The City Budget: Why It Matters and How to Get Involved

What is a city or county budget?

• Budgets are the plan of expected revenues and expenditures of a government for the upcoming fiscal year. Fiscal years don’t necessarily line up with calendar years. The federal government, states, counties, and cities all have budgets.
• Budgets are generally made up of different types of budgets, like an operating budget and a capital budget. Operating budgets, also known as expense budgets, show expenditures for the current fiscal year and are what people typically think of as the city budget. They include how much money is needed to fund the day-to-day operations of the city. Capital budgets cover funding for physical infrastructure used for government operations (government buildings, schools) and general public use (public parks, libraries, roads). Other types of budgets include a Revenue budget, which estimates the city’s income from things like taxes, government service fees, and the state and federal government.
• Typically, the mayor and/or city manager are responsible for developing and, eventually, implementing the budget. The city council is responsible for holding public hearings, making changes, and approving the final budget. 

Why is it important?

• Budgets are one of (if not the) most important aspects of local government. 
• Budgets express policy priorities - they determine what funding is given to education, sanitation, police, libraries, social services, public housing, economic development, and other important areas.
• They also determine who gets taxed, and how much.
• The performance of departments and services is also supposed to be monitored and made public, so the city and citizens can use the data and information gathered when approving the next budget. Measuring what results were achieved from funding is important in ensuring that the government remains responsive and effective to citizens. 

How to get involved

• First, identify the timeline for your city’s budget process. When does the fiscal year start and end, and when does the budget move to City Council to review? This is the most critical time for everyday citizens to be able to attend city council meetings and have their voice heard.
• Strongtowns.org created a helpful walkthrough guide for investigating your city’s budget. Check it out here.
• If you’re in California, the California Budget and Policy Center provides information on state and local budgeting processes. Many larger cities have non-governmental organizations dedicated to monitoring the budget and advocating for certain policies.
• Check out Ballotpedia’s analysis of spending in America’s 100 largest cities by population to learn more about how cities across the nation spend their money.
• You can also start just by looking up your city government website and going from there.