City Finance Education
Wouldn't it be great if we understood how much money the City of Petaluma receives and where it goes? Would you like to understand the trade-offs between sales taxes, fixing potholes, and funding parks?
City budgets shape everything from police services to paving roads, but they're often wrapped in confusing jargon and buried in lengthy documents.
The City Finance Education team is learning how municipal finance works. We are exploring how other cities have made their budgets accessible and participatory. Our goal is to help Petalumans understand the real choices our city faces so we can all participate more meaningfully in shaping its future.
We're planning community talks, easy-to-read materials, and useful visualizations. When citizens and leaders understand our city's finances, we can have better conversations about the kind of city we want to be.
