Reaching Out to Underrepresented Communities with Participatory Budgeting

Are there any plans to reach out to underrepresented communities?

Yes. The Mayor’s Office plans on special arrangements to be inclusive of underrepresented communities. We plan on partnering with trusted groups that can help us bridge with the communities we want to engage with (including language accommodations). Furthermore, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 requires that its funding be used to help the most vulnerable communities. Every spending we do will need to be reported and justified to the federal government.

To meet ARPA guidelines the Participatory Budgeting process will weigh the voting by using Social Vulnerability Index data which refers to the potential negative effects on communities caused by external stresses on human health. The CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index (CDC/ATSDR SVI) uses 15 U.S. census variables to help local officials identify communities that may need support before, during, or after disasters.

The population in Nashville totals 715,884 according to the latest Census, we will create four Nashville regions using the Social Vulnerability Index and allocate a higher percentage of the 10 million dollars to the hardest hit communities.

Below is a Nashville map with the council districts and the four SVI regions. Funding will be allocated as follows:

Full Size Social Vulnerability Map
map updated to reflect the CDC/ASTDR SVI 2020 data