One way for local governments to address and to curb the demands of citizens is to provide participatory budgets to (groups of) active citizens. Residents who want to see their neighbourhood improved, can apply for a budget with which they - together with other residents who are willing to join -are enabled to act upon their own demands. They can e.g. create or revitalize public facilities or organize neighbourhood festivities. Over the last two decades, participatory budgets have gained a prominent place in local governance in Netherlands. Particularly in recent years, many local governments provide participatory budgets to challenge social problems and generate public involvement In this paper we describe the rise of this policy and present an analysis of interactions of local governments and citizens concerning participatory budgets in various Dutch cities and neighbourhoods. We found that on the one hand, participatory budgets do indeed curb citizen’s demands and redirect these to citizens themselves: instead of demanding action from local government, citizens are more inclined to take action themselves. On the other hand, new demands arise on account of the introduction of participatory budgets: citizens expect local governments to be responsive, flexible and appreciative towards their actions. In addition, they also express a need for help, advice or a listening ear during the process. The budgets also create new demands for justice and parity, as the distribution of the budgets becomes a source of jealousy, distrust and misrecognition among residents. Financial distribution is often experienced as unfair. Budgets thus function as a new source of demand towards local government; rather than curbing citizen’s demands, they merely stir them up.
