What is this about?

The discussion revolves around the Short-Term Incentives Program (STIP) exceeding its 50 Million ARB budget. Matt_StableLab initially raised concerns about the budget and outlined two scenarios: if the budget is reached, there will be no Round 2 of the program unless the DAO creates a second proposal to extend the budget or create an additional program¹. If the budget is not reached, the remaining funds will be used for Round 2¹. However, he later updated that the 50M ARB budget for STIP has been exceeded, meaning there will be no Round 2 unless the DAO decides to extend the budget or create a new program³.

How is the community reacting?

The community is actively engaging in the discussion, seeking clarity and suggesting solutions. DanThales asked for clarification on the allocation methodology if the total voted sum is larger than 50m, suggesting a pro rata distribution across all STIPs instead of a hard binary cut-off⁴. ArbDefender responded that those with fewer FOR votes will be left out and suggested waiting until the end of November to decide whether to extend the 50MM ARB distribution⁵. Kapyrus suggested sorting by the ratio of for/against votes, which would include more projects⁶. Grandma and Tenzent sought clarity on the allocation for protocols at the cut-off, with Tenzent suggesting a move to Ranked Choice Voting for future votes/programs/extensions^7,8.

Why this is positive?

The active engagement of the community members in the discussion is a positive sign. Tenzent expressed strong support for the extension of Arbitrum's Short-Term Incentive Program, citing the high demand for grants, which exceeded the planned 50 million ARB with a demand of 74 million ARB⁸. They proposed the use of a ranked-choice voting system to ensure fairness and equal consideration of all projects, reduce lobbying and backdoor deals, and accommodate the changing opinions of the community⁸. They also emphasized the importance of supporting a variety of projects, both big and small, to maintain a healthy ecosystem⁸.

Why this is negative?

The exceeding of the STIP budget has created uncertainty among the community members. Mint_cloud from Matcha/0x sought advice on whether to post their proposal on the main Incentive Framework (Round 1) queue or use the Round 2 tag⁹. Chiragmahapatra asked for an update on whether Round 2 will be happening¹⁰. The situation has led to confusion and concerns about the future of the program and the allocation of funds.