The Home Rule Study Commission has publicly posted online the full draft home rule charter that it has developed for Lancaster.
The 59-page document is available here (PDF). A summary is available here, along with comparisons of the charter with Lancaster’s existing governance law in English (PDF) and Spanish (PDF).
While the charter is in substantially final form, it is possible that additional edits may be made in response to public feedback. The commission recently conducted three public information and feedback sessions. Additionally, a formal hearing on the charter is scheduled for this evening (Thursday, Aug. 8), beginning at 7 p.m. at Polite Council Chambers at City Hall, 120 N. Duke St.
During the hearing, the commission will present the draft and hear testimony from any members of the public who are interested in speaking.
The commission is expected to vote on the final version of the charter at its Aug. 29 meeting. If it’s approved, the charter will go before city voters in a referendum on Election Day, Tuesday Nov. 5. If voters approve it, it will take effect at the start of 2025.
At its most recent meeting, the commission approved provisions in the draft charter expanding City Council from seven members to nine, creating an Ethics Commission and limiting year-over-year revenue increases.
The commission decided by a 5-4 vote against electing City Council members by district; but it’s possible that city residents could make that change in future through the charter’s expanded referendum and initiative powers.
With regard to taxes, the charter would allow City Council to raise the earned income tax above the current cap of 0.6%. (Another 0.5% is collected for the School District of Lancaster, for a total current rate of 1.1%.) Last month, Mayor Danene Sorace said her administration is looking at proposing an EIT of 0.9%, or half again as much as the current rate.
