The Baltimore City Charter
The Charter is Baltimore's rule book. It says what the Mayor can do, what the Council can do, who handles the money, who watches the watchers, and how laws get made. Below is every article in plain language — click any one to read the official text.
Article I — General Provisions
Establishes Baltimore as a municipal corporation — "the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore" — sets the city's boundaries, and defines the basic legal terms used throughout the Charter.
Article II — General Powers
Lists what the city is allowed to do: tax, borrow, own property, run schools and the port, regulate health and safety, build streets and water systems, and pass ordinances to carry it all out.
Article III — City Council
Creates the 15-member City Council (14 district members plus a Council President), sets terms and qualifications, and lays out how a bill becomes a city ordinance — including the Mayor's veto and the Council's override.
Article IV — Mayor
Defines the Mayor as the city's chief executive: enforces the laws, appoints most agency heads (with Council confirmation), writes the budget, and can veto Council bills.
Article V — Comptroller
Sets up the elected Comptroller as an independent financial watchdog who audits city spending, oversees city real estate and telecommunications, and sits on the Board of Estimates.
Article VI — Board of Estimates
Creates the 5-member Board of Estimates — Mayor, Council President, Comptroller, City Solicitor, and Director of Public Works — that approves nearly every city contract and every line of the operating and capital budgets.
Article VII — Executive Departments
Lists the executive departments and major boards and commissions (Finance, Law, Public Works, Planning, Housing, Recreation and Parks, Health, Fire, Police, Transportation, and more) and says who they answer to.
Article VIII — Franchises
Controls how the city grants long-term rights to use public streets, sidewalks, and air space — for utilities, rail, and other private uses — and how those franchises are priced and renewed.
Article IX — Transition Provisions
Bridges old law to new: keeps existing ordinances, contracts, and officials in place when the Charter is revised so the city keeps running without a gap.
Article X — Office of the Inspector General
Establishes the Inspector General as an independent watchdog over waste, fraud, and abuse in city government, appointed by an 11-member advisory board to keep the office insulated from political pressure.
Article XI — Charter Review Commission
Requires a Charter Review Commission to meet every ten years to study the Charter and recommend amendments to voters — the city's built-in tune-up schedule.
Read the full Charter
The official version lives on the Baltimore City Law Library. It's long, but it's the final word.
Open the official Charter