City of Iqaluit doles out surplus wellness money to four non-profits
$37K split between Iqaluit Humane Society, Alianait, Uquutaq Society and Nunavut Literacy Council
Iqaluit city councillor Noah Papatsie, who is also vice-chair of the Niksiit committee, proposed the redistribution of unused 2018 community wellness funding on Tuesday. (Photo by Courtney Edgar)
Four Iqaluit non-profit groups will get some extra cash from the city, as it redirects unspent money from its community wellness fund.
If the city government doesn’t spend $37,000 worth of remaining funds from 2018, that money will have to be returned to the Government of Nunavut.
At a city council meeting held on Tuesday, Jan. 23, Coun. Noah Papatsie, vice-chair of the Niksiit committee, proposed that four Iqaluit societies should receive unspent funds for 2018, totaling $36,647.93. The plan received unanimous support from council.
The Iqaluit Humane Society will receive $5,465 of these re-allocated funds.
With it, the animal welfare organization will offer low-income earners the chance to register their dogs with the city free of charge.
Up to 70 dogs will be registered with the city with that money. But that’s only if owners meet an unspecified low-income threshold.
Coun. Kyle Sheppard added the recommendation that there must be some way for dog owners prove low income to benefit.
How they will do that is not yet clear, said Sherri Rowe, senior director of corporate services at the City of Iqaluit.
Other societies to benefit
Alianait will be another recipient of the re-distributed funds. The arts company will receive $2,000 for clown performances planned in February for Iqaluit students.
Additionally, $10,000 of these re-allocated funds will let the Uquutaq Society hire a consultant. This employee will assist with financial reporting and planning services for the men’s homeless shelter.
The biggest chunk of the extra funds will go to Ilitaqsiniq Nunavut Literacy Council, which offers cultural programming. It teaches things like sewing and Inuit languages.
The $19,209.93 allocated to Ilitaqsiniq will be used to support a fishing program for young men.
“Many of its efforts benefit marginalized members of our community,” said Papatsie in the request for decision.
“The literacy council serves as a stepping-stone for unemployed individuals. The programs help develop their confidence and integrate them back into society.”
Isn’t the wellness money for people? Humane society getting money shows a lack of community connection at the city
I also have questions about that number.
Is the $5,465 some sort of a service fee, paid to the Humane Society, for helping low-income individuals get free registration of their pet from the city?
Or, is some portion of this money going to be used BY the Humane Society to pay the City’s registration fee?
In other words, is some portion of that funding basically flowing back into City of Iqaluit coffers?
Nothing in the Responsible Pet Ownership bylaw seems to provide free licenses to low-income individuals (in fact, it says that “no person shall be entitled to a license rebate under this By-law”). Meanwhile, the Council Motion Registry doesn’t include anything about waiving fees, just a reference to the “Iqaluit Humane Society Get Me Home” funding proposal. ( https://www.city.iqaluit.nu.ca/sites/default/files/eng_-_january_22_2019_meeting_02.pdf )
It seems like they’ve ‘donated’ $5465 of GN dollars to get back $3,850 in license fees. But maybe there’s an existing program in place to provide for free licenses through the Humane Society?