Woke Democratic Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has been called “failing” and “unserious” for her plan to give young children and undocumented citizens the power to vote on the budget.
On Tuesday, during a City Council committee hearing that considered his 2025 fiscal budget, Wu announced that the new budget voting process was open to undocumented immigrants and children as young as 11 years old.
After the meeting, enraged Boston City Councilman Ed Flynn wrote a letter to Renato Castelo, director of the Office of Participatory Budgeting, and expressed concern over Wu’s decision.
“Allowing children to decide how taxpayer dollars are spent would have the opposite effect and would be considered tone-deaf, unserious and completely inappropriate by my constituents,” Flynn wrote in the letter, reviewed by the Boston Herald.
Michelle Wu announced that children as young as 11 and undocumented citizens would vote on Boston’s participatory budget
“In this time of great fiscal uncertainty – with a study warning that remote work policies and falling commercial property values in the city could cost us $500 million in revenue annually, as well as a subsequent proposal aimed at also taxing commercial properties at a higher rate – now more than ever, it is essential that we show Boston taxpayers that we take our financial responsibilities seriously,” added Flynn.
Although participatory budgeting, when community members decide how to allocate funds for a public budget, was approved in 2021, residents will, for the first time, be able to weigh in on how the Massachusetts city spends their money.
Starting in July, the Participatory Budget Office will begin collecting community project ideas from residents.
By the end of September, Wu will select the top 15 community proposals before public votes and narrow the options down to five in-person projects next January.
During the hearing, city officials said the five chosen projects will be included in the FY26 budget. Boston’s mayor has already allocated $2 million for the initial phase of the process.
Chief Financial Officer Ashley Groffenberger told the Boston Herald that the office initially started the fiscal year with about $4 million, but because of funds rolled over over the past two budget cycles, some of the Money was spent on “operational expenses”, including staff. salaries.
Groffenberger added that the administration plans to provide $2 million for participatory budgeting plans.
Other councilors expressed curiosity and asked if there were plans to increase the project’s annual funding budget in coming years as several community groups asked Wu to allocate one percent of the budget – approximately 40 million dollars – in the participatory budget plan.
While many disagree with Wu’s new plan, other councilors endorsed his decision in hopes it would lead to more youth participation and civic engagement.
In response, Castelo and Groffenberger said the decision would be made by the mayor and council, adding that $2 million is an appropriate amount to start with each year.
Alongside Flynn, councilors Erin Murphy and John FitzGerald expressed concerns over Wu’s recent decision.
FitzGerald said with the new plan, residents will have more control over budgetary powers than Council.
Flynn is pushing to reduce the amount allocated to the participatory budget by $1.2 million for the fiscal year.
The councilman instead wants to invest in the Boston Police Crime Lab so he can hire more staff to help handle the backlog of sexual assault kit testing in the lab.
He also wants to allocate funds to the city’s Department of Inspectional Services to help improve its pest control inspections.
While many disagree with Wu’s new plan, other councilors endorsed his decision in hopes it would lead to more youth participation and civic engagement.
Councilor Liz Breadon said: “I really think this is a huge opportunity to build civic engagement.
“I hope this leads to more engaged citizens in the future,” she said, adding that it would give children and residents the opportunity to learn how to vote.
Wu, who has served as mayor of Boston since November 2021, recently
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