Riverside’s Budget Engagement Commission voted unanimously Sept. 10 to form a five-member ad hoc committee that will reconsider the boundaries of its advisory role, including whether the panel should weigh in not only on how the city spends money but also on how it raises it.
The expanded role could provide residents with an earlier opportunity to weigh in on proposed taxes and other revenue measures. It could also create another public forum to compare revenue proposals with potential service cuts and other spending priorities before those decisions reach the City Council.
The committee will spend the next four months reviewing the commission’s purpose, responsibilities and authority, with a focus on improving its effectiveness and community engagement.
Any proposed changes would return to the full commission before potentially advancing to the council’s Governmental Processes Committee and, ultimately, the full council. The City Council has final authority over the commission’s jurisdiction.
The review follows questions raised by commissioners in June about whether the panel’s work has become too narrowly focused and whether its current mandate gives residents and commissioners enough opportunity to shape major financial decisions.
Deputy Finance Director Sergio Aguilar said city staff were not recommending whether the commission’s authority should change. The Finance Department instead sought to explain how staff interprets the existing municipal code and outline a process for proposing revisions.
Under that interpretation, the commission may advise the council on spending priorities through quarterly financial reports, city budgets and performance reports already headed to the council. It may also help the city engage residents on budget issues and review performance measures for city programs.
The commission’s authority is not limited to Measure Z, the city’s transaction and use tax, Aguilar said. But staff does not believe the municipal code allows the panel to independently examine revenue proposals or broader city policies simply because they carry financial consequences.
“There is no reference to revenue in the actual code approved by council,” Aguilar said. “It was all about advising on the spending. That was basically the core purpose of what it was established to do.”
The municipal code directs the commission to advise the council on “spending and policy priorities” based on quarterly financial and performance reports, including transaction and use tax revenue. Staff interprets “policy priorities” as policies connected to spending, rather than general city policy — the commission could recommend funding a program for seniors or residents with disabilities, for example, but not changes to the city’s cannabis retail program solely because the policy affects city revenue.
Commissioner Aram Ayra questioned the separation of revenue from spending.
“If we are called the Budget Engagement Commission and our role is to engage the community on spending priorities, it also mentions policy priorities,” Ayra said. “I would imagine revenue generation would fall under the more broad category of policy priorities too.”
Ayra said the commission should be able to compare possible revenue sources with service reductions and competing funding needs, even though the council would retain final authority.
“If we’re really here to provide fiscal accountability, I think we should be concerned not just with spending taxpayer money, but also potentially finding ways to generate that revenue from other sources,” he said.
Commissioners also questioned whether the panel should have been consulted before the council placed a June measure to raise the Measure Z sales tax for fire staffing before voters — a measure voters ultimately rejected.
Aguilar described the issue as a possible gray area because the proposal reached the council as part of a broader group of revenue options. Commissioners said the episode illustrated the need for clearer rules about when financial proposals should come before the panel.
Ayra said a more public and deliberative commission review might have helped city leaders develop a proposal that was more acceptable to voters.
“I really do think that, whether intentionally or unintentionally, the council completely bypassed the public engagement on Measure Z,” Ayra said.
Commissioners also expressed interest in receiving clearer responses when the council accepts, modifies or rejects their recommendations.
Aguilar said commission recommendations are included in reports sent to the council alongside input from other city boards and commissions. Whether the council provides a formal response would be up to council members.
The Budget Engagement Commission was established in 2017 to represent resident and business perspectives in Riverside’s budget process. Its municipal code provisions were amended in 2025 and 2026 to reduce its membership and address quorum problems, but its scope has never changed.
The ad hoc committee will begin meeting monthly and report regularly to the full commission. Its final recommendations are due in January, although it may request an extension of up to one month.
Commissioner Scott Lagner made the motion to establish the committee, which Commissioner Miles Ward seconded.
The group will consult with city staff and review the City Charter, municipal code and other policies defining the commission’s authority. Any proposed changes are expected to be presented separately with explanations, allowing the commission and council to consider each revision individually.
Creating the committee has no direct fiscal impact, although the staff report cautioned that broadening the commission’s jurisdiction could require additional staff time and city resources.
