Last year, in response to the Special Independent Advisory Commission (SIAC) report recommendations, Mayor Nutter established the Building Safety Oversight Board. The Board is tasked, in large part, with supporting and tracking the implementation of the 37 SIAC recommendations. Working in conjunction with other City departments and agencies, the Department of Licenses and Inspections (L+I) has developed strategies and approaches for implementing each of these recommendations. A number of these initiatives are already in place, and the top five staffing recommendations have been presented to Council for funding in FY16, with full implementation planned over a multi-year period. While much work remains ahead, these are significant steps forward for improved building safety. 

As another step toward increased transparency, L+I will begin publishing a scorecard tracking the status of each of the 37 SIAC recommendations, as well as additional recommendations from City Council and the Mayor. This document will be periodically updated, and we will work to make this initial version of the document more detailed and easier to navigate in subsequent releases. 

The scorecard is designed to provide the public with an overview of the budget request to City Council that pertains to the SIAC report, a description of the actual SIAC recommendations, a quick review of the status (either completed or in progress), and information about the progress to date and any planned next steps. In addition, we have created a glossary of terms that are used throughout the document to help explain various terms and programs. 

Overall, this is a complex endeavor, and we know providing this scorecard is only a small part of what is still required. The Oversight Board, however, wanted to provide a vehicle to communicate the work that is happening within L+I and other City departments. 

The Oversight Board looks forward to hearing from you about how we can improve this document and what additional information you would like to see in regards to the SIAC recommendations. Please email oversight.board@phila.gov with your suggestions.