Mike Castiglione
We recently detailed the outcry from Philadelphia’s music scene about a proposal from Councilman Mark Squilla that would require entertainers to register their contact information with the police in order to perform at venues throughout the city.
On Monday, Squilla met with WXPN and various members of Philly’s music industry to discuss the matter. As a result of that discussion, he decided to squash the bill. So, why the change of heart?
Here is an excerpt from the councilman’s Facebook post on Monday. He explains why he’s changed his tune.
After meeting with leaders from the City’s music industry to address their concerns regarding bill number 160016, Councilman Mark Squilla decided to withdraw this bill that amends the code related to Special Assembly Occupancy Licenses. At the end of the meeting, all present agreed that withdrawing was the best way to end the confusion created by this proposed bill.
Councilman Squilla plans to work with those in the industry to craft new legislation that will reflect his original intent – to close a loophole concerning the definition of “Social entertainment.”
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The news was also distributed to signees of a Change.org petition that drew 10,000-plus signatures in less than a day.
Squilla says it was “not his intent” to create a registry of performers, and will work with members of Philadelphia’s music industry to craft new legislation from scratch
A humbled Squilla added that he never intended to discourage artist expression, but rather, he “missed the boat” by overlooking certain language in the proposal. It sounds like there will be some form of legislation forthcoming with the intended goal of enforcing proper licenses and ensuring public safety. For now, score one for democracy, common sense and Philly’s music scene.