Williamsport Home Rule

05/31/2026

Election results have been certified and the first meeting of the Home Rule Study Commission will be held Tuesday, June 2, 2026 at 6pm.

Meetings will be held on the 3rd floor of 144 West 3rd Street (Trade and Transit Centre II). Future meetings will also be live streamed and available for viewing at https://www.youtube.com/.

The meeting on June 2nd will be available to view here: https://www.youtube.com/c/williamsportcitycouncil

During the first meeting the commission will vote on an official meeting schedule for the year. All meeting information and agendas will be posted at www.williamsporthomerule.com.

We invite the public to be active participants in this study process and hope to see you at an upcoming meeting.

05/19/2026

There are just a few hours left to vote to elect a Home Rule Study Commission in the City of Williamsport. If you plan to vote, make sure to visit the polls before 8 pm. Here is a list of polling sites for your convenience:

https://lycomingcountypa.gov/Documents/Government/Departments/Voter%20Services/PollingPlaceList.pdf (Williamsport voters, please refer to pages 10-12)

Thank you to all who have showed their support so far!

05/19/2026

Jonah Milliken provided a fantastic rundown of why he is supporting the initiative to elect a Home Rule Study Commission. If any of his reasons resonate with you, be sure to visit a polling site today (Tuesday, May 19) and make your voice heard. You have until 8 pm to cast a ballot at any of the following locations:https://lycomingcountypa.gov/Documents/Government/Departments/Voter%20Services/PollingPlaceList.pdf (Williamsport citizens, refer to pages 10-12)

𝐉𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐇'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓 (available below and on his page)

Williamsport residents - I'm voting Yes on the Home Rule Study question tomorrow (tomorrow is Primary day, and every registered voter in Williamsport, Republican, Demogorgon, Independent, Libertarian, Green Party, whatever has a ballot at their polling place with at minimum this Home Rule question on it).

10 reasons why I'm voting yes:

1. By voting yes, I am voting to elect a commission of volunteers to spend 9 months working with a consultant to find out how Home Rule could potentially help the City of Williamsport (voting yes tomorrow doesn't do anything other than allow us to gather more information! Information is good!)
2. There is zero risk for forming this commission. If this commission comes up with a proposal a year from now that we don't like, we can vote no at that point!
3. Williamsport is a great place, but we have real financial challenge as a municipality. Home Rule might alleviate some real financial challenges! (But we won't know if we vote it down!)
4. The commission candidates aren't politicians, or even political hacks! They're just local nerds who care about their community! They're all Williamsport residents with different backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences.
5. Approximately half of the 3rd Class cities in PA have adopted a Home Rule Charter! We're not some municipal guinea pig.
6. The state of PA is recommending we explore Home Rule! A strategic plan developed by PFM through a DCED (sorry for the letters, here's the plan: https://cityofwilliamsport.org/.../Williamsport-2025-STMP... ) had exploring Home Rule as the #1 recommendation for how Williamsport can fix some financial problems! This ain't some proposal pulled out of my...hat.
7. It's the opportunity for us to develop a charter tailor made for our municipality!! Government for the People, by the People!
8. Home Rule can give residents in Williamsport more say in home their government functions! We can have more public participation in our city through things like ballot initiatives and ordinance proposals directly from city residents!
9. If the city votes yes to move forward with this Home Rule study commission, the commission has to meet publicly, and they're going to be looking for public input!
10. I'm looking forward to this commission, a third party group, not the city council, not the mayor, but just volunteers who are residents of the city, spending nine months doing a whole lot of research and information gathering to be used to make a plan to make Williamsport be the best place it can be. As someone who was elected to help make Williamsport amazing, I am grateful for the unbiased help!

05/19/2026

Happy Election Day! To all who plan to vote, the polls will be open until 8 pm today. Please remember that anyone can vote in this election, regardless of party affiliation. For a complete list of Williamsport polling stations, check out pages 10-12 of the attached PDF.

We are excited to have reached the home stretch of our efforts to potentially elect a Home Rule Study Commission. Thank you to everyone who has asked questions, attended our events, and shown a deep commitment to the strength and success of Williamsport. We appreciate your support and hope to represent your interests well if elected for the eighteen-month study period.

https://www.lycomingcountypa.gov/Documents/Government/Departments/Voter%20Services/PollingPlaceList.pdf?t=202512231145140

05/19/2026

Thank you to NorthcentralPa for covering this important question on tomorrow's ballot. Williamsport voters: here are the two main takeaways of tomorrow's election.

1. The vote tomorrow (Tuesday, May 19) is to elect seven volunteers to study home rule—a citizen-led form of local government—and draft a local constitution tailored to the people of Williamsport. This charter will then be shared with residents, who will have the opportunity to approve or reject it in the November 2027 general election. This means that the election tomorrow has no stakes.

2. Anyone can vote in tomorrow's election, regardless of party affiliation. If you are a third-party voter passionate about the continued growth and wellbeing of Williamsport, this is your election to make a difference.

We hope to see you at the polls!

Williamsport, Pa. — Dozens attended a public forum on Williamsport’s proposed government study commission to question and hear from the seven commission candidates about a possible path to the city’s

05/18/2026

Election day is tomorrow! For your convenience, here is a list of polling locations that you can visit between 7 am and 8 pm on Tuesday, May 19th. Polling sites for Williamsport begin on page 10 and end on page 12. We hope to see you there.

https://www.lycomingcountypa.gov/Documents/Government/Departments/Voter%20Services/PollingPlaceList.pdf?t=202512231145140

05/16/2026

Friends, we are excited to report that the primary election is just three days away. One of the most important things to note is that anyone—regardless of party affiliation—can vote on May 19.

When you visit the polls this Tuesday, you will find a question on the ballot prompting you to vote either “YES” or “NO” to electing a Home Rule Study Commission. We highly encourage all interested parties to cast a vote in this election.

Regardless of the outcome, the commission candidates appreciate having met and shared dialogue with so many of you. We truly have a great city, and we hope you will give us the opportunity to determine whether we can make it even greater!

05/15/2026

We are just a few days away from the May 19 primary, when Williamsport residents will have the opportunity to elect a Home Rule Study Commission to assess the needs of city residents and respond to those needs via a proposed local charter. If you’ve recently learned about home rule and would like more information before casting a vote, please refer to the attached video. We also want to extend a huge thank you to those who have asked thoughtful questions, attended our events, and expressed a commitment to helping Williamsport thrive. We appreciate you!

05/13/2026

Have you ever wondered what a home rule charter looks like? Here are several examples of charters that were adopted by other municipalities in Pennsylvania. Please note that each charter is tailored specifically to the community it represents, basing its recommendations on input from local voters. This means that no two home rule charters are alike!

Examples of Home Rule Charters in the State of Pennsylvania

Lancaster, PA: https://www.cityoflancasterpa.gov/home-rule/ -d0f6d70df046cfdaa340ff8cf5581fa709a2dadce1ae48f3e1c0d98d7bcf3c35

State College, PA: https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/1a9093d7-9413-4ad5-8fc1-be2940e085a0?version=0&q=44da46d1-ceaf-8925-734f-808fc2d385cf

Kingston, PA: Chapter Ch: https://ecode360.com/14421058 #14421058)

To view additional Pennsylvanian municipalities that have adopted home rule, visit the following link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Pennsylvania_municipalities_and_counties_with_home_rule_charters,_optional_charters,_or_optional_plans

Instead of relying on a one-size-fits-all approach dictated by the outmoded Third Class City Code, community members are reshaping local government on their terms—
not on bureaucrats’ terms—by supporting home rule.

This is a list of Pennsylvania municipalities and counties with home rule charters, optional charters, or optional plans, including municipalities with home rule charters, optional charters, or optional plans.

05/13/2026

Home Rule Study Commission candidate J. David Smith did a fantastic job of explaining what to expect from the May 19 vote to study home rule. Here is an additional overview for anyone seeking further clarification about this process:

1. If a Home Rule Study Commission is elected on May 19, seven Williamsport citizens will volunteer their time and expertise to study home rule and draft a charter tailored to the needs of Williamsport residents. This will happen over the course of eighteen months, during which citizens will be encouraged to attend the Committee’s public meetings and pose suggestions to its members.

2. If the seven candidates for the Home Rule Study Commission are elected, the charter they draft will be presented to the people of Williamsport for their consideration. Residents will then vote in the 2027 election to approve or reject the proposed charter, which cannot pass without majority approval.

3. If the charter fails to pass, the issue of home rule cannot be broached for another five years.

4. If the charter does pass, its contents would be open to further discussion as the city evolves and its residents develop new needs. Under home rule, citizens are able to launch ballot initiatives to address concerns they may have with the way their city is managed. So, if a large portion of Williamsport residents take issue with a specific facet of the charter or a particular aspect of city management in general, they can move to have it amended. The current Pennsylvania Third Class City Code does not grant citizens this power.