Participatory budgeting is a way for community members to have a direct say on how the municipal government uses a certain part of its budget. The process is repeated every year and involves projects proposed and voted on by residents.
In 2023 Józsefváros residents will be able to decide about how the local government should spend 150 million HUF through participatory budgeting. The process will take place between February and July 2023.
The 150 million HUF available will be divided into 4 parts. Józsefváros will be divided into 3 zones, in which up to 40-40 million HUF will be used to implement the ideas voted on. Ideas that are not linked to a specific location will be placed in the “whole district” category. In this category, winning ideas can be implemented up to a maximum of 30 million HUF.
Why participate?
The 2022 participation budgeting has shown that a good idea can make a real difference to the life of our district: the residents of Józsefváros know best what they need, and they can make a difference by creating a micro-park, a public toilet or even a plant fair. Ideas and voters have an impact in Józsefváros and together we can improve our streets and public spaces.
How can you get involved?
There are two parts to the participation budgeting process: submitting ideas and voting.
Anyone who has some connection to the district (living, studying or working here) and is over 16 years old can submit an idea between February 1 and March 20, 2023. Ideas will be submitted through brainstorming workshops and Participation Points, which will also be voting sites.
Submit your ideas and votes in person at the Józsefváros Mayor’s Office (Baross utca 63-67.)
You can participate online at: https://reszvetel.jozsefvaros.hu/
What happens to my idea after submission?
Ideas submitted will go through a multi-stage screening and development process, where the ideas will be assessed for feasibility by municipal staff and then by working groups of volunteer local residents.
Where necessary, they refine the content of the idea and estimate its cost. Similar ideas are then combined, consolidated and a list of ideas proposed for the ballot is compiled.
You can apply here to become a member of the working group: https://reszvetel.jozsefvaros.hu/reszveteli-koltsegvetes/tartalom/munkacsoport-tagnak-jelentkezem/
During the screening and development process, the original idea submitted may be modified and given more elaborate content. If your idea makes it to the ballot, it will be marked on the idea’s data sheet at https://reszvetel.jozsefvaros.hu/. The residents of Józsefváros will vote for the renewed ideas created through this process.
How can I vote?
You can vote online and in person from May 15 to June 15, 2023. All residents of Józsefváros over the age of 16 can vote. You can vote at https://reszvetel.jozsefvaros.hu/ or on paper. You will have 5 votes in total. You can use two votes in your own zone, one in the other two zones and one among the ideas for the whole district.
What happens to the ideas that don’t win?
No idea is bad or unnecessary, but it may not make it onto the ballot this round. Such ideas will be referred to the relevant department in the Mayor’s Office, the relevant Deputy Mayor and the elected individual representative in the area by the Office of Community Participation.
Who implements the ideas?
The winning ideas will be implemented by the Municipality of Józsefváros. If the municipality involves a partner in the implementation, the partner will be selected through a tender. Where possible, we will consult with the person who submitted the idea during the implementation process.
How can you participate in organizing participatory budgeting?
- Become a volunteer organizer! Meet residents, help with ideas, voting and organizing activities and join a great team!
- Participate in the working group that screens incoming ideas! It’s up to you to decide which ideas make it onto the ballot. The residents’ working groups will finalize the list of ideas to be put up for the vote. If you want to understand how local government works, this is the place for you!
- Become a Participation Point! Do you run an NGO or a community space? At the Participation Points, residents can submit their ideas and vote in the Józsefváros participatory budgeting.
For more information and to register, please contact the Office of Community Participation (Közösségi Részvételi Iroda):
reszvetel@jozsefvaros.hu
+36/1 459 2139