The Council of the City of Philadelphia hereby finds:
(1) In order to protect the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens and inhabitants of the City, the City has enacted a comprehensive Fire Code and a comprehensive Housing Code.

(2) The enforcement of these protective legislative measures has been seriously hampered because the owners of the property against whom tenants have filed complaints with the appropriate City authority revealing Fire Code violations or Housing Code violations, have developed a practice of evicting complaining tenants for these reasons or upon other convenient pretexts.

(3) Fearful of eviction, tenants have been hesitant to report violations and have been compelled to live under conditions which are in violation of existing ordinances and which create situations dangerous to the health and safety of the tenants and the entire community.

(4) Efforts of the existing Mayor’s Fair Rent Committee to prohibit unfair rental practices has not proved effective because the Committee has lacked the power to subpoena witnesses or the production of records of owners or their agents who are leasing dwellings which are in violation of the Fire Code or the Housing Code as set forth in The Philadelphia Code.