Helping those who help themselves is the idea behind a new policy being implemented by City Council.

For those interested in applying for monetary support from the City, they must first prove that they are providing effort towards their own cause.

The prerequisites include financial information such as their annual budget and a recent audit, letters of reference, organizational structure and ISC profile report. However, Councillor Dennis Moore also raised another point that the other council members seemed to agree on.

"The policy will put everybody on the same page. When they apply for some funds from the city, we will have a guideline to go by. All I was suggesting was that, when they bring their finances to us and the condition their party might be in, I would like to see what they have done to warrant getting any extra money from us. Once they do that, we could match what they raise themselves or come up with a percentage of funds to match what they can raise."

"That's where I was coming off of, I was trying to get them to promote themselves before they come for funds from the city," he said.

"If they're falling short, and they need to survive, then there's no reason why we shouldn't step forward and help them out."

Moore expressed that the question to the requesting group would be: What have you done within your organization to help raise the funds you need to function? In the past, groups have approached council with requests for funding. However, they hadn't applied any effort of their own to their cause, thus the root of Moore's thoughts.

"Keep in mind, most of us in the room and around the table belong to organizations. We know what it's like when you run up against a wall where you cannot function anymore, then you have to go elsewhere and try and get the funds to make things work."

He noted that, in many cases, the question about what they have done to help themselves is a wake up call to the requesting party.

With the additional requirements, one may expect that the number of groups requesting financial assistance may dwindle. However, Moore doesn't think so.

"Most of the people involved in these clubs are very concerned about their finances, and I think this is a really good idea, asking them to bring that information in. Then we can work together on it. We're not going to take anything over, but we can make suggestions, like we did with the Royal Canadian Legion.

Moore also pointed out that the situation with the Legion is a prime example of how the process could work. The organization was doing what they could to support themselves, and then came and presented a strong case before council, and garnered a ton of community support as a result.