

from $1.52 per Ccf to $1.51 per

Ccf. Residential heating customers

will pay $1.51 per one hundred

cubic feet (Ccf) of natural gas as of

Dec 1, 2011. The price for PGW’s

commercial, industrial and munici-

pal customers will also decrease on

that date.

The rate will stay in effect through

Mar. 1, 2012, when PGW will de-

termine, based on market condi-

tions, whether or not the rate

should change.

“PGW consistently excels at pur-

chasing the least-expensive gas for

our customers,” said Craig White,

president and CEO for PGW.

“With the abundance of natural gas

available, we expect the cost of gas

to remain stable for the foreseeable

future.”

The company anticipates its rates

should remain stable, based on

current market projections, pro-

ducing savings for all of the com-

pany’s customers compared to

recent years. PGW’s residential

natural gas rates are made up of

two main components: a supply

charge and delivery charge. The

supply charge is the part of the bill

that reflects the amount of gas

used by the customer. This charge

is what PGW pays for the gas and

is passed on to the customer with-

out markup.

Founded in 1836, PGW is owned

by the City of Philadelphia and is

the largest municipally owned gas

utility in the country.

Sens. Hughes,

Tartaglione Visit

Stetson School

State Sens. Vincent J. Hughes (D-

W. Phila.) and Christine

Tartaglione (D-Kensington) toured

Stetson MS yesterday to get a first-

hand look at the school’s remark-

able turnaround.

“It is an honor to be here today to

meet with the faculty, students, and

parents of this promising school.

Stetson MS is a successful model

of education reform,” Hughes said.

“After years of underachievement,



Stetson is now a school with a

promising academic future for all

students.”

Stetson, which has a largely His-

panic student body, was one of

Philadelphia’s lowest-performing

schools, until it was taken over by

Aspira of Pennsylvania, a Hispanic

advocacy group. Since the

takeover, the school has produced

academic gains, while reducing vi-

olence and disruptive behavior.

“In a changing world economy, ed-

ucation becomes more valuable

every day,” Tartaglione said. “The

success at Stetson proves that with

parents, teachers, and administra-

tors working together to help stu-

dents, the future can be bright for

any student who wants to

achieve.”

Hughes was instrumental, along

with Success Schools COO Robert

Lysek, in securing 50 iPads for

Stetson students and 10 for teach-

ers and administrators. The stu-

dents use the iPads for remedial

math and writing support. Teachers

use them to support and facilitate

the lessons.

During the tour, Hughes and

Tartaglione were updated by stu-

dent leaders on how Stetson was

turned around through targeted ed-

ucation reforms. Many once-dis-

ruptive students are now classroom

leaders, excelling both academi-

cally and socially. The school has

seen gains in PSSA scores as well.

Palumbo Academy Wins Interstate

Attendance ChallengeThe Academy at Palumbo, a

school of 646 students, improved

its overall attendance rate to 97%

in seven weeks to win the East Re-

gion of the national Get Schooled

Foundation’s Fall 2011 Attendance

Challenge.

The friendly competition engaged

nearly 80,000 students from 73

high schools in 17 states between

Oct. 3 and Nov. 18 students

through a variety of online, social

media, and in-school activities.

Across all participating schools

1,000 additional students came to

school during the course of the

challenge.

In the Eastern region, the Acad-

emy at Palumbo, motivated by the

idea of a national competition and

the chance to rally their school

around a common goal of improv-

ing attendance, worked hard to im-

prove upon their attendance rate.

“We are so proud that our Acad-

emy students showed their com-

mitment to their education and

their future by showing up to

school and participating in the At-

tendance Challenge,” said Adri-

enne Wallace-Chew, principal of

the Academy at Palumbo.

Attendance is the greatest predic-

tor of graduation and a significant

driver of student achievement. Re-

search shows missing just 10 days

a year can lead to academic prob-

lems. Students who miss 20 days a

year (or about one month) have

less than a one-in-five chance of

graduating from high school. Few

districts report these chronic tru-

ancy numbers, despite their corre-

lation to low graduation rates.

To celebrate the school’s achieve-

ments, Paramount Pictures, a unit

of Viacom, will host a red-carpet

experience for the students, with a

Mission: Impossible-themed event

at the school and preview screen-

ings of Mission: Impossible -

Ghost Protocol at the UA

Riverview theatre in Philadelphia

for all students.

Get Schooled brought a mix of

celebrity encouragement, interac-

tive educational games, and plenty

of opportunities to elevate the

youth voice, resulting in an aver-

age of 2.8% attendance rate in-

crease across all participating

schools. Schools earned points in

the challenge by improving their

attendance, nominating teachers

who inspire them to come to

school and testing their knowledge

in an online trivia bowl. 185 stu-

dents signed up for wake-up calls

from their favorite celebrities, such

as Tyra Banks and Trey Songz.

During the Challenge, the Acad-

emy hosted a Halloween atten-

dance-focused pep rally with more

than 600 students and teachers to

celebrate their high attendance

rates and to showcase their school

spirit.



Boyle Brothers To Host Hoops

Tourney For Fallen OfficersState Reps. Brendan and Kevin

Boyle (both D-Northeast) will host

their annual basketball classic from

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3 at

Lincoln HS 3201 Ryan Avenue.

The tournament championships

will be played at 10 a.m. on Sun-

day, Dec. 4.

An awards ceremony will follow

the championship. At the cere-

mony, Billy Gibson, a 14-year-old

local Boy Scout, will receive the

“Constituent of the Year” award

for his leadership and community

service.

The tournament will allow 7th- and

8th-grade students from local mid-

dle schools to compete. Twelve

boys’ teams and seven girls’ teams

will participate.

The event raises funds for the Fra-

ternal Order of Police Survivors

Fund.

Butkovitz Finds City Using Outdated

Software To Manage Huge InventoryCity Controller Alan Butkovitz today released the FY08-09 Procurement Dept. audit that found the Depart-

ment is using a 15-year-old data-

base-software application to ac-

count for the City’s $472 million

equipment inventory.

Since 1996, the software has un-

dergone four major revisions but

the Department never obtained the

upgraded versions. The software

is no longer supported by the Mi-

crosoft developer.

“By failing to keep its software

updated, the Procurement Dept.

has created the potential for un-

wanted risks,” said Butkovitz.

“Old, outdated software can cause

flawed transactions and can open

the door to the threat of malicious

programs and hackers.”

Butkovitz continued, “The Pro-

curement Department needs to im-

mediately replace its old software

with a newer database application

that meets today’s technology

standards.”

Philadelphia’s Procurement Dept.

was created to centralize the pur-

chases made by all City depart-

ments, agencies, boards and

commissions that receive funds

from the City treasury. One of the

department’s main responsibilities

is to keep records of all equipment

already owned by the City.

To view the FY08-09 Procure-

ment Department Auditor’s Re-

port, please visit the City

Controller’s website at

www.philadelphiacontroller.org



Blackwell Calls For Volunteer

Gift-Wrappers

ISSUING a call for volunteer gift-wrappers this morning was Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, at First

Thursday meeting chaired by University of Penna. VP Glenn Bryant, center. Every year she throws a

mammoth Christmas Party for thousands of homeless individuals and families; every child gets a pres-

ent. Volunteers are needed to wrap presents at City Hall Saturday morning, Dec. 17. Call (215) 686-

3418/3419 to find out how you can help.

Philadelphia Daily Record

Documents

Transcript of Philadelphia Daily Record