Topic
City Council
Group violence intervention tries to curb gun violence by focusing on the people most at risk. Now the city's public safety director wants council to approve a three-year, $300,000 deal with Homewood's Operation Better Block. The group provides technology for the program, like tracking outreach work and potential hot spots. Council is set to take it up March 11.
Westmoreland County
While public comment centered on immigration enforcement, most formal actions taken by commissioners focused on housing, public health and infrastructure investments.
County Council
In her Feb. 10 address to council, Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato reported progress on snow clearing, public safety, and housing. She said homicides fell last year to the lowest level since electronic records began, crediting violence interruption teams. Her Feb. 5 executive order introduced a Housing Investment Fund. Her goal is $50 million to $100 million in public and private money for affordable housing.
County Council
Fewer people are living outdoors in Allegheny County than last year, a county council member said. Counting on Feb. 3, she saw no one on a South Side trail where she said 60 to 70 lived last year. She credited coordinated outreach and the Housing First approach. Still, winter shelters are open, she noted, so warmer months may look different.
City Council
Rape crisis centers across Pennsylvania have gone six years without a state funding increase. Now, City Council has called on the legislature to raise funding for Pittsburgh Action Against Rape and centers statewide. PAAR served nearly 2,500 people in the past year, about 15% of them children, council's request said. About 20% of its funding comes from the state, the Tribune-Review reported.
County Council
Back in 2021, voters approved limits on solitary confinement and some uses of force at the county jail. A jail employees' union argued the limits should be subject to bargaining. A labor board and two lower courts ruled against it, so the union has appealed to the state Supreme Court. This week, county council voted to have its solicitor decide whether to file a brief.
City Council
A change this year to the Stop the Violence Fund created anchor organizations, one per police zone. Now, council has approved the first five, with agreements totaling about $2.6 million over three years. A city official said they'll support smaller groups and teach families to handle conflict. However, no suitable proposal came in for Zone 1, so that request will reopen.
County Council
Landlords must address chipped or peeling lead paint but aren't required to remove it. Now, county council has authorized the health department to remove lead from private properties when it's a public health hazard. The owner will be billed for the work plus a 10% fee. Another bill halves asbestos permit costs for disadvantaged or distressed businesses.
County Council
About 20 people died in Allegheny County Jail custody from 2020 to 2025, TribLive reported. Now, county council has unanimously passed legislation requiring the medical examiner to prioritize investigating those deaths. Reports must reach the warden, the Jail Oversight Board, and the county manager within three business days of completion. Still, it doesn't address public access to autopsy reports.
City Council
Since Nov. 17, residents can request a crisis team through 911. Under a new model, social workers from the Office of Community Health and Safety ride in pairs without police. Their response time averages 10 minutes, about the same as EMS, an assistant public safety director said. For now, though, the teams work only during weekday business hours.
City Council
Co-response teams pair social workers with police on mental health calls, but only weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. They also cover just three of the city's six police zones. Now, the Department of Public Safety wants council to approve a $483,000 nonprofit donation for Downtown coverage. The public safety director said it would mainly pay for police overtime.
City Council
Pittsburgh would allow tiny house communities for unhoused residents under legislation council affirmed. It covers tiny houses only in managed temporary communities, not ones built for private use. For now, the city has no plans to build any, since recent county efforts are serving those needs. Still, council wanted the option in place in case the need arises.
City Council
A bill would make the minimum penalty for sex work a $100 fine, like a traffic ticket. Currently, it's a misdemeanor, with up to a year in jail for a first offense. The bill doesn't decriminalize sex work, though. Council unanimously advanced it, and a final vote is set for July 8.
City Council
Council's committee meeting this week ran 8 hours, and almost 70 people gave public comment. The largest group, 59 speakers, favored strengthening the Stop the Violence Fund. Speakers also weighed in on protections for trans healthcare and sex workers, and 11 opposed a public safety training campus. Top agenda items included reducing the minimum penalty for sex work.
City Council
A 2015 city law gives people working in Pittsburgh paid sick time. Council has now affirmed changes so workers earn it faster, with higher yearly caps starting Jan. 1, 2026. At businesses with 15 or more employees, the cap rises from 40 to 72 hours. To help small businesses, the council president said council will seek grants and loans.
City Council
Through Safe Passage, some Pittsburgh Public Schools students train to interrupt violence in and out of school. On May 14, council heard from students and adults about its results. A public safety official reported discipline events down 27% and no homicides among 13- to 17-year-olds in 2024. Piloted at Perry High School in 2021, it's now in seven schools.
City Council
A $1.5 million shelter services contract with Auberle has sat in committee since July 2024. It's fully funded by a federal program meant to reduce homelessness. Now, a council member said a federal housing official has reviewed an updated proposal giving preference to homeless families. Still, the amendment process includes a public hearing that hasn't been scheduled.
City Council
Police have identified untested sexual assault kits tied to backlogged cases. Now, council has unanimously advanced a request for $37,000 from a 2023 grant, mostly for detective overtime on those cases. The request also sets aside $1,000 for a soft interview room for victims. Still, the number of untested kits wasn't mentioned.
City Council
In 2024, the county and its partners helped house about 1,700 people, including some couch surfing or living in cars. Efforts to address camps along riverfront trails and in the Business District have moved 75 people into shelters. The county expects to hit its goal of 500 affordable units in 500 days this October, the human services director said.
City Council
People in need could get private, individual shelter spaces instead of group settings under a city bill. It would accept $1.5 million from a federal housing program to build them with Auberle. For now, council has put a four-week hold on the bill. No reason was given for the hold.