Proposed Amendment on November Ballot in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania

Cheltenham citizens have developed a proposal to amend the township’s Home Rule Charter that will reduce the number of petition signatures required to place an ordinance on the ballot through initiative. The proposal will also reduce the number of petition signatures required to review and change existing ordinances through the referendum process.  Following on the heels of a strong showing in the November 2009 election, We the People of Cheltenham (WTPOC) began to examine strategies to make participation in community decision-making accessible to ordinary citizens.

The result is a proposed initiative that asserts the rights of the community to propose initiatives with fewer signatures on the petitions. At present, the number of signatures required to have an ordinance question placed on the ballot is equal to 30% of the number of voters who participated in the last gubernatorial election (about 9,000 signatures).

We the People of Cheltenham believes that this number is too high and makes it extremely difficult for citizens to have a voice in the ordinance adoption and review process. This amendment would reduce the number of signatures required to propose an initiative measure or review an existing ordinance through referendum to 7% of the number of voter participants in the preceding gubernatorial election (about 2100). Ordinances would still be placed on the ballot either by action of the governing body or by petition of the voters.

The group gathered enough signatures to have the amendment on the ballot and on Tuesday, November 2nd, the citizens of Cheltenham will vote on whether the proposed Charter amendment will appear under Article XIV, Section C 1409. The county board of elections approved the following language for the ballot question:

“Should the Cheltenham Township charter be amended to reduce the required number of signatures on petitions seeking to propose a new ordinance, or to review and change an existing ordinance, from thirty percent (30%) of registered electors in the Township to seven percent (7%) of the number of registered electors who voted in the last preceding gubernatorial election?”


They are encouraging residents to learn about the proposed amendment by going to their website at www.wethepeopleofcheltenham.com.