# Governance

## Overview

Balancer Governance is the heart and brain of Balancer Protocol. 

Anyone can be part of the Balancer Governance Process, and anyone with BAL voting power can vote on proposals. Governance makes decisions about new features and directions of where the Balancer Protocol should go. Governance is the ultimate decision body for the Balancer Protocol; no one can override vote results. 

## [Governance Process](https://balancer.gitbook.io/balancer-v2/ecosystem/governance/governance-process)

The Balancer Governance Process tracks an initiative from discussion to proposal, to a vote, to enactment. It is designed to be an open, transparent, and intuitive way to progress the future of the protocol.

## [BAL Governance Token](https://balancer.gitbook.io/balancer-v2/ecosystem/governance/bal-governance-token)

Voting power for the Balancer Protocol is derived from the Balancer Governance Token (BAL). BAL holders, also called Balancer Governors, vote on proposals relevant to the protocol. These proposals are wide-ranging, from Governable Protocol Fees to how BAL Tokens themselves are distributed in the future.

## [Snapshot](https://balancer.gitbook.io/balancer-v2/ecosystem/governance/snapshot)

Snapshot, a spinoff of Balancer, is an off-chain gasless multi-governance client with easy to verify and hard to contest results. Balancer Governance Votes take place on Snapshot.

## [Multisig](https://balancer.gitbook.io/balancer-v2/ecosystem/governance/multisig)

To enact the off-chain votes on Snapshot, Balancer Protocol uses a Multisig to solidify these changes on-chain. Balancer’s Multisig signers are a diverse set of widely respected community members. The multisig does NOT have decision-making action power, as its role is to simply enact on-chain the decisions BAL holders make via off-chain voting.

## [Governable Protocol Fees](https://balancer.gitbook.io/balancer-v2/ecosystem/governance/governable-protocol-fees)

Balancer Governors have the power to enable and modify Governable Protocol Fees. These can be collected from trading fees and flash loan fees and stored in the Vault. The Governors themselves also get to decide what becomes of these fees, and how to best spend them to support the health and progress of the protocol.

## [Emergency subDAO](https://balancer.gitbook.io/balancer-v2/ecosystem/governance/emergency-subdao)

The [Emergency DAO](https://dao.curve.fi/emergencymembers) is an idea pioneered by Curve that empowers a small group to take action **in the** **event of malicious activity and/or potential loss of funds.** The Balancer emergency subDAO was established after the [following vote](https://vote.balancer.fi/#/proposal/0x63fab7ab9ef5b9579dabb82058b8ea309e39c766d435438b55fff8db7c1f69fd).