The following is a non-binding proposal for the Collective to consider in passing a Token House Budget for Season 9. The proposal is informed by the Budget Board’s good faith review of historical information provided to the Collective. The content is presented “as-is” without a certification of its accuracy or effectiveness. The Collective is encouraged to review any and all information, including numerical information, made available to the Collective in making its budget determinations.
Summary
This proposal requests a 4.87M OP budget in Season 9 across two Governance Fund missions, representing a 54% decrease from Season 8 (7.24M OP). The reduced budget reflects an effort to preserve the extended runway proposed in Season 8 while still supporting the Collective’s priorities.
The proposed allocations were generated using the same methodology as Season 8’s proposal: By first calculating a baseline OP per mission, using a combination of prior comparable proposals and a target 10-year runway from Season 8 (9.5 remaining). From that baseline, allocations were then adjusted based on each mission’s strategic importance, confidence in ROI, and funding intensiveness.
Like season 8, both missions are proposed above the runway-based baseline allocation.
Season 8 Governance Fund Mission Budget Proposal
See Methodology, Baseline Analysis, Budget Calculation sections for detail
| Mission | Proposed Budget |
|---|---|
| Grants Council | 3.89M OP |
| Developer Advisory Board | 0.98M OP |
| Season 8 Total | 4.87M OP |
Methodology
Estimating Baseline OP per Mission
To extend the lifetime of the Governance Fund, we can work back from an expected runway to get a target per season. Then, we can use historical spend to roughly allocate between missions within this target.
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Generate a Baseline OP per Season
- `Baseline OP per Season` = `OP Token Allocation Remaining` / `Target Seasons of Runway`
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For each mission, find benchmark budgets for prior successful missions.
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Use the benchmarks to determine percent allocation of the Baseline OP:
- `Baseline OP per each Mission` = [`Benchmark OP for the mission` / `Total Benchmark OP across S8 missions`] * `Baseline OP per Season`
Scaling Each Mission’s Budget
To handle for some seasons and missions requiring a greater or smaller budget, we can score missions based on a set of criteria in order or to scale the amounts up or down (similar to the Retro Funding proposal) .
We assume that every mission proposed has some significant level of importance, so these scores reflect and skew up or down relative to historical benchmarks (e.g., -5 score doesn’t mean something is “bad”).
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Score missions based on a set of 3 criteria to increase or decrease the budget for that mission. Scores are an average of budget board members’ inputs.
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Strategic Importance: How much more or less influential do we expect this mission to be towards long-term Optimism success.
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ROI Confidence: A governor on spend. Is this mission highly experimental, or do similar missions have a strong record of proven results?
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Funding Intensiveness: Another governor on spend. If the mission is naturally more funding intensive than prior benchmarks (e.g., new infrastructure spend, increased competition), then the budget may need to be larger.
These can be scored from -10 to +10. This allows for at most a 4x increase above baseline (+30 = +300%). Assuming that all missions proposed have already been deemed important enough to fund, we can cap the downside at a 90% reduction.
See Appendix for sample descriptions of scores.
Baseline Analysis
Baseline Mission Budget
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113.1M OP remaining (Source: OP Token Unlock Sheet as of Jan 6 2026)
- 231.9M OP allocated to Governance Fund - 118.8M OP committed
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Assume a 10 year runway from Season 8 (9.5 years remaining).
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42.2M held out for DAO Operating Budget (estimated 4.44M OP per year * 9.5 years)
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Note: This is before any potential midpoint adjustments
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70.9M OP spendable
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3.73M OP Baseline OP per Season
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70.9M OP spendable / (9.5 years * 2 seasons per year)
Budget Calculation
Assuming 3.73M OP Total Baseline for Season 9
| Mission | Share of Total in S8 | Baseline OP for S9 | Scoring Multiplier | Landed OP Budget |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants Council | 86.9% | 3.24M OP | +1.2x | 3.89M OP |
| Developer Advisory Board | 13.1% | 0.49M OP | +2.0x | 0.98M OP |
Final Landed OP Budgets rounded to 10k OP increments for simplicity
Mission 1: Grants Council
Proposed Budget = 3.89M OP
- Baseline = 3.24M OP, Multiplier = +1.2x
Mission 1 Scoring
| Factor | Score | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Strategic Importance | +3 | More critical to support necessary DEX markets |
| ROI Confidence | -1 | Always experimental, but we have experience from prior seasons |
| Funding Intensiveness | 0 | Expected no more or less intensive than prior |
| Mission 1 Total | +2 | 1.2x multiplier |
Mission 2: Developer Advisory Board
Proposed Budget = 0.98M OP
- Baseline = 488.7k OP, Multiplier = +2.0x
Mission 2 Scoring
| Factor | Score | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Strategic Importance | +4 | Continued importance for DABs role |
| ROI Confidence | +3 | Positive developer feedback |
| Funding Intensiveness | +3 | Expected to be a more competitive environment |
| Mission 2 Total | +10 | 2.0x multiplier |
APPENDIX: Descriptions of Score Ranges
| Factor | -10 Score | 0 Score | +10 Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strategic Importance | Mission is substantially less critical than prior missions. We expect little to no relative impact. | Mission is just as important as prior missions. | Mission is far more critical than prior missions. This is make or break. |
| ROI Confidence | Mission is 100% experimental, we’re throwing things against a wall and seeing what sticks. | There is a strong hypothesis that this mission will have positive ROI. | There is a strong track record of similar missions providing exceptional results. |
| Funding Intensiveness | Mission requires substantially less funding than prior missions. | Mission requires a comparable amount of funding as prior missions. | Mission requires substantially more funding than prior missions. |