Duties of Local and Regional Cultural Councils

(1) Each local or regional cultural council has a number of mandatory duties: (a) Soliciting community input and assessing local cultural needs (962 CMR 2.07(2)); (b) Establishing priorities and guidelines for the review of local grant applications (962 CMR 2.07(3)); (c) Communicating with the public (962 CMR 2.07(4)); (d) Reviewing and recommending action on local applications (962 CMR 2.07(5)); (e) Reporting to the Massachusetts Cultural Council (962 CMR 2.07(6)); (f) Carrying out other necessary administrative functions (962 CMR 2.07(7)). (g) Complying with guidelines, rules, rulings, or regulations promulgated from time to time by the MCC. (2) Community Input. Each local council is responsible for insuring that its grants and programs benefit the community to the greatest extent possible. To this end, each council must conduct regular assessment of cultural needs within its community. Councils should refer to the LCC Guidelines for specific procedures. (3) Establishing Local Funding Priories. Based on its community input process, each council is then responsible for determining its own funding priorities. While all councils are strongly encouraged to develop written local funding guidelines, councils receiving more than $20,000 are required to do so. If a council does have local guidelines, it must make them available to prospective applicants. Autonomyis encouraged in theestablishment of local funding priorities, as long as these are within the parameters of the guidelines established by the MCC. (4) Communicating with the Public. Local councils are responsible for promoting local awareness of their programs; informing the public of the availability of funds; publicizing the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the local council office or contact person; communicating with grant applicants and recipients; and such other duties as the MCC may from time to time elaborate through guidelines, rules, rulings, or regulations. Councils will be assisted in this work by the MCC, which will maintain a database on local councils, help publicize the state-wide local deadline, assist in the distribution of applications, and so forth. (5) Reviewing and Recommending Action on Local Applications. Guidelines regarding local eligibility, review criteria, and procedure for the review of applications are laid out in detail in the LCC Guidelines, including an appendix relating to the Open Meeting and Conflict of Interest Laws applicable to local councils. (6) Reporting to the Massachusetts Cultural Council. The reporting requirements of local councils and guidelines regarding periodic state audits are set forth in the LCC Guidelines. (7) Other Necessary Administrative Functions. Additional administrative functions include the handling and reimbursement of payment requests; all necessary record-keeping; establishment of a local office (if applicable); maintaining communications with the local treasurer; monitoring financial reports; and other tasks as necessary for the efficient operation of the council.