Public agencies are increasingly leveraging community engagement to strengthen budget development, improve transparency and align resources with resident priorities.

Late last year, the City of Claremont began a public engagement campaign to gather community feedback on City Council Priorities for the next two years (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2028). 

As part of that initiative, the City partnered with Jacob Green and Associates in December 2025 to lead a comprehensive public engagement campaign to gather feedback on programs, services and future priorities.

The community survey and community forums successfully captured resident input and helped guide the city’s FY 2026-28 Budget. Deputy City Manager Katie Wand prepared the staff report outlining these continuing efforts.

“What makes Claremont special is our community’s dedication to civic engagement. This process puts residents at the forefront of the city’s planning and decision-making, ensuring their feedback directly shapes our upcoming priorities,” said Katie.

The City of Pleasanton has taken a similar approach to community engagement through its Strategic Plan Dashboard, which helps guide budget decisions and gives residents a way to track progress and provide input as priorities are refined for the coming fiscal year.

Going forward, the City plans to conduct an annual first-quarter review of project progress so Council priorities outlined in the ONE Pleasanton Strategic Plan can be evaluated in alignment with the budget cycle. Principal Analyst Sharon Petrehn prepared the March 2026 staff report.

“This process gives residents more than just information; it gives them visibility into how priorities are moving forward. Our dashboard provides an opportunity to participate in the conversation and see how Council works through complex decisions,” said Sharon.

These are just two of several examples of community-focused budget initiatives and strategic planning featured on LINK. To quickly ramp up on this topic, check out this LINK article. 

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