Auditor General Reports on Community Gaming Grants & Updated Guidelines Are Released
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On December 7, the office of the Auditor General of BC released its report and recommendations pertaining to its audit of the provincial government's Community Gaming Grants program. The Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development released revamped program guidelines the next day.
The Community Gaming Grants program annually distributes nearly $135 million of gaming revenue amongst about 5,000 non-profit organizations who run programs to benefit communities in our province. An audit of the program was conducted to ensure that appropriate processes are in place to ensure fair and consistent decisions, and that funding is used as intended.
The audit found that the government’s framework for administering the Community Gaming Grants program is suitable, however the Auditor General called for improvements in a number of key areas. Read the full report and the ten recommendations made by the Auditor General by clicking here.
The Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development accepted all of the recommendations and stated that, by the time the report was released, nearly all of the recommended actions had already been completed or had begun, with the exception of the adoption of a new performance management framework for the program. Work on this will begin immediately.
Improved Guidelines and Additional Support
Following the release of the report, the Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development announced improved guidelines for the Community Gaming Grants program. Ministry staff will also deliver a series of workshops in 2017 to ensure that not-for-profit organizations are well informed and properly equipped to submit complete and accurate grant applications based on the revamped guidelines. These workshops will provide organizations with further opportunities for more direct support.
To read the revamped guidelines, visit: news.gov.bc.ca/files/BG_Community_Gaming_Grant_Guidelines_v03.pdf
