Office of Youth Development Announces Third Year of Youth Power PB (Participatory Budgeting) Long Beach

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PRESS RELEASE

Above: Youth Power Participatory Budget participants attend a previous idea collection session.

Long Beach, CA - The City of Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department) Office of Youth Development, in partnership with The Nonprofit Partnership and Invest in Youth Coalition, anchored by Khmer Girls in Action, has announced the third year of Youth Power Participatory Budgeting (PB) Long Beach, a participatory budgeting process where youth vote on how to spend public dollars on youth summer projects.

"Long Beach is committed to fostering youth leadership and community engagement," said Mayor Rex Richardson. "The youth participatory budgeting process is a powerful way to elevate youth voices, empowering them to shape programs and initiatives that directly impact their growth and success."

A total of $550,000 will be funded through this process, which is nearly double the amount allocated at the start of the program's first cycle in 2023. Projects with budgets ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 will be voted on by youth who live, work or play in Long Beach and the winning proposals will be funded this summer. Youth Power PB is funded through Measure US dollars and one-time funding approved as part of the Mayoral recommendations for the City's Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2025.

The third cycle of Youth Power PB will kick off with four in-person idea collection sessions held across Long Beach. These sessions are designed to ensure that youth from all neighborhoods have an opportunity to participate. Youth need only to attend one session to submit their ideas for youth summer projects.

The dates and locations for the sessions are as follows:

• Thursday, Jan. 16 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Admiral Kidd Park (2125 Santa Fe Ave.)
• Thursday, Jan. 23 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Whaley Park (5620 E. Atherton St.)
• Thursday, Jan. 30 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Houghton Park (6301 Myrtle Ave.)
• Saturday, Feb. 1 from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Youth Movement and Education Center (2217 E. 6th St.)

Youth interested in learning more about the different ways they can participate in the process can fill out the youth interest form for more information. This form connects youth to opportunities in all of the phases, from idea collection to voting. Community organizations interested in engaging during the proposal development phase are encouraged to complete the organization interest form.

"We are proud to see the return of the Youth Power PB process empowering young people to actively shape their communities," said Health and Human Services Director Alison King. "This initiative strengthens shared governance, fosters meaningful connections and supports a more inclusive and equitable Long Beach."

Youth Power PB Long Beach will be carried out in three phases:

• Phase 1: Idea Collection. From Jan. 6 through Jan. 31, youth ages 13 to 26 in Long Beach can submit ideas for projects to be funded with Measure US Youth Fund dollars.
• Phase 2: Project Development. In February, youth steering committee members will select ideas from the pool of submissions. These selected ideas will move on to the project development phase in March, where youth and community organizations will collaborate to turn them into full proposals for the voting ballot.
• Phase 3: Voting. Youth throughout Long Beach will be invited to vote over a 10-day period on which projects should be funded. Voting will begin in April and be open to youth ages 12 to 26. Voting will be available online or in person at designated voting sites such as teen centers, libraries and high schools. More information about voting centers will be available at a later date.

The second Youth Power PB cycle received 43 project ideas, with 13 selected by the youth steering committee and placed on the ballot. A voter fair was held at Long Beach Polytechnic High School, and voting locations were set up at high schools, teen centers and public libraries throughout the voting phase. The nine programs prioritized by youth voters focused on community care, housing, health and wellness, planning for the future, and transportation- aligning with five of the six goals in the Long Beach Youth & Emerging Adults Strategic Plan. For more information about projects funded in 2024, visit longbeach.gov/youthfund.

Youth Power PB Long Beach, the first citywide participatory budget process, funds projects by community organizations who are doing work aligned with the Youth and Emerging Adults Strategic Plan. Participatory budgeting is a democratization of public dollars putting empowering young residents to delegate how public dollars are spent. To learn more about the Youth Power PB process, visit investinyouthlb.org.

About the City of Long Beach
Long Beach is nestled along the Southern California coast and home to approximately 466,000 people. As an award-winning full-service charter city, Long Beach offers the amenities of a metropolitan city while maintaining a strong sense of individual and diverse neighborhoods, culture, and community. With a bustling downtown and over six miles of scenic beaches, Long Beach is a renowned tourist and business destination and home to the iconic Queen Mary, nationally recognized Aquarium of the Pacific and Long Beach Airport, the award-winning Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center and world-class Port of Long Beach.

For more information about the City of Long Beach, visit longbeach.gov/. Follow us on social to keep up with the latest news: Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube. More information about the Long Beach Health Department is available at longbeach.gov/health and on Instagram, Facebook and X.

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