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Plus, you can also vote on other people’s proposals making the whole process more multi-sided and comprehensive
Last week, the Swedish city of Borås its new online proposal service, where residents can easily submit their ideas and suggestions on how things could be done better, in their view. The municipal website now has a dedicated section where placing a proposal is even faster than placing an online ad to sell that old furniture that you still have gathering dust in the basement.
Boråsförslaget, which in Swedish means the Borås proposal, is the name of the new service. There are no age limits, everyone can make suggestions and even more - everyone can vote on other people's proposals. In effect, that can give a general picture of the popularity and viability of new proposals, making the process more democratic.
Say you have an idea for something that would improve an area, a business or a particular issue. Then you click on Boråsföslaget, and enter your proposal together with name, e-mail and postal code. An administrator then reviews your submission. If it is within Borås City's area of responsibility, and no one else has submitted a similar proposal, they will publish the proposal within five working days.
“The goal is to lower the bar, it should be as easy as possible for the citizens to submit proposals for improvements and development of Borås,” says Per-Olof Höög (S), chairman of the preparation group for citizen influence in the City of Borås.
The proposal stays published for 90 days and during that time anyone can vote on it. If it receives 100 votes or more, it is handed over to the politicians in the committee responsible for that issue and the proposal is put on the agenda of the committee concerned.
The overall purpose of the Borås proposal is about participation and democratic processes. Two of Borås City's primary missions are to provide good municipal service and to preserve and maintain democracy. In order to be able to develop its municipal services, it is important to gain an understanding of the needs of different citizens.
And for those who like things the old-fashioned way, the administration says that paper and phone submissions are also still welcome.
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