Here’s Your Chance To Change The Laws In Buffalo, New York

The Empire State is full of rules and regulations that govern how the state government is supposed to operate. There are rules set up to apply to the state government and local governments. From time to time, residents of the state and/or its cities, towns, and villages have the opportunity to change those laws, rules, and regulations.

Just like the federal government has the US Constitution, New York State has a Constitution, and every local municipality has a document that governs how it operates, as the Constitution does in the United States and New York State. '

Now, for the first time in this century, the city of Buffalo is doing a full review of the City of Buffalo City Charter, and it is seeking your input to update the document to better serve the people of New York State's second-largest city.

What Is A City Charter

Just like you have the Constitution of the United States, which was written in 1787 and ratified in 1788, every local government has a city charter, which serves the same purpose: a document that defines the organization, powers, functions, and essential procedures of the city government. According to the National League of Cities, a charter is the most important legal document of any city.

The National League of Cities compares a city charter to a rulebook for how a city operates.

The city of Buffalo has operated under its current charter since 1928, and the last time the charter was updated was in 1999. Given that it's a whole new century, it's beyond time that we review and potentially update it.

The City of Buffalo Charter Revision Commission Wants Your Input

After 27 years of operating under the current revision of the charter, it's well beyond time to give it a look over. A commission has been set up to review and revise the Charter, which is more than 400 pages; it is a big task for any group to handle.

There are several meetings that have been set up by the Charter Review Commission to gather input and information from city residents. If you care about the direction of the city, you should make your voice heard.

You can find the full meeting schedule and details about past meetings here on the City of Buffalo website.