Bordeaux launches thirty citizen commissions to co-decide on the participatory budget

After spending the previous term criticizing Pierre Hurmic for his lack of citizen consultation, the new municipality of Thomas Cazenave (Renaissance) decided to act. Thirty citizen commissions, made up of 252 Bordeaux residents, were inaugurated on Saturday. Their mission is to help the town hall distribute its participatory budget, i.e. one million euros allocated each year to financing citizen projects. Spread across the eight districts of the city, each citizen commission is made up of ten local actors and twenty called residents. All were drawn by lot, with the exception of the two places automatically reserved for members of the citizens' council in the priority districts of the city.

The objective is simple: to have the most representative citizen panel of the population, in order to “bring local democracy to life”. The staff, which is voluntary, must be renewed every two years. “The idea is to give momentum to democracy by reaching out to the people of Bordeaux. Usually, the participants in this type of body are already very committed, even politicized, and they already give their opinion on things,” explains the first deputy, Alexandra Siarri.

Skip the ad

News in Bordeaux, citizen commissions are not intended to replace neighborhood councils, local councils or even to decide at each public consultation. “Our objective is really that it helps us to get as close as possible to the reality on the ground,” specifies the elected official. Welcomed with enthusiasm by neighborhood mayors, the initiative has yet to find its feet over time and prove its usefulness. The 252 Bordeaux residents inducted are preparing to benefit from training, which will take place on September 29 and 20. They are committed to meeting at least six times a year for the good of their neighborhood and must be renewed every two years.