The City Council met for a special session on December 1 to discuss two consent items. It approved a professional services agreement with the Center for New Democratic Processes (CNDP) to develop and conduct a civic assembly, as recommended by the Civic Assembly Ad Hoc Subcommittee.
CNDP will conduct a civic assembly to examine how to increase public participation in the budget process, with a budget cap of $230,000. The assembly will include 30 paid participants.
On October 27, the City Council authorized conducting a civic assembly to consider how the public wants to be engaged or participate in the City’s budget process and directed staff to solicit proposals from organizations to develop and conduct a civic assembly. On November 10, staff presented Council with an update on its efforts to solicit proposals from consultants. The City received responses from five organizations..
The City Council established a Civic Assembly Ad Hoc Subcommittee to evaluate the proposals and conduct interviews and make a recommendation to the City Council.
CNDP was ultimately recommended due to its experience facilitating deliberations focused on governmental process improvements with actionable outcomes. CNDP has also worked with the Government Finance Officers Association on efforts to improve public participation in municipal budgeting.
City of Culver City
