People's Platform NEWS
Vol. 23, MLK Day 2023
I-375 Project plans to resurrect Black Bottom - Northpoint’s AMC HQ Project - Disability Justice Activists Resist Transdev Contract for Paratransit - Transit Justice Team Successfully Passes the DDOT Bill of Rights - Next Round for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund - Detroit Housing Justice Advocates WIN Right to Counsel - District Detroit: Another Bad Deal? - Get Involved: The People’s Budget 2024 - How the call for racial solidarity collides with racial justice in majority Black Detroit
Get Involved: The People's Budget
As the City of Detroit budget process for fiscal year 2023- 2024 comes to a close, community should keep in mind a few important dates and items. First, the city will present its final revenue projections during the February Revenue Estimating Conference in mid-February. This conference establishes how much money the city is allowed to spend on city services and programs allocated in the budget.
During the last conference in September, the city showed strong revenues, which equals to more money for the services and programs Detroiters need. Community should be looking to see if economic performance stays strong in February so we can demand that the revenue gains are allocated to essential public services like transit, truly affordable housing, library services, parks and recreation.
After revenues are established, the city will begin crafting its final budget and closing the community input portion of the budget process. Through the Budget Priorities Outreach Initiative, residents have an opportunity to shape the budget by letting the city know how we want our tax dollars spent.
In October, the city held a series of public meetings to collect residents’ input on budget priorities. The data from those meetings clearly show that affordable housing remains a major priority for most city council districts. Since then, residents have sent their budget demands to the city via email. Send your budget recommendations now, while you still can, to yourbudget@detroitmi.gov. Stand with other residents throughout the city that have demanded more affordable housing and better city services. The budget input phase will close at the end of February.
Once the final budget is complete, the Mayor will present a budget in early March. The mayor’s proposed budget should take into account the revenue estimates along with resident input. That is, the budget should try to meet the stated demands and interests of the community with the expected amount of revenue the city has to work with.
In the past, the Mayor’s proposed budget has not done this. Community should show up during the early March public meeting when the Mayor presents his proposed budget to city council to hold the Mayor and City Council accountable and make sure the budget is what the people asked for—the People’s Budget.
Send your budget recommendations now, while you still can, to yourbudget@detroitmi.gov
