AG says the province needs to track how millions in grants are spent
Auditor General Michael Pickup found that departments aren't always tracking how money gets used
Non-profits, community groups, companies and individuals receive millions of dollars in grants from the province each year — but the latest report from Nova Scotia's auditor general suggests the government has little idea of whether that money does any good.
Auditor General Michael Pickup's conclusion: "Departments do not adequately evaluate programs to determine if they are meeting goals and objectives."
Pickup's office evaluated 18 grant programs run in three departments: Communities, Culture and Heritage; Agriculture and Natural Resources.
In cases where there was an assessment, the report noted that most didn't show the link between the final report from the grant recipients and the program's objective.
Poor tracking
Auditors also found the departments processed grant applications differently. In some cases, the province strictly adhered to the application criteria in choosing successful applicants — but, at other times, they disregarded them completely. In some cases, applicants got the grant money before anyone signed an agreement about how it would be used.
There are also programs in which the province paid out the grant before getting any accounting about how the money was spent.
Auditors highlighted two programs with "particularly poor results" — the Arts Nova Scotia Grants to Individuals program and the One-time Emerging Culture and Heritage Initiative.
Nine of the 10 files reviewed by the auditor under the Arts Nova Scotia program didn't include a final accounting report, while six of those who received money through the culture and heritage initiative hadn't filed those documents.