Surrey council approved some amendments to the Council Initiative Fund Utilization Policy after reviewing a corporate report from Kam Grewal, Surrey's finance manager, on Sept. 9.
Applications are restricted to three categories, including residents in need, youth-focused events and initiatives, and events that are free to the public. Qualifying applicants may submit one request per year to a maximum grant of $10,000 apiece.
In June Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke set up a task force to review the Council Initiative Fund policy in an effort to keep a better tab on how cash from the fund is being distributed. "We're not always sure how much we should be giving to every organization," she said.
City staff was asked to report back with recommendations to update the policy by council's first meeting in September. Money from the Council Initiative Fund, established in 1998, is typically used for city celebrations, community projects, sponsorships, economic development and image-building initiatives and capital contributions, with the money allotted to organizations and individuals in good standing with the City of Surrey's bylaws and standards. It's not to be used for events that are run by the City of Surrey itself, as funding for such things are supposed to be included in the City's annual operating budget.
Councillors Pardeep Kooner, Rob Stutt and Doug Elford were assigned to this task force in June and then on Sept. 9 Locke also assigned them to a related standing committee to review applications and make recommendations to council "on an ongoing basis."
Coun. Mandeep Nagra asked Grewal if applicants can still receive funds if they miss the submission deadline.
"That would be at the discretion of council," Grewal replied. "I think one of the objectives of updating the policy is to put more responsibility on the organizations to align their event with those four intake periods," he said, which will be "evenly spread out through the year."
Grewal told council the City has spent $162,000 so far this year in CIF grants, out of a total annual budget of $260,000.
Submission deadlines are set for Jan. 31, April 30, July 31 and Oct. 31.
Last November, in preparation for the City's 2024 budget, results of an on-line survey and six open houses held throughout Surrey revealed that 77 per cent of respondents want more information of how their tax dollars are spent.
All told, 2,865 surveys were completed, 506 people attended the open houses and 50,725 were reached online and through newspaper ads. The data gathered revealed 96 per cent of those who responded to the survey live in Surrey, 28 per cent work in the city, 15 per cent own property in Surrey and six per cent own a business here.
