Councilman concerned about changes to Bethel Park’s home rule charter
A Bethel Park councilman sounded an alarm over a proposed change to the home rule charter that would limit citizens’ ability to block certain ordinances.
Councilman Don Harrison said at council’s regular meeting Feb. 12 that the potential change would be a government overreach and urged voters to strike down the measure if it appears on the ballot.
Before a change can be made to what is essentially Bethel Park’s constitution, voters have to approve it through referendum. The municipality’s Home Rule Study Commission recommended several changes to the charter, including four relatively minor changes concerning planning and budget deadlines. Voters approved those changes without controversy in November, but Harrison said another change could prove to be much more contentious.
The home rule charter includes a process in which a group of citizens can challenge an ordinance by circulating a petition to place a referendum on the next election ballot.
The Home Rule Study Commission saw potential problems if the municipality’s budget or tax levy is challenged. Once the referendum petition has been filed, the ordinance cannot take effect until after that process is complete. So, if the ordinance setting the tax rate is challenged, the municipality would not be allowed to collect taxes until the next election, which could take many months.
The Home Rule Study Commission recommended that certain ordinances be exempted from the citizens’ initiative and referendum process. The commission concluded that ordinances concerning fiscal matters, such as budgets, tax levies, sewer or utility rates or borrowing money should be exempt as well as any ordinance concerning public safety.
Harrison said that change “would do away with citizen involvement” to challenge some of the most potentially problematic ordinances.
Councilman Jim McLean, who served as chair of the Home Rule Study Commission, said that the board reviewed the Home Rule Charter for over a year before making its final report and recommendations in 2016. He said that the commission was very open throughout the process and that openness will continue.
“We will discuss it with the public. We will encourage everyone’s participation and we will do this in a very open and public way,” McLean said.
Councilman Mark O’Brien said the commission identified a potential problem with the home rule charter and it is now up to the council and Bethel Park residents to decide what to do about it. The municipality could settle on a different solution than the one that the commission proposed.
“Right now, we’re having a conversation, and I think it’s a good conversation,” he said.
Council has not yet decided whether to place referenda on the next election ballot. There is probably not enough time to place a ballot question for the May 16 primary, but there’s still time for the Nov. 6 general election.
In another matter, council approved plans for a veterinary clinic to be built on Library Road. Bethel Park Animal Clinic plans to build an office at 4792 Library Road. An old auto repair garage will be demolished to make way for the clinic.
Council also applied for a $250,000 grant through Allegheny County’s Community Infrastructure and Tourism Fund for improvements to Miner’s Memorial Park. Plans call for improvements to the baseball field and making the park more handicapped accessible.