What's New In Municipal Websites... Northampton, Ma.

As Common Cause Massachusetts finishes up on its third annual review of city and town websites, we have been noticing and hearing about some interesting things some municipalities are doing to promote civic engagement and to provide greater access to local government information. For example, the Mayor of Northampton, MA, Mayor Clare Higgins, has posted her budget presentation to the City Council Finance Committee on line. The presentation describes a $6 million deficit the city faces for the next fiscal year. It also asks residents to provide suggestions for budget savings. As the Mayor’s office receives suggestions from the public, they post them on the website on pages labeled “The City Speaks” and “More Citizen Ideas.”

As an aide to the Mayor described it to Common Cause Massachusetts, “We are very proud of this feature, and extremely pleased with the positive, interactive response we are getting from the public... It’s been a terrific way to share information and answer questions that are on the minds of lots of taxpayers in these challenging days.”

Maybe this is something other municipalities will want to consider as their budget process moves forward.