Community Benefit Funds

From time to time, articles appear in the local press about the County Supervisors allocating funds to nonprofits in our district and county wide. While often referred to by the press as a “discretionary” fund (or in some cases, a “slush fund”), in fact these are budgeted allocations for each District called Community Benefit Funds.

I believe Community Benefit Funds represent a valuable asset to my district. The very core of the job I do as a Supervisor is to inform myself on what is important to Novato (along with Steve Kinsey who represents western Novato), and to work with local organizations who are striving to make our community a better place. The Community Benefit Funds allow small amounts of money to be leveraged in larger ways by these community non-profits for local, targeted projects that may otherwise not be possible.

Each applicant for these funds must fill out a form outlining where the funding is going and what it will be used for. This information is also included for the public on the Board agenda. In summary, this information includes:

• The purpose for which the funds will be used.
• The resulting benefit(s) to the community described in detail. For example, historical or projected outcomes could be:
• Number of residents served
• Number of service hours provided
• Number of programs enhanced or expanded
• Hazards mitigated
• The benefit(s) must be to one or more communities within Marin County.
• The benefiting communities or areas served should be indicated when not Countywide.
• Whether or not the requesting organization is a non-profit (if yes, the type of non-profit and the Tax ID number).
• Whether the funds requested will cover a portion of the cost of the stated purpose or all of it.
• Are there funding sources other than the County? If so, what are they and how do they apply to the stated purpose?
• The period in which the funds will be used.

As background, these allocations used to take place as an administrative matter. Shortly after I took office, I asked that these expenditures be placed on our agenda at regular meetings to allow for the opportunity for public comment prior to a vote by the Board. The Board of Supervisors voted to adopt this policy in early 2009.

The items are fully noticed in advance (in compliance with the requirements of the Brown Act for any board action) on the Board Agenda.

One point that has been frequently cited by press articles is that as a standard practice, the items are on the Consent calendar, and thus voted on by the Board along with the rest of the items on Consent for that meeting. The implication seems to be that Consent items are in some way less “public”, but in fact any item on Consent, for any meeting, can be “pulled” by any supervisor or any member of the public that requests it, and discussed individually. Pulling an item from Consent at the request of a supervisor or member of the public happens frequently, and is by no means a difficult or unusual occurrence.

Who the funds go to, and for what purpose, is noticed in advance and voted on publicly (and as we have seen, reported on in detail.) My constituents have full transparency into my use of Community Benefit Funds and are always welcome to contact me with any questions.