City Council’s Legislative, Finance and Administration Committee revamped the city’s donation policy at its Aug. 11 meeting in a move that would create a separate budgetary procedure for awarding financial aid.
The decision will come before Dover City Council Monday, Aug. 25.
Committee chair Timothy Slavin said breaking off items like requests for the fire department or a monument into a separate category would allow council to deal with them all at once during the annual budget process.
“We will have the procedure in place so we won’t be in the position of reacting to individual items,” he said.
The unanimous committee vote passed quietly – although with discussion and input from council members not on the committee. This was in contrast to the controversy that arose several months ago with a request for a $10,000 donation to a proposed Vietnam veterans’ memorial. Several council members then opposed the donation on the basis that city policy on community leader and organization recognition states no cash donations are permitted.
In the memorial’s case, council eventually decided on an in-kind donation that included free electric service.
Councilman William McGlumphy said Monday the 2004 no-cash-donation policy was enacted because council wanted to take a hard look at the expenditures that were going on.
“Things were being requested and granted as if the door was wide open,” he said, adding council wanted to try and sever some of those contributions.
The contribution issue also was mentioned repeatedly during budget hearings earlier this year. The city gives cash contributions to the African American Festival, Kent County Tourism, Central Delaware Economic Council and Dover Fire Department. The apparent discrepancy between the policy and the contributions brought up at budget discussions led to the policy review.
Councilman Eugene Ruane thinks the policy of no cash contributions is working. He believes council can make the distinction between straight donations and certain services that non-city agencies provide when the city itself cannot.
“If an agency comes forward and says ‘I want money,’ I think the question has to be ‘Are they providing a service for our citizens that we are not currently providing or need help in providing?’ Then we might consider it,” he said.
However, Ruane clarified that services should be spelled out under a contractual arrangement similar to the one followed with the Central Delaware Economic Council.
Slavin said it seemed like throughout the budget process some of the contributions either fell in or out of the policy. He brought up the idea of developing a new grant/aid-funding category for next year’s budget with certain criteria outlined, which eventually led to the motion.
Committee member Daniel Shevock said it seems to come down to terminology – whether something is called a contribution or financial aid – and that if some items came up under the term financial aid then the city could give to them.
However, Councilman James McGiffin urged council members to be cautious.
“I’m not anxious to get into the business of funding nonprofits,” he said.
Email Jayne Gest at jayne.gest@doverpost.com
