History of Home Rule in Pennsylvania
When Pennsylvania was chartered in 1681, its proprietor, William Penn, was given the power to create counties, towns, and other municipalities, and the legislature was given sovereignty over them. "Abuse of legislative interference in local matters in the nineteenth century led to prohibition of special and local laws in the Constitution of 1874". Early in the 20th century, the concept of municipal home rule spread across the United States, and in 1922 the Pennsylvania Constitution was amended to give the legislature the right to grant cities the right to choose home rule. Philadelphia became the first home rule city of Pennsylvania in 1951. The Assembly further adopted the Optional Third Class City Charter Law in 1957, and in 1968, the new Constitution declared "Municipalities shall have the right and power to frame and adopt home rule charters." The new Home Rule Charter and Optional Plans Law, creating that right in the statutes of the Commonwealth, was passed in 1972.
Read more about this topic: Home Rule Municipality (Pennsylvania)
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