Explanation
This ordinance authorizes the City Clerk to enter into a fiscal agency agreement with the Participatory Budgeting Project (PBP) to provide payment to residents serving as facilitators for budget delegates during the participatory budgeting initiative.
The Our Voice, Our Choice participatory budgeting initiative has seen tremendous community engagement: between July 6th and August 28th of this year, the city received over 750 project proposals from residents. Following completion of the proposal submissions stage, the initiative shifted to feasibility review, wherein administration staff evaluated the project proposals against criteria for cost, capital eligibility, and estimated timeline to determine if projects should advance to the next stage. The feasibility review process has now been completed.
In this next stage, Impact & Equity Review, volunteer budget delegates will review those projects that have advanced through feasibility review to ultimately craft a ballot of projects for their district. Residents will then select from those projects on the ballot, totaling no more than $1 million, for implementation.
While the role of budget delegate is voluntary and unpaid, some residents will serve as facilitators, which will entail additional work and responsibilities and for which they will be compensated $500. Facilitators will ensure that budget delegates have the information and resources necessary to complete their work, they will set meeting agendas and establish meeting processes, and they will ensure that budget delegates are able to assemble a ballot in time for voting, which is currently scheduled to begin in mid-January.
PBP has agreed to act as a fiscal agent for the distribution of these payments, for which they will be paid an administrative fee of $1,500.
Fiscal Impact: Funding is available within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund.
Title
To authorize the City Clerk to enter a fiscal agency agreement with The Participatory Budgeting Project, Inc. for payment to budget delegate facilitators; and to authorize an appropriation and expenditure within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund. ($7,500.00)
Body
WHEREAS, the Our Voice, Our Choice participatory budgeting initiative has seen tremendous community engagement, with over 750 projects submitted by residents between July 6th and August 28th; and
WHEREAS, in the next stage of the initiative, Impact & Equity Review, volunteer budget delegates will review those projects that have advanced through feasibility review to ultimately craft a ballot of projects for their district; and
WHEREAS, facilitators will be compensated for the additional work associated with ensuring that budget delegates have the information and resources necessary to complete their work, and ensuring that budget delegates are able to assemble a ballot in time for voting, which is currently scheduled to begin in mid-January; now, therefore,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the City Clerk is hereby authorized to enter into a fiscal agency agreement with The Participatory Budgeting Project, Inc. for payment to budget delegate facilitators.
SECTION 2. That the Auditor is hereby authorized and directed to appropriate $7,500.00 within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 3. That per the action authorized by Section 1 of this ordinance, the expenditure of $7,500.00 within the general fund, fund 1000, subfund 100018, is hereby authorized per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 4. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes to revise the funding source for all contracts or contract modifications associated with this ordinance.
SECTION 5. That this ordinance shall take effect at the earliest date allowable by law.