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Ballot question

New York City Ballot Question 4: Building permitting and waterfront permits

On the ballot in
City of New York
Vote
Yes or no
Election
Nov 3, 2026

The question, as printed on the ballot

Proposed Charter Amendment: Simplify Building Permitting and Move Waterfront Permitting to Department of Buildings Create centralized construction permits hub to simplify permitting. Move waterfront permitting from Department of Small Business Services to Department of Buildings. Allow construction approval by additional Department of Buildings officials. “Yes” simplifies permitting by authorizing a centralized permitting hub, moving waterfront permitting to Department of Buildings, and allowing additional Department of Buildings officials to issue approvals. “No” leaves laws unchanged.

A “Yes” vote means

A yes vote authorizes a centralized construction permit hub, moves waterfront permitting to the Department of Buildings, and lets more Buildings officials issue approvals.

A “No” vote means

A no vote leaves the laws unchanged.

Official plain English statement

This proposal would authorize the Commissioner of the Department of Buildings (DOB) to appoint additional deputy commissioners and additional borough commissioners who could approve construction documents as part of the permitting process. This proposal would also direct DOB, in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection, the Fire Department, and the Department of Transportation, to develop a centralized construction permit submission and approval system. Finally, this proposal would transfer responsibility for permitting along the waterfront from the Department of Small Business Services to DOB.

Question wording from the Board of Elections' Appendix A and its contest list; the plain-English text is the opening paragraph of the official abstract (Appendix B), which goes on to describe current law, the proposed changes and when they take effect.

Sources

The question and plain English statement are copied word for word from official election materials. The Gist does not take a side on ballot questions.