Council debates shrinking or repealing citizen budget committee amid low participation

The Riverside city manager recommended the council consider amending or repealing Chapter 134, the 2021 ordinance that established a large citizen budget committee, citing persistent low participation and operational difficulty.

The ordinance currently calls for a large committee—described in the code as 28 members, a primary and alternate from each voting precinct—language the manager said is now out of date because precincts were renumbered and the theoretical committee size exceeds the ordinance’s original figure. The manager told council the committee has struggled to attract and retain members and that recent meetings drew roughly three regular attendees.

Councilmembers said they value resident engagement but generally favored reducing the membership requirement or changing the committee’s role rather than removing public involvement entirely. One councilmember recommended retaining a smaller, sustainable committee to preserve a direct citizen avenue into budget conversations; another suggested using a periodic “open house” model and improving communications so more residents learn about the opportunity.

The manager said the committee’s work has been more educational than decisional in recent years because the city is operating with structural deficits and limited discretionary funds; therefore committee meetings have focused on explaining how state policy and revenue changes affect the city’s finances. Several councilmembers urged exploring a third‑party strategic review to provide an outside assessment of budget priorities and to supplement the annual financial audit.

City staff said they will research peer models, produce options to resize or reframe the committee’s role, and return to council with recommendations. No change to the ordinance was adopted at the March 3 meeting.