Participatory Budgeting Visioning begins in Albuquerque

History of PB
PB started in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 1989. Since then, PB has spread to over 7,000 cities around the world, and has been used to decide budgets from states, counties, cities, housing authorities, schools, and other institutions. The New York Times calls PB “revolutionary civics in action”. It deepens democracy, builds stronger communities, and creates a more equitable distribution of public resources. In the US there are currently PB’s in places as diverse as: New York, NY; Nashville, NC; Phoenix, AZ; Vallejo, CA; Chicago, IL;
Grand Rapids, MI; Central Fall, RI; and Seattle, WA.

Why PB in Albuquerque?
Residents of Albuquerque share a unique and profound connection to Place, setting the City apart from many other urban centers in the United States. Participatory Budgeting in Albuquerque would serve as a valuable tool to mobilize and amplify diverse voices in the ongoing construction of the place that holds profound meaning for so many denizens. PB in Albuquerque would reinforce and build upon the City’s
values and aspirations of cultural diversity, equity and universality, community development and responsive and inclusive governance.

5 Stages of Participatory Budgeting
Participatory budgeting typically involves several stages that engage communities in the decision-making process. While the exact stages may vary, the following five stages are commonly used in PB processes around the world:

1. Design: parties responsible for the PB process plan the year’s PB process.
2. Idea Collection: community members submit project ideas, big and small, they wish to see in their community. These can be one sentence proposals or in-depth case studies.
3. Proposal Development: project ideas are narrowed down, given more in-depth planning, and given a price tag.
4. Voting: the community votes on which projects they want to see funded.
5. Implementation, Evaluation, and Planning: the implementation of the voted-on projects begins, parties responsible for carrying out the process evaluate the successes and failures of the process, and planning begins for next year's process.

For more information on future opportunities to get involved, please email [email protected].