Increasing tax pressure at the local level makes retention of value added even more crucial. Public Participation Broad based public participation is key to effective, sustainable local economic development. Decisions that affect people's lives take place at all levels of government, but at the local level most citizens have the greatest opportunity for economic involvement. There they have the greatest access to elected and appointed officials, to public records and information, and to other citizens concerned with the process and its outcomes. Planning for change, public stewardship, and management of real resources engage people.
Local government can foster the creation of alternative institutions of accumulation detailed above.
Government also can encourage broad based citizen involvement in envisioning and designing the community's economic future. Potential positive outcomes of increased citizen participation include encouraging diverse and innovative approaches to solving problems and creating new opportunities. As a broader range of citizens become engaged in local issues, political discourse may widen to include the concerns and aspirations of all segments of the community. Attempts to plan at the local level, and to sustain community economic development, can educate concerned citizens about the powers they must confront. By looking beneath the surface of the development process, it will be possible to identify the role of local and external power holders and their impact on the local economy.