Corporation Of The Municipality of West Elgin

Schedule “A” to By-Law #2019-58

2019-05 Community Grant Policy

Effective Date: June 27, 2019

Review Date:

1. Purpose

This policy is intended to enable the Municipality of West Elgin to provide grants to non-profit organizations and groups who operate within, and/or provide services to, the Municipality of West Elgin for any purpose that Council considers in the interest of the municipality. These services include but are not limited to the areas of recreation, arts and culture, environmental and other activities that support purposes beneficial to the community.

1. Legislative Authority

Section 107 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended, provides that a municipal may make grants, on such terms as to security and otherwise as the council considers appropriate, to any person, group or body, including a fund, within or outside the boundaries of the municipality for any purpose that a council considers to be in the interests of the municipality.

1. Overview

The Municipality of West Elgin recognizes the need to assist non-profit organizations in taking on new initiatives and assisting organizations in carrying out their responsibilities. The Municipality will not support on an ongoing basis, any organization that does not have a sufficient amount of support, financial or otherwise, from the community as it is key that organizations become sustainable as soon as possible after they begin operations and should remain sustainable with an adequate level of funding for their operations from the community.

1. Annual Grant Funding

Council shall establish annually a monetary amount in the budget for all grant requests.

5. Categories for Funding

1. Supporting Youth/Senior Events

2. Community Beautification

3. Arts, Culture and Heritage projects and/or events

4. Tourism Development

5. Community Special Events

6. Other – one time grant request

6. Grant Types

Requests may be made for monetary and/or in-kind contributions. While cash funds are not provided in relation to in-kind contributions it is recognized that such grants will involve either an expense or foregone revenue for the municipality. Each application for in-kind grants will be required to include an estimated monetary value of the request under consideration.

7. Application Guidelines

1. All grant applications shall be submitted on the Community Grant Application Form and directed to the Treasurer, on or before December 31 of each year for inclusion in the following year's budget.

2. Forms that are incomplete will not be considered.

3. The application for financial assistance, in any given year, will not will not automatically be considered in future years. Applicants must re-submit grant applications.

4. Grant Application forms shall include financial information including a budget for the event/project/program and the financial statement from the previous year from either the event or the organization

a. If the report shows a surplus, a statement of intended use of the surplus shall be included

b. If the report shows a deficit, a statement as to how the deficit will be eradicated

5. Requests related to the waiver or reduction of fees for parks and/or facilities, the applicant will be required to complete and comply with the terms of the rental agreement.

6. Submission of a grant application does not guarantee an organization will receive full or partial funding.

7. Requests related to in-kind contributions are subject to the availability of the resource(s) being requested.

8. Requests related to a capital project to be constructed on municipal land, requires Council sanction before proceeding. The request must detail the project design with a budget including future maintenance costs.

9. The Municipality of West Elgin will not contribute to outstanding deficits. In the event that a recommendation is made to provide funding for a program from which the Municipality is owed funds, the Municipality has the right to reduce the recommended grant amount by the amount of monies outstanding.

8. Eligibility Criteria

An applicant organization must meet the following general criteria in order to be considered for a community grant;

1. Operate as a non-profit organization with the ability to confirm such status to a level deemed satisfactory by the municipality. Any specific service, program or activity for which fund is requested must also be not-for-profit in nature.

2. Applications must meet one of the funding categories specified in this policy.

3. Complete the Community Grant Application Form in full including the submission of previous year's financial information.

4. Must have submitted a status report for any community grant received in the previous year within the required timelines.

5. One-time special requests for assistance will be considered on an individual basis. Examples of these types of requests would be disaster relief requests either locally or on a broader scope.

6. Demonstrate that the applicant organization has explored and/or are receiving other sources of financial support. Grants are intended to be supplementary to main sources of funding for organizations. The grant shall not be considered as the primary source of funding for the organization and/or the event.

7. There will be consideration given to providing donations to local elementary and secondary schools for special projects or events.

9. Exclusions

1. Grants will not be available to groups that have failed to comply with reporting requirements from previous grants.

2. Organizations and/or charities whose primary focus is not within the Municipality shall not be considered for a municipal donation or grant.

3. Individuals and businesses are not eligible to apply for the Community Grant Program.

4. Unless special circumstances warrant, consideration will not be given to requests for grants from recreational sport groups (with the exception of minor sports organizations); nor will funds be used to sponsor an individual athlete or team for a competition or to subsidize participation in a sports event.

5. Grants will not be provided to fund projects on property held by private landowners.

10. Procedure

1. All requests for financial donations and grants will be considered having regard for the Municipality's current budget. Only one request per organization is to be considered per year.

2. The Treasurer will review applications for completeness, accuracy, and compliance with this policy. Applicants may be required to provide additional information before the request is presented to Council. Applicants may present their funding request as a delegation to council.

3. Applications for in-kind non-financial assistance will be forwarded to the respective department for review. The department manager will review and provide in a report the financial impact of the request and the availability of the resource being requested. 

4. Council will review and assess all grants/awards in terms of the need for the project, cost effectiveness, financial viability, and contribution to the quality of life in the community and community involvement/response.

5. Council will make the final decision on all grants/awards.

6. Requests will be considered during the annual budget deliberations. The Treasury department will notify all applicants of Council's decision once the municipal budget has been approved.

7. Revenues related to in-kind services will be recorded in the respective department and the expense will form part of the municipal grant expense budget line.

8. Grant funds will typically be awarded in one lump sum payment. At the discretion of council organizations may be awarded funds by installments, with a reporting requirement prior to release of the next installment.

11. Accountability

1. Applicants awarded a grant will be held accountable for the expenditure of the funds in accordance with the stated objectives/plans. Grants in future years will be reviewed based on past demonstrated fiscal responsibility of the applicants.

2. Funds granted under this program are not transferable between projects or groups without prior Council approval and must be used for the specific purposes outlined.

3. In the event that the project does not go forward, the grant recipient shall return those funds granted for the proposed project.

4. Grant recipients must complete a status report and submit to the West Elgin Council within 60 days of the event/project completion. Failure to comply may affect the eligibility of future grant approvals. The status report shall include – a description of the completed event/project, financial report, listing all expenditures and revenues pertaining to the event/project, the use of the funds, and the signature of the event chair/coordinator. 

12. Municipal Recognition

Organizations receiving financial support shall acknowledge the Municipality of West Elgin's contribution through all printed material and other promotional means. The Municipality's logo is available by contacting the Clerk's Office.

1. Evaluation Matrix

Each Council member will complete an evaluation and give each applicant a score using the established Evaluation Matrix form, attached hereto and forming an integral part of this policy. This score will be used to determine the amount of dollars for each applicant if the request for grants exceed funds available. The following criteria will be used to evaluate the various applications:

1. The initiative will have a positive impact on the community.
2. The initiative provides access to the arts, culture, environment, heritage, recreation, lifelong learning and/or health activities
3. The project, initiative or event will contribute to the economic prosperity of the Municipality of West Elgin and/or promote civic pride.
4. The initiative demonstrates broad support by way of having adequate funds and support from other sources and stakeholders and/or significant evidence of broad community support.
5. The initiative benefits a significant number of residents.

Process