Volunteer as a Budget Delegate and help decide which ideas make it to the ballot!
Sign up here!
Budget Delegates are essential to Participatory Budgeting. Volunteering as a Budget Delegate is a great opportunity to become a community leader, develop teambuilding skills, get to know your neighbors, build your resume, and help make your city a better place.
Budget Delegates will review all of the ideas submitted by the community in June and July and will work during the fall to research, assess, and prioritize those ideas and determine which ones will be developed into full proposals for the PB vote in December.
Serving as a Budget Delegate requires a significant time commitment from mid-August through October, and a smaller time commitment in mid and late November. Please review the schedule below to decide whether this role is right for you.
Budget Delegate Schedule:
- Budget Delegate Orientation: Monday 8/5 from 6-8pm Location TBD. Learn more about the process, choose your committee, and meet your teammates and facilitator.
- Weekly committee meetings: Budget Delegate Committees will meet weekly from mid-August through late October to review, research, and prioritize ideas. Committees don’t have to meet every single week, but 6-8 meetings will likely be necessary. Budget Office staff will help find meeting space.
- Speed Consultations with City staff: We will organize two in-person consultations with City staff, one in September and one in October, at City Hall. Think of it as Department speed dating – Budget Delegates will move around the room talking with and asking questions of various department reps. Budget Office staff will help coordinate communication with departments outside of these consultations as well.
- Delegates submit Proposal Shortlist to Budget Office: Monday 10/21 by 5pm. Delegates do not need to meet while City staff are evaluating proposals. City staff will provide final feedback and cost estimates to Delegates by 5pm on Thursday 11/7.
- Delegates submit final ballot text to Budget Office: Thursday 11/14 by 5pm.
- PB Vote Week: Saturday 11/30 – Saturday 12/7. Tell your friends to vote!
- PB Vote Results Party: Tuesday 12/10 from 6-7pm. Find out which projects won $1,000,000 in funding!
If you are interested in serving as a PB Budget Delegate, please sign up here by July 17, 2019!
Thank you for supporting Participatory Budgeting in Cambridge!
If you're interested in learning more about the PB process or have any questions, please contact Matt in the City's Budget Office at pb@cambridgema.gov or (617) 349-4270.