REQUEST FOR DECISION
DATE: November 30, 2020 Report No. FIN-20-016
TO: Laurie Hurst, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Ian Irvine, Director of Financial Services
SUBJECT:
Title
Local Grant Policy
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
That Council approve Council Policy ADMIN-32 Local Grants as amended and attached to Staff Report No. FIN-20-016.
Body
RELEVANT POLICY:
Council Policy ADMIN-32 Local Grants
STRATEGIC RELEVANCE:
Healthy, Livable and Diverse Community - Support the arts, culture and heritage community
BACKGROUND:
During its meeting to review the 2020 grant applications, the Local Grant Committee recommended a review of the Township’s Council Policy ADMIN-32 Local Grants. Specifically, it was requested that the Policy be revised with consideration given to the amount and allocation of total grant finding, the potential for approving multiple year grants and the creation of more specific evaluation and eligibility criteria.
The Council Policy was last amended in October 2016 at which time the funding levels were increased, the timing of the grant process was shifted and multiple policies relating to local grants were consolidated into one document.
ISSUES:
1. Rationale for Selected Option
The Local Grant Committee indicated that evaluating applications is sometimes challenging due to inconsistencies in the information submitted by applicants and the minimal guidance provided by the existing Council Policy. To address these concerns, the application form has been amended and the Policy revised to establish parameters and categories to help guide the evaluation process. Similar to what was established for permissive tax exemptions, an online, fillable application form has been created and would be available on the Township website. This document has been designed to gather all relevant information and would be intended to facilitate a more consistent evaluation by the Local Grant Committee.
The revised Council Policy indicates that local grants are intended to assist organizations with their programs, projects and events. However, this does not mean that all related expenditures would be eligible. The revised Policy identifies expenditures which could be considered ineligible for financial support including: (i) costs that are the responsibility of other government levels and (ii) operating or capital costs not directly associated with the program, project or event.
In addition to clarification regarding project and cost eligibility, the revised Policy provides the Committee and applicants with details regarding specific areas which must be addressed within a grant application. These requirements are intended to ensure applicants are able to demonstrate organizational capacity, financial stability and community commitment. Each of these areas form a part of the evaluation categories outlined within the revised Policy.
The evaluation categories are independently weighted and would be assessed and scored by the Committee based on the responses provided by each applicant. Prior to the Local Grant Committee meeting, a matrix would be developed to assist with the ranking of applications in order to facilitate the fair allocation of funding. The key evaluation areas and their relative weighting would be:
Organizational Capacity - 20%
Project Feasibility - 30%
Evidence of Need - 20%
Community Impacts and Involvement - 30%
Funding Level
Council wanted to see changes to the funding levels and the initial allocation amount while also reducing the amount available for subsequent ad hoc requests. Previously, the local grant account balance was established in the Financial Plan at a level equal to a 0.50% tax revenue increase from the previous year. In this revised Policy the baseline amount would be set at the 2020 level and would be increased each year by Victoria’s annual consumer price index percentage.
As well, the Committee would have the ability to recommend the allocation of up to 95% of the annual amount during the initial intake with the remaining amount available to fund new requests during the remainder of the year. Based on this revision, the Committee could have recommended an additional allocation of $7,350 during the 2020 initial local grant intake.
Multiple Year Grants
While the Local Grant Committee expressed an interest in the ability to recommend grants over multiple fiscal years, this has not been included in the revised Council Policy. While this capacity now exists for permissive tax exemptions, similar application for local grants is more challenging. The ability to approve funding for more than one year is often difficult due to the uncertainty about whether organizations intend to operate programs, projects or events each year and, if so, what the requested financial support would be. One exception could be the small number of community events that are organized on an annual basis. By continuing to review and approve grants on an annual basis, Council can ensure that all applications are fully and consistently evaluated and that all organizations continue to be accountable for the support they receive annually.
In Kind Support
While in kind support has been approved in previous years for those community events meeting ‘established event’ criteria, this classification and the access to in kind services have been removed from the revised Policy. Recently, it was noted that some event committees were utilizing Township resources in excess of what was approved by Council. At the same time, due to the timing of recording Township expenditures such as wage costs, event committees were not always fully aware of the amount of services they were being provided.
Shifting to an approach where local grants are provided solely in the form of cash payments would not impact the level of support that recipients receive and would also provide them the option of paying the Township or another external provider for their required goods and services. At the same time, this would result in improved fiscal transparency and accountability through a clearer quantification of the actual service value being provided by the Township.
Established Events
Previously, the key benefits of being designated as an established event were: (i) the eligibility to receive in kind support and (ii) an exemption from having to represent an application before the Local Grant Committee. With the removal of in kind support and the requirement for each organization to complete an annual application, the established events classification has been removed from the revised Policy. Considering these events as part of the annual grant process would ensure that these events continue to satisfy the evaluation criteria and that they remain fiscally accountable for the support they receive from the Township.
2. Organizational Implications
There are no organizational implications of this decision.
3. Financial Implications
There are no financial implications of this decision.
4. Sustainability & Environmental Implications
There are no sustainability or environmental implications of this decision.
5. Communication & Engagement
Once approved, the amended Council Policy will be added to the Township website and internal intranet “the bridge” and all 2020 local grant applicants will be notified of the revised Policy and the need to complete the new form for all future applications.
ALTERNATIVES:
1. That Council approve Council Policy ADMIN-32 Local Grants as amended and attached to Staff Report FIN-20-016.
2. That Council further amend Council Policy ADMIN-32 Local Grants and approve as amended.
3. That Council not approve Council Policy ADMIN-32 Local Grants and direct staff to provide more information.