As part of my ongoing plans to expand the scope of GMRVA while sticking to its two major distribution platforms (the email and the podcast), I thought I would talk with someone directly involved in putting together the new two-stage budget review process and whose life will be directly impacted by it: 1st District Councilmember Andreas Addison.
This sort of thing is a new, fun, and, I hope, informative direction to take GMRVA, but does take a long time to put together. If you’d like to see more, please consider becoming a GMRVA Patron.
This past week, Richmond's City Council passed RES. 2020-R035 which created a two-stage budget review process for City Council and the Mayor’s team to follow for (at least) this upcoming fiscal year. I wrote a bunch of words about how that process works, which you can read here. I sent 1st District Councilmember Addison a couple of questions about the process, asked him to send me back a voice memo with this thoughts, and now you get to hear straight from the 1st District horse’s mouth!
Councilmember Addision had a lot to say about why we need this new process in the first place, emphasizing his belief that “a budget is a living, breathing document—it’s never once said and done.” While it took a pandemic to get here, reviewing the budget quarterly does help it live and breath. He also talked about the Economic Vitality Advisory Committee, which he helped create and which meets every quarter to “look at the previous quarter’s revenues, and look at ways we can find and devise ways to...grow our revenues.” That’s a group that sounds like...they’ll have lots of work ahead of them over the next several quarters?
The Councilmember was less specific about when the twin budget teams of Technical Review and Policy Review will actually have budget amendments in front of City Council to pass, citing potential conversations with the State. I still have some concerns about the speed at which the two-stage budget review process can react to an ever-evolving crisis, but the point about State (and Federal) support stands. The entire regional picture changes if Congress decides to free up a bunch of relief money specifically dedicated to funding localities. That’s a big If, though.
Finally, I loved his answer about why Richmonders should be stoked on this new legislation: “While it might seem wonky and nerdy and a little bit too in the weeds, I think doing [budget review] in a really public, digital, easy-to-navigate way for the public as well as our public officials will be paramount to making sure people see where things go." Wonky, nerdy, and in the weeds?? Uhhhh, hello those are all of my favorite things.
The Councilmember and I are super aligned in this: “I really want to put in the hands of our constituents more information around our budget.“