Engaging citizens online.

• Position: TRENDS & TRANSITIONS - Brief article

The Minnesota Senate has created a new website that seeks citizen input to solve the state's projected $4.8 billion budget deficit. Visitors to the site can comment and provide their ideas for key areas in the budget. The site also has links to a wealth of background information, and Minnesota citizens are weighing in.

Nevadans are voicing their opinions on how to erase the revenue shortfall there through a new Web-based suggestion box for lawmakers. In early February, lawmakers had more than 1,200 suggestions, including taxing prostitution and establishing a state lottery. Legislative staffers are compiling the suggestions in a report every two weeks for anyone to read.

Other states have had similar initiatives, sometimes packaged with an online budget balancing game or simulation tool. Maine Governor John E. Baldacci's interactive budget balancing tool has been in place since 1999. Massachusetts Senator Richard Moore created Ma$$ Balance in 2003, when the state faced a $3 billion budget gap. It was an interactive budget simulation game where players could try balancing the budget. The site, no longer...