[SIP5.6] Compensation for Delegates

Governance Summer Improvement Proposals
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Summary

This proposal sets out a framework to compensate active delegates for their governance participation from the Lazy Summer DAO treasury, retroactively covering March, April, and May 2025. The methodology stems from the RFC discussions (RFC: Compensation for Delegates) posted by @chrisb and aims to both reward consistency and increase future alignment.

This compensation program reflects our core belief that well-informed, active governance deserves support and now, with improved transparency through our WIP Dune dashboard (huge thanks to @techsqrt), we’re ready to move forward with this implementation.

Motivation

Governance cannot thrive without engaged, accountable delegates. With this SIP, I seek to formalize compensation for those who show up consistently and thoughtfully in both votes and discussions.

By rewarding delegates who maintain high participation and also drive forum engagement, we build stronger continuity, increase DAO memory, and lower governance friction over time.

Methodology

Compensation is based on delegated voting power, monthly average voting participation, and community engagement. Here’s how it breaks down:

1. Delegate Tiering (by voting power)

Based on average delegated SUMR tokens per month:

Tier Voting Power Compensation
Tier 1 >35M SUMR 12,000 SUMR/month
Tier 2 >100K SUMR 7,500 SUMR/month
Tier 3 >10K SUMR 3,000 SUMR/month
Tier 4 <10K SUMR 0 SUMR/month (ineligible)

2. Voting Participation Adjustment

For each month, delegates are evaluated by their vote participation rate:

Participation % Payout % of Base Tier
> 90% 100%
75–90% 80%
50–75% 50%
< 49% 0% (ineligible)

3. Activity Boost

An additional 20,000 SUMR/month will be distributed equally to all eligible delegates who meet at least one of the following:

  • 100% monthly voting participation
  • 20+ Forum comments
  • 1+ Forum topic created

Implementation

  • Payment Source: Lazy Summer DAO Treasury Base (0x447BF9d1485ABDc4C1778025DfdfbE8b894C3796)
  • Payment Token: SUMR
  • Payment Timeline: One-time retroactive payment covering March, April, and May 2025
    (going forward either on monthly or quarterly basis)
  • Eligibility Cutoff: Delegates with at least 10K SUMR delegated during the relevant month(s)

Data & Transparency

The total distributed amounts will look as follows:

Month (2025) Proposals Eligible Delegates Subtotal
February 2 - -
March 8 14 118,111 SUMR
April 7 14 113,500 SUMR
May 8 13 126,586 SUMR
TOTAL 358,197 SUMR

All delegate data is sourced from the upcoming Lazy Summer DAO Governance Dune Dashboard, currently in development by @techsqrt. This gives real-time transparency into voting behavior, power distribution, and forum activity.

You can view the full breakdown of eligible delegates and monthly calculations in this public spreadsheet: Delegate Compensation Breakdown – March–May 2025

*Based on suggestion of @FBrinkkemper, I ask all @Recognized_Delegates to keep track of people trying to game the system. If anyone recognizes such case, please do report on it so we can take preventive steps for future compensation of such delegate.

For now I suggest formally including a rule that says any entity can only be responsible for a single delegate account. If duplicates are found, any grant is immediately zeroed.

Next Steps

Looking forward to any comments from @Recognized_Delegates.

Would kindly ask @halaprix to help me prepare onchain vote, the distribution script, if available and add it into the next governance cycle (Wednesday - 28.05.2025).

This SIP will be prepared for an onchain vote via Tally to authorize treasury disbursements. If approved, SUMR distributions will be processed shortly thereafter.

Tagging @chrisb @Recognized_Delegates @rspa_StableLab @halaprix @0xtucks @samehueasyou and others for feedback.

–jensei

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Thanks for this detailed and concrete proposal. The metrics look good.

The one comment I have for now is that we do need to be on the look out for people trying to game the system. If this seems to be the case (e.g. many slightly >10k delegates emerge), then there can be a bounty for unmasking sybils.

For now I suggest formally including a rule that says any entity can only be responsible for a single delegate account. If duplicates are found, any grant is immediately zeroed.

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Thanks a lot for putting this together @jensei – really appreciate the effort and clarity of the proposal :folded_hands:

Quick clarification upfront: from what I read, this SIP covers retroactive payments for March–May 2025.

Just wanted to ask — is this same structure also intended to apply for future months starting June 2025 onward, or would that require a separate forum discussion & proposal?

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This is a very good point @FBrinkkemper! Thank you for voicing it out.

I agree, we can easily keep track of such behaviors and if recognized then make a public statement on the next distribution.

I will edit this SIP post now to include this rule, formally.

–jensei

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Thank you @techsqrt! The DAO Dashboard has been a huge help in putting this together!

That is correct, this [SIP5.6] focuses on the retroactive payments for March-May 2025. Going forward we can do a monthly report on the performance (with the rest of the recap) and make the distribution.

The distribution of funds would always require an onchain vote to trigger a transaction out from the DAO treasury. Those proposals should be fairly simply executable once we have a script prepared.

What do you think @Recognized_Delegates?

  • Monthly Distribution
  • Quarterly Distribution
0 voters

In case, there are requests for adjustment of the distribution structure, we can use this forum post.

–jensei

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Hey @jensei, this looks fantastic! I’m a big fan of the Activity Boost bonus. It’s an excellent way to encourage people to stay active, and it’s also fun.

One thing I was wondering, could you also include a formula for calculating the average delegated SUMR tokens per month? (I haven’t noticed it mentioned here, but I believe it’s time-weighted, right?) Having that information in one place would be helpful. Thanks a lot!

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Hey @Piter, yes the formula is time weighted (on per minute basis).
I created a dataset in dune which allows to track any delegate sumr-delegated-to state back in time.

This dataset is then consumed by Dune delegates dao dashboard query (see all CTEs from months to monthly_pivot).
Thus calculated monthly averages are included down in the delegates section and then finally copy-pasted to Delegate Compensation Breakdown – March–May 2025 spreadsheet.

However, I agree this is pretty complex, if anyone feels his/her monthly avg data is wrong - please message me I should be able to produce a detailed .csv with specific events for this delegate.

:bar_chart: Quick recap: What counts toward “SUMR delegated to a delegate”

  • At any point in time, any delegator delegates to the delegate of their choice:

    • All the SUMR they hold on the Base network (regardless of whether it’s staked or not)
    • All unvested SUMR in their vesting wallet, if applicable

  • Let’s highlight it — SUMR on other chains (ETH / Sonic / Arbitrum) does not count. It must be bridged to Base first

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:bar_chart: Quick recap: How is the Voting Monthly Participation Ratio calculated?

  • Only proposals with status executed are included.
  • A vote counts toward the month the proposal was published, not when the vote was cast.

If you think your data is wrong, contact me — I’ll check it.

Q&A:

Q: I voted for proposal X on April 1st, 2025 at 00:01 AM, but my April participation is 0%. Why?

A: Proposal X was published in March 2025, so your vote counts toward March’s participation.

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This is great answer, thank you so much!

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:magnifying_glass_tilted_left: Missing your forum activity data?

If you don’t see your forum activity correctly linked in the Dune Delegates Dashboard:

  • Just let me know your delegate 0x address - I’ll quickly update it for you!
  • Matching forum handles with delegate addresses is done manually.
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thank you @techsqrt for clarifications and headsup for @Recognized_Delegates to reach out when in need to correct handles etc.

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The handle is correct, but we don’t see our account as having a delegate statement, which you can find here: StableLab Delegate Statement - #3 by rspa_StableLab

Has been online since the inception of the DAO.

Furthermore wondering how activity is calculated, since we’re marked as being inactive.
While regularly commenting and contributing.
Happy to provide links here if necessary, but a lookup of our profile should clear that up.

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Resolved now! Thanks @techsqrt for the support.

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No problem @rspa_StableLab

Just a reminder to @Recognized_Delegates :

  • Tally bio is not the same thing as tally delegate statement
  • Creating a Delegate Statement | Tally docs
  • active delegate in Tally sense, is the one who marks seeking for a delegation while creating a tally statement
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Just to confirm and remind everyone that this is now up for vote, and voting is already open: Lazy Summer DAO (Official) | SIP5.6: Compensation for Delegates

Tagging @Recognized_Delegates :slight_smile:

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