Request for reconsideration
City Council has adopted the following reconsideration process for grant applicants wishing to contest Operating and Project Grant recommendations submitted to Council by the Assessment Committee, which is comprised of peer members from the cultural community and City staff.
Request for reconsideration policy
Every effort is made to create a fair and transparent process for the assessment of grant requests.
Since requests for assistance will always exceed the budget, the process is competitive and, as such, is evaluated with very specific assessment criteria. It is important that applicants submit a complete application that addresses all questions and criteria set out in the program guidelines and application form.
In most cases when a request is not successful, it is because the proposal did not meet the evaluation criteria to the same degree as other applicants in the competition.
Process
If an applicant is in disagreement with the Assessment Committee recommendation, the following steps and options apply:
1. Informal request for clarification
- Discuss your concerns with staff, either the person who handled your application or the person who chaired the meeting, in an effort to come to a better understanding of the recommendation.
- Staff can provide you with additional information, such as clarification of the assessment process, additional Assessment Committee comments (if applicable), the overall demand and available budget, and rankings.
2. Formal request for reconsideration
- If you are still unsatisfied with the additional information provided by staff and you have grounds for reconsideration, you can make a formal submission that follows the criteria guidelines.
Criteria for requests for reconsideration
Council established that grant recommendations will be reconsidered only if the request is based on one or both of the following criteria:
- Eligibility criteria have not been properly applied.
- Eligibility refers to the type of organization and activities that qualify for cultural grants. In brief, applicants must be registered non-profit cultural organizations, based in and active in Vancouver, and meet a number of other requirements listed in the Program Information Guide with the application form.
- Council's policy is not to consider reconsideration requests based on questions of evaluation (for example, quality of programs, organizational competence, community impact, and other criteria listed in the Program Information Guide) as the Peer Assessment Committee cannot be re-convened.
- Financial information from the applicant has not been accurately assessed.
- This relates to assessment of financial information supplied by the applicant during (not after) the application review.
Formal request for reconsideration guidelines
After you have been through the informal process, you must submit a formal written request signed by a Board member of your society, clearly stating the reasons for seeking reconsideration as it relates to the criteria specified below. This can be faxed, emailed, or mailed to the attention of the Director, Grants, Awards, and Support programs at Cultural Services. This information should not exceed two type-written pages (8.5 × 11 inches, single-spaced, 11 point font minimum).
A staff person, different from the one who originally reviewed the application, will review the request in consultation with the Director of Grants, Awards, and Support programs, and determine whether it is eligible to go forward based on the specific criteria.
If the applicant does not meet specific criteria for reconsideration, the application is denied. The applicant is notified in writing within five working days.
If the application meets specific criteria for reconsideration, the original request for assistance is pulled from the report to Council and is scheduled for a separate meeting date (usually within two months after the initial meeting date).
Staff prepare a written summary of their review of the request, including a proposal to either amend the original recommendation or to let it stand. This summary, together with the applicant's submission for reconsideration, is presented in a report to Council.
The report is submitted to a City Finances & Services Standing Committee meeting, where members of Council will consider the report. The applicant also has the opportunity to address Council directly at this meeting.
A decision is made at that meeting and the applicant is also notified of the decision in writing within two weeks of the meeting date.