A performance audit into the integrity of the assessment and approval processes for two grant programs has found the former Office of Local Government’s (OLG) Stronger Communities Fund lacked integrity and Create NSW’s Regional Cultural Fund failed to follow the recommendations of an independent assessment panel.
Both programs were administered during the 2017–18 and 2018–19 financial years with the second round of the Stronger Communities Fund allocating $252 million to 24 Councils and the Regional Cultural Fund awarded $99 million for 147 cultural projects.
In her Report, Integrity of grant program administration, Auditor-General, Margaret Crawford said that for round two of the Stronger Communities Fund, the Government decided to prioritise funds for Councils that had worked constructively with it through the 2016 merger process.
“However, this information was not included in the program guidelines,” Ms Crawford said.
“The program guidelines were not published and did not contain details of selection and assessment processes.
“Councils and projects were instead identified by the former Premier, Deputy Premier and Minister for Local Government and communicated to OLG with little or no information about the basis for the Council or project selection.”
Ms Crawford said there was no merit assessment of identified projects and “this process resulted in 96 per cent of funds allocated to coalition State seats”.
The Auditor-General said that while the assessment process used by Create NSW for its Regional Cultural Fund was robust and produced transparent and defensible recommendations, the former Minister for the Arts, in consultation with the former Deputy Premier, did not follow the recommendations of the independent assessment panel in 22 per cent of the cases.
She said the reasons for the changes were not documented by Create NSW.
Ms Crawford made two recommendations: one to the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC) and the other to the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE).
She recommended DPC develop a model for grant administration for all grant programs based on ethical principles outlined in the Government Sector Employee Act (2013).
She also called on the DPC to ensure that assessments limited politically-biased outcomes; that accountability for decisions be ensured; that minimum mandatory administration and documentation standards be included; and that any Ministerial override of recommendations be documented.
For DPIE she recommended it ensure that guidelines prepared for all grant programs are published and included a governance framework.
The Auditor-General’s 75-page Report can be accessed at this PS News link.
