What the four Pataskala charter amendments on the November 3 ballot proposed

Pataskala voters decided four separate proposed amendments to the City Charter on November 3, according to ballot language published by the Licking County Board of Elections. Three questions came from the City's Charter Revision Commission process, while a fourth would add a new charter section concerning construction of certain data centers.

Unofficial results posted by the Board of Elections after the election show more yes votes than no votes on all four questions. Those results are not final until the Board certifies them. PataskalaOH.com reports them in a separate article, "Unofficial results show majority yes votes on all four Pataskala charter amendments." This article describes what each question proposed.

The first three ballot questions ask voters whether specified Charter sections should be amended "as recommended by the Charter Revision Commission, as approved by Council of the City of Pataskala, and as advertised twice in the Newark Advocate." The ballot itself does not describe the substance of those three changes.

PataskalaOH.com reviewed the Board of Elections ballot wording, Ordinances 2026-4521 and 2026-4524, and the Charter Revision Commission's final 2025 recommendations to Council. Exhibit A to Ordinance 2026-4521, which the ordinance identifies as containing the amended Charter language, was not included with the copies reviewed. For that reason, the descriptions of proposed changes in Questions 1 through 3 below are attributed to the commission's report rather than presented as definitive final amendment text.

The first ballot question asks whether Section 3.07, Salaries of Elected Officials, should be amended. According to the Charter Revision Commission's final 2025 recommendations to Council, the recommended change would allow elected officials to access the same healthcare benefits available to full-time Pataskala City employees, but elected officials would have to pay the entire cost and the City would pay none of it.

The second ballot question covered ten sections together: 3.02, 4.14, 5.04, 5.05, 6.02, 6.03, 8.02, 9.01, 10.02 and 11.01. Voters approved or rejected those sections as one question.

According to the Charter Revision Commission report, the recommendations include clarifying that ward Council members must reside in the wards from which they are elected; removing a duplicated Charter section; preventing the Finance Director from serving as Acting City Administrator and the City Administrator from serving as Acting Finance Director; requiring a formal internal review of City emergency plans every five years; and broadening the City Administrator's ability to attend boards and commissions.

The same report also recommends changing an Internal Control Audit provision from saying Council "shall provide" an independent audit at least once every six years to saying Council "may provide" one as it deems necessary. It would rename the Department of Inspection as the Department of Planning and Zoning, allow the City Administrator or a designee to serve as contracting officer, revise nomination and recall petition language to refer to Ohio law, and add City websites and social media to certain public-notice requirements.

Because Exhibit A to Ordinance 2026-4521 was not available in the official copies reviewed, those details reflect the Charter Revision Commission's recommendation and should not be read as a word-for-word reproduction of the final amendment text approved by Council.

The third ballot question asks whether Section 7.04, Parks and Recreation Board, should be amended. According to the commission's report, the recommendation would add the title "Director of Parks and Recreation" alongside Park Manager. The report's updated text also removes language stating that employment of the Park Manager is subject to confirmation by a majority of Council and that Council may consider input from the Park Board.

Ordinance 2026-4521 states that amendments approved by voters would take effect January 1, 2027 and that the remaining sections of the Charter would remain unchanged.

The fourth ballot question originated with a citizen initiative petition and would add a new Section 11.09 titled "Prohibition of a Data Center" to Article XI of the Charter.

The proposed section states that "the construction of a data center is hereby prohibited." Its definition of construction includes the erection of buildings, infrastructure and facilities, along with preparations and modifications for the same common purpose.

The proposed definition of a data center is narrower than the phrase alone may suggest. A property or group of parcels would have to be used primarily or exclusively for digital information services and have aggregate monthly demand or peak load greater than 25 megawatts, however derived from any energy source or combination of sources.

The proposal addresses construction. The text reviewed does not state that existing facilities would be prohibited from operating. The ballot question says the amendment would prohibit construction of a data center within City limits and would be effective immediately if approved.

The ballot identifies this as a separate charter amendment requiring a majority affirmative vote for passage.

The Licking County Board of Elections ballot display lists the four Pataskala charter amendments separately, each with YES and NO choices. The three Charter Revision Commission questions do not summarize the substance of the amendments beyond identifying the affected Charter sections. The data-center question prints the proposed Section 11.09 language on the ballot.

For the three commission-related questions, readers seeking the detailed proposed language should review the City's Charter materials and the legal notice referenced in Ordinance 2026-4521. PataskalaOH.com will update this article if Exhibit A or another official source containing the final amendment text becomes available.

Related coverage: Unofficial results show majority yes votes on all four Pataskala charter amendments · Pataskala Voter Guide: November 3, 2026 Election

Source: Licking County Board of Elections and City of Pataskala