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and the development of criteria against which to evaluate requests for funding from the account. <br />There was now a form applicants must fill out for funding requests and fairly strict guidelines that <br />guide the allocation process. The account was designed to fund small, one-time grants to <br />community organizations. Ms. Walston referred the council to the list of requests for funding since <br />1999 included in the meeting packet, and noted that the council had set aside $60,000 for fiscal <br />year 2002. There was currently $451,000 in the City's General Fund Contingency Account, <br />including the $60,000. She noted that an estimated $196,000 in election expenses would need to <br />be paid for from the Contingency Account. <br /> <br />Mr. Meisner said he solicited input about the item from Mr. Pap~ before his departure, and Mr. <br />Pap~ indicated that rather than a contingency account, he would suggest that the council establish <br />a small emergency fund for documented emergency needs from community nonprofit groups and <br />organizations; all other requests for funding would go through the annual budget cycle or the <br />Human Services Commission (HSC), depending on the nature of the request. Mr. Meisner <br />indicated his concurrence with Mr. Papa's preferences. He thought that currently, funding requests <br />took up the council's and staffs time unnecessarily. Mr. Meisner added that in some cases, he <br />experienced a sense of "emotional blackmail"; council opposition to a funding request was <br />interpreted as opposition to a group or its general purpose, and that was not the case. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly disagreed with Mr. Meisner, saying that the contingency account gave the council a way <br />to use a comparatively small amount of money to leverage other financial resources, making a <br />large difference to small local nonprofits. He thought the existing process had worked well, and <br />pointed out there had not been an overwhelming volume of requests. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly said with regard to the HSC, it appeared from the Contingency Account allocations <br />made between 1999 and 2000 that there were very few for projects of the type in which the <br />commission would be involved in. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly agreed it took time for the staff and council to review the applications, but it would take <br />the same effort to process the requests through the budget process. He further pointed out there <br />was currently no mechanism for the public to provide input into the budget before it was drafted. <br />It could only be modified once the manager presented his draft budget. <br /> <br />Ms. Nathanson referred to a memorandum to the mayor and council she authored in February <br />2001, in which she suggested that contingency account requests related to human services be first <br />referred to the HSC for review. She reiterated her recommendation that if the council continued to <br />have such an account, the HSC review human services-related requests. <br /> <br />Ms. Nathanson believed that the council was not the correct venue for the requests it received. <br />She was not sure what the right venue was. She concurred with Mr. Meisner about the time it <br />took to process the requests and the element of emotional blackmail involved. She agreed with <br />Mr. Kelly that the City's funds often leveraged other resources, but said the council often spent as <br /> <br /> MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 24, 2001 Page 11 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br /> <br />