Grants available to help local bodies

Press, 22 October 1986, Page 2

Grants available to help local bodies

By

OLIVER RIDDELL

in Wellington Government grants are now available to help restructure and strengthen territorial and regional local government. Detailed criteria for this incentive grant scheme have been announced by the Minister of Local Government, Dr Bassett. Under the scheme grants will be payable for: • Restructuring at regional and territorial authority levels. • Undertaking new functions, including those devolved from the central Government.

• Introducing innovative projects. • Providing special amenities, facilities or services of national or regional significance. The grants under the incentive grant scheme will become available from April 1, 1987. They will be administered as a component of the Government’s new revenue-sharing policy with regional and territorial authorities and will be funded as part of that package. Dr Bassett said the $1 million available from October 1 to March 31 would be distributed to meet specific costs in-

curred by territorial authorities amalgamating before April 1 as a result of Local Government Commission schemes, and by regional authorities undergoing significant political or administrative restructuring. The first of these grants had been made early in September — $104,000 going to the West Coast United Council. Other applications for grants had been received and were being considered. Dr Bassett said the scheme would act as an incentive to encourage local authorities to restructure and strengthen their administrations.