County Council & School Board.
Written by Annabelle Chipps, Chris Maury and Amy Whipple
In the coming weeks, we plan to expand our coverage to the Pittsburgh Public School Board and the Allegheny County Council. These meetings will be in their own newsletters to help keep things organized, and they'll be included with existing subscriptions to Pittsburgh City Council. As you'll see below, the issues discussed in the school board affect Pittsburgh city residents, even if you don't have kids in PPS.
Resident feedback is still our focus.
This year we've shared over 2,500 survey responses with Pittsburgh City Council members, and by the end of the year, every survey had responses from all nine council districts. The whole reason we do our reporting is so that we can support informed residents driving more informed decisions by their elected officials. We'll continue to do just that, sharing reader survey responses with school board and county council members.
A sample of reader feedback from the last year
- 36% are concerned about their ability to afford living in the city after tax increases from the city, school board, and county.
- 77% believe that council should not approve contracts before the cost to residents has been established.
- 46% strongly oppose Pittsburgh declaring itself a sanctuary city
- 45% strongly support Pittsburgh declaring itself a sanctuary city
Finally, as we gear up to expand our coverage, we've started drafting articles on school board and county council meetings. The December school board meeting was a big one, so we thought we would go ahead and share it here. Stay tuned for more regular reporting, and Happy New Year!
More surveys
Have your say on more of the stories we’re covering.
Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of DirectorsCity of Pittsburgh
Tax rates increased and a ban on phones, taking photos & videos.
Mayor Corey O'Connor was sworn in this past Monday which took the place of the City Council's regularly scheduled meetings. We wanted to take this time to update you on our plans for the new year and…
Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of Directors
Cell phones, taking photos banned during school day at all Pittsburgh Public Schools starting this fall.
There will be no selfies in science class, no Instagram in algebra, and no SnapChat in social studies in the Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) in the next school year.
Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of Directors
Pittsburgh Public Schools approves 2% property tax hike, adding ~$13/ year for the average homeowner.
The Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) board approved its 2026 budget, including a 2% property tax increase, with a 6 to 3 vote during a legislative meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 17.
Allegheny County Council
County Council weighs whether to jump into jail fight.
Allegheny County Council is weighing whether to step into a fight over whether disciplinary actions at the Allegheny County Jail can be determined by a referendum.
Allegheny County Council
Pittsburgh City Council
Pittsburgh inks $100,000 contract to teach residents to recycle.
The Department of Public Works (DPW) wants residents to stop trashing recyclable packaging.
Pittsburgh City Council
The city looks at taking over a blighted apartment building.
The city may condemn a 100-unit apartment building in Homewood in order to save the homes of the people who live there.
Pittsburgh City Council
Land bank looks to spend millions to return properties to the tax rolls.
The Pittsburgh Land Bank (PLB) has estimated it could cost $168.5 million to put 11,311 abandoned parcels back on the city’s tax rolls.
City of PittsburghPittsburgh City Council
Pittsburgh City Council
City property taxes slated to go up 20%.
Pittsburgh homeowners may soon see a 20% increase on their property tax bill.
City of PittsburghPittsburgh City Council
Pittsburgh City Council
City council passes a budget that is $15 million more than the mayor’s.
After over 40 hours of public meetings, hearings, discussions, and seemingly endless votes, council passed the 2026 budget.
Pittsburgh City Council
Anchor organizations named to “Stop the Violence.”
Council approved the first five anchor organizations for the Stop the Violence Fund.
Pittsburgh City Council
Stop the Violence money may be used for city trucks.
A proposed reduction in this year's Stop the Violence funding had community members speaking out for the program.
Pittsburgh City Council
Council, mayor dispute ability to terminate the comprehensive plan contracts.
Now that the city has already spent $4 million of a $6 million contract to create a comprehensive plan, city council has given preliminary approval to terminate “ineffective and ineffectual”…
Pittsburgh City Council
City property sales to out-of-state buyers rejected.
City council is looking for a mechanism to stop out-of-state limited liability companies (LLCs) purchasing property at auction.
Pittsburgh City CouncilCity of Pittsburgh
Allegheny County Council
Walnut Capital to get a $1.2 million tax break from the county.
Despite expressing misgivings during discussion, council authorized $1.2 million in tax relief for a prominent local developer.
Allegheny County Council
Medical examiner expected to investigate all jail inmate deaths.
Allegheny County Council wants increased transparency regarding the deaths of incarcerated individuals.
Allegheny County Council