NYC Ballot Questions 2026: The Five Charter Amendments on the Back of Your Ballot, Explained

Flip the ballot over. New York City voters will decide five ballot measures on Tuesday, November 3, and all five are amendments to the City Charter placed on the ballot by the Commission on Government Efficiency — the body Mayor Zohran Mamdani created in May 2026 to review the charter, which unanimously approved its final report and the five proposals on July 23. Voters decide each question separately: a yes approves that change, a no leaves the charter as it is, and approved changes would take effect on March 1, 2027.

Question 1 concerns the use of public space: it would remove the requirement that the city hold a mandatory hearing before approving the use of public space, and remove the specification that the City Council review permits for sidewalk cafes after they are approved by the Department of Transportation. Question 2 concerns city contracting: it would allow the Procurement Policy Board to reduce questionnaire requirements for prospective contractors depending on the contract, permit the mayor to delegate approval of some contracts valued at over $5 million, and require the board to meet at least once every three months.

Question 3 bundles street safety, property and leasing: it would change the required steps for reviewing and approving street safety projects — allowing construction without a formal review in certain cases to protect public safety — expedite the process for leasing office space for city workers, and allow the mayor to sell or lease some city property without a public auction or sealed bids. Question 4 concerns building permits: it would require the Department of Buildings to create a centralized system for submitting permit applications, authorize the department to oversee waterfront permitting, and allow the commissioner to expand construction approval power to a greater number of department officials.

Question 5 is the money question: it would create a target for annual contributions to the city's rainy day fund of 12 percent of the tax revenue received in the previous fiscal year, and require the city to develop a methodology for calculating future contributions. Voters authorized the fund itself in 2019, but as of 2026 there are no required annual contributions to it. Citizens Union, the city's oldest good-government group, announced on October 1 that it supports all five questions — a recommendation voters can weigh alongside the text of each proposal before they reach the booth, where polls are open Tuesday from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and early voting runs through Sunday at each voter's assigned site.