Every year, Fresno’s budget shapes the condition of our streets, the hours at our libraries, and the speed of our emergency response. Yet too often the public sees the details only after the key trade-offs have already been made. That should change.
A transparent process would publish department requests and staff recommendations well before final hearings, giving residents time to weigh in with more than a two-minute comment. Budgets are moral documents as much as financial ones, and they deserve daylight.
None of this requires new law — only a commitment to openness. If city leaders want public trust, the surest path is to show their work.
