Authorizing The Committee on Labor and Civil Service and The Committee on Parks and Recreation to hold joint hearings investigating the City's enforcement of the Healthy Outdoor Public Spaces (HOPS) Law and the risks that exposure to synthetic pesticides pose to the Public and City Employees.

Authorizing The Committee on Labor and Civil Service and The Committee on Parks and Recreation to hold joint hearings investigating the City’s enforcement of the Healthy Outdoor Public Spaces (HOPS) Law and the risks that exposure to synthetic pesticides pose to the Public and City Employees. WHEREAS, On September 10, 2020, Councilmember Cindy Bass introduced Bill #200425-A, amending Title 6 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Health Code,” by creating a new Chapter 6-1300 entitled “Healthy Outdoor Public Spaces,” to promote a healthy environment that protects the public from the risks of toxic herbicides; and WHEREAS, The legislation was unanimously passed by City Council on December 3, 2020, and was returned to Council unsigned by Mayor Kenney on January 28, 2021. Pursuant to Section 2-202 of the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter, the Ordinance became law, and became effective on January 28, 2021; and WHEREAS, Scientific studies conducted by the World Health Organization, the National Academy of Sciences and the National Research Council, among others, have linked exposure to toxic herbicides with asthma, cancer, developmental and learning disabilities, nerve and immune system damage, liver and kidney damage, reproductive impairment, birth defects, and disruption of the endocrine system and the microbiome; and WHEREAS, In the almost four years since the legislation has been effective, six civil cases have been filed and argued in Philadelphia courts against Bayer, the maker of…