About Participatory Budgeting

What is PB?

The role of tech in pb

Why do cities do Pb?

What is PB? 

Participatory Budgeting, or PB as it is commonly called, is about expanding the way we do democracy at the local level. It is a community engagement process that encourages citizens to participate in decision-making on how local officials allocate a portion of public funds. 

Citizens participate by submitting proposals for projects they believe will benefit their communities, and then voting for the projects to receive funding. But PB is not only about giving “power to the people.”

If done well, PB can help build trust, improve understanding of local governance, increase civic participation, and strengthen ties within the community.

PB happens in a 3-phase process:

A brief history of PB

PB is widely considered one of the most effective democratic improvements of the last few decades. 

The process began in the 1980s  in Porto Alegre, Brazil, a city with a population of 1.2 million at the time. The successful PB experiment in Porto Alegre led to more cities across the country creating their own PB initiatives. By 2001, more than 100 cities in Brazil had implemented a PB initiative. 

PB initiatives have since taken place in cities all over the world. From Buenos Aires to New York to Seoul, PB is becoming a part of the way that cities engage with their population. After being honed in Brazil, the first PB took place in the United States in 2009 in Chicago, and soon after in New York in 2011. As of 2015, over 1,500 recorded PB initiatives have taken place on five continents. 

Major cities like Paris, Madrid, New York, and Chicago sponsor PB initiatives that allocate budgets in the tens of millions of dollars (or euros). Similarly though, small cities also do PB,  like Vallejo, California, with a population of 120,000 and budget of $1.6 million. There have even been PB initiatives in schools and colleges, with New York City implementing PB in all of their high schools.

Why do cities do PB?

PB is a versatile process, and cities may choose to run a PB initiative in a variety of ways to achieve varying results. Generally, cities do PB to achieve a mix of the following:

Build trust in local officials

We are in a time when it is increasingly important for elected officials to engage with their citizens in authentic and meaningful ways. To build trust where it might not exist or has been broken, PB brings transparency and accountability to the misunderstood or unknown process of allocating public funds. For many citizens, PB offers a first experience of working alongside elected officials in a way that fosters trust.

Improve community engagement

Community engagement has declined in recent decades, and an increasing number of concerned local leaders are taking action to reverse the trend. For many citizens, opportunities for participation in our democratic system can seem daunting or burdensome. PB offers an accessible way for citizens to get involved and see a tangible, timely response to their participation. It also encourages relationship building both with local officials and neighbors that drives further civic involvement.

Advance civic education 

Despite efforts by schools, local officials and dedicated organizations, many citizens don’t have a very good picture of how their local government works. Often, they don’t even know who their representatives are. PB has a wide appeal that not only offers anyone a seat at the table, it teaches participants about local decision making and budget allocation. It also reinforces an understanding of their civic duties and the myriad of ways to participate.

Promote what matters to constituents 

PB is an idea-generating process that fosters innovative, collaborative and creative solutions to local problems. Even well-connected local officials will gain a better understanding of constituent needs. PB helps officials sort through the volume of constituent requests to determine how the public believes they can best improve the community. Even projects not chosen through the vote offer leaders ideas for how to allocate additional funds that will have a positive impact.

Boost communications 

PB isn’t a one-way conversation. Local officials have the opportunity to listen to the ideas and values of their constituents, and also have the opportunity to talk to them in new ways as well. PB opens a two-way communications channel for officials that will develop and strengthen relationships and trust.

A more livable city

People live in a certain city for an untold number of reasons. But regardless of these differences, many citizens agree on what could make their community better. PB surfaces ideas and solutions for doing just that from the people that it matters the to most. Local politicians and their populations are aligned in wanting a more livable city. PB offers a thorough and effective way for them to collaborate.

Is my city a good candidate for PB? 

Although PB is only practiced in a handful of US cities, we believe that as the process gets more efficient and well known, more cities will jump on board. Any city with the necessary elements can do PB, and it often boils down to an available budget and resolve.

Here are some questions to answer to figure out if your city is ready for a PB:

• Do I have a budget to allocate? 

  • Ideally you are either a decision-maker with authority over a budget, or you know one. Either way, the only absolutely necessary things needed to run a PB are a budget to allocate, and the approval of the allocator. If this isn’t you but you think your representative or department would be interested, then you can ask them to sponsor a PB. Feel free to put them in touch with us and we can talk them through it.

• Is there already civic engagement in my city? 

  • One of the main things that helps PB thrive is a population that is ready to get involved. It can be anything from PTAs to political organizations to bicycling clubs. If your community-members are getting together regularly, then they could help make PB a success. 

• Are there representatives in my city who care about participation? 

  • The truth is that not all leaders believe that their populations should get involved in decision-making. For example in New York approximately 35 city council members provide PBs to their population, but there are still ~15 that do not.

What role does technology play in PB? 

The use of technology in democratic processes is a serious topic, and it is important that the challenges and opportunities technology offers be considered during the design process. Ultimately, given technology’s reach and accessibility, we encourage practitioners of PB to include digital components. 

PB innovations like digital idea collection platforms and ballots are considered essential for PB to scale and to be inclusive for diverse audiences. At the same time, they are not meant to overshadow the valuable in-person experiences that allow for the compelling relationship and trust building benefits. Below are some benefits of using technology in your PB process, along with drawbacks of over-reliance on technology.

Drawbacks of Over-relying on Technology (and not building in a robust in-person process):

• Loses key democratic experiences of PB such as learning to compromise with neighbors, or build civic bonds face to face

• May lead to shallow engagement where people only participate in small parts of the process 

• May deter participants who do not know how or find it difficult to use the technology 

The best design for a PB initiative includes a hybrid of in-person and digital components. Technology will undoubtedly play an important role in the future of PB. It is incumbent on practitioners to make sure it is integrated into the process in a thoughtful and strategic way that encourages participation by all citizens to participate in the democratic experience.