City of Cambridge Launches 12th Cycle of the Participatory Budgeting Process

The City of Cambridge has announced the launch of the 12th cycle of the Participatory Budgeting (PB) process. Residents will decide how to spend $1 million for winning projects that will be included in next year’s Fiscal Year 2027 Budget. Community members can submit ideas until October 12, 2025 in the following ways:

Ideas will also be collected through direct community outreach and at certain public events throughout the idea collection period. Organizations interested in hosting an Idea Collection workshop in their respective communities can contact the Budget Office at pb@cambridgema.gov for more information.

Participatory Budgeting is a democratic process where community members can directly decide how to spend part of the City’s budget. In Cambridge the intention is for Participatory Budgeting to directly involve residents in the budgeting and city-building process, foster civic engagement and community spirit, and help ensure that the City’s budget reflects the priorities of Cambridge residents and local partners.

Past winning projects have included STEAM upgrades for youth centers, resources to support new parents, laundry access in public schools, shaded seating in public spaces, pesticide-free rodent control devices, and many others.

During the PB11 vote in March 2025, more than 10,000 Cambridge residents age 12 and older voted to decide how to allocate Participatory Budgeting funding to address community needs, marking two consecutive years of reaching over 10,000 voters. Since the inaugural process in 2014, the City of Cambridge has collected over 10,000 ideas, counted more than 76,000 votes, and committed over $10.5 million to 79 Participatory Budgeting projects over 11 cycles. 

“Participatory Budgeting provides Cambridge with a vast array of opportunities to connect with community members, listen to their ideas, identify community needs, and help them better engage in our municipal budget process,” said Cambridge City Manager Yi-An Huang. “It has become an invaluable strategy in helping us become more responsive to what’s most important to the community. We look forward to launching our latest PB cycle and engaging with more members of the community!”

Between October 2025 and February 2026, volunteer Cambridge residents (PB Delegates) will research all ideas submitted by the community during idea collection, and work with City Staff to develop proposals that will be presented for a community vote in March 2026. All Cambridge residents age 12 and older will be eligible to participate in the voting process, which will be available online, in-person at several Cambridge locations, and over the phone during the March 2026 voting period. 

Cambridge residents are encouraged to join the PB process as volunteer PB Delegates to contribute to the proposal development process that will create the PB12 ballot. Those interested in volunteering can visit pb.cambridgema.gov for information on how to sign up.

For updates and the latest information about the Participatory Budgeting process, please visit pb.cambridgema.gov, contact the Budget Office at 617-349-4270 or email pb@cambridgema.gov.