Prince George, BC- The date for the first e-townhall budget consultation session with the City of Prince George, has yet to be set. Councillors are said to be mulling over which of the proposed dates (October 15^th or 16^th) work better for them.

 

The e-townhall meeting will allow members of the public who do not have internet access, an opportunity to attend the session in person. Those who opt to take part on the “net” will   be able to ask questions during the webcast.

 

But there is no guarantee those who are taking part through the internet are property owners and taxpayers in Prince George. The program being used does not have a filtering system that could identify IP addresses, or require participants to provide a  tax folio number or postal codes.

 

“It is a new addition to our public consultation process” says Chris Bone, Manager of Communications for the City of Prince George. She says they are aware the online survey, which asks folks how they would like to see their tax dollars spent, is also open to anyone from anywhere as there is no filter feature on the survey. The whole idea says Bone, is to try to engage more people in the process.  

 

The City already offers a service that will e-mail notifications to registered users, Bone says perhaps in the future, survey takers, or e-town hall users may be asked to pre-register in order to participate.  “The goal is to gain a broader diversity of participation” says Bone, who says the   online survey and e-townhall event will be reviewed to see how the City can build on these methods of public participation.