City of Pittsburgh residents will vote on 3 ballot questions next week. Here’s what they are

PITTSBURGH — All registered voters who live in the City of Pittsburgh, regardless of their political affiliation, will be asked three important ballot questions next week. These questions are complex and may be difficult to understand, so Channel 11 News is providing clarity to help voters participate.

Many Pittsburgh voters expressed confusion, frustration, and exhaustion after reviewing the three questions on the primary ballot.

“I feel like answering any of these will take me a while,” said city resident Beatrice Allen. She continued, “It feels like a school assignment.” Another city resident, Diego Jurado, added, “I think it’s already hard enough to say yes or no to a political issue.”

Voters said that the questions were challenging to understand, a sentiment echoed by our political expert.

“We want to make this as easy as possible for people; we want to hear directly from the community,” said Dr. Dana Brown, a professor at Chatham University and Director of the Pennsylvania Center for Women & Politics.

Brown emphasized that the wording of ballot questions can deter voters from responding at all. “Certainly, I don’t think language should be a barrier, and often the language used in these questions is just that,” she remarked.

Here are the questions:

**First Question:**

“Shall the Pittsburgh Home Rule Charter, Article One, Home Rule Powers – Definitions, be supplemented by adding a new section, ‘105. Local Governance,’ which prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender identity or expression, disability, place of birth, national origin, or association or affiliation with any nation or foreign state in conducting the city’s business?”

To clarify, a “yes” vote would prevent the city from discriminating against a business due to its ties to other countries. A “no” vote would allow the city to sever relationships with a business based on its international connections. This question arose after several community organizations urged the city to stop doing business with companies linked to Israel.

**Second Question:**

“Shall the Pittsburgh Home Rule Charter be amended to include a new Article 11: ‘RIGHT TO PUBLIC OWNERSHIP OF POTABLE WATER SYSTEMS, WASTEWATER SYSTEM, AND STORM SEWER SYSTEMS,’ which restricts the lease or sale of the city’s water and sewer system to private entities?”

This question asks whether the city should be able to stop private equity and corporations from selling the public water supply.

**Third Question:**

“Shall the Pittsburgh Home Rule Charter, Article One, Home Rule Powers – Definitions, be supplemented by adding a new section, ‘104. Amendments to Charter,’ which prohibits the use of the Home Rule Charter Amendment process to impose duties or obligations beyond the lawful scope of the city’s authority?”

This question is asking voters to say whether the city should put into its charter that it cannot be compelled to make changes that would be beyond the scope of the Constitution.

After breaking down these questions for the voters, many suggested that ballot questions should be shorter and easier to understand, or that additional context should be provided to help them make informed decisions. “It would definitely be beneficial if the questions were written to be more accessible,” Dr. Brown concluded.

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