Agenda Item Wording:
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Youth Non-Profit Grant Awards - Review and approval of the Citizens Advisory Committee recommendations for the 2026 Youth Non-Profit Grant Awards.
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Prepared by: Renee Nagel, Finance & Technology Services Director, 559-713-4375, Renee.Nagel@visalia.gov; Ruth Pena, Financial Analyst, 559-713-4327, Ruth.Pena@visalia.gov; Miguel Salgado, CAC Non-Profit Grant Subcommittee Chair
Department Recommendation: It is recommended that the City Council review and approve the Citizen Advisory Committee’s (CAC) recommendation to award a distribution of $75,000 among 14 non-profit organizations for the 2026 calendar year.
Summary:
The CAC received 35 applications from non-profit organizations for grant amounts ranging from $2,000 to $6,500 for a total requested amount of $215,100. The CAC recommends awarding 14 grants ranging from $2,500 to $6,500 for a total of $75,000.
Background Discussion:
On June 17, 2024, the City Council authorized the allocation of $75,000 in non-profit grants from the fiscal year 2025-26 budget. The process for awarding these funds is administered by the CAC, which brings recommendations to Council annually for approval. The CAC received 35 applications from non-profit organizations for grant amounts ranging from $2,000 to $6,500 for a total requested amount of $215,100. The CAC recommends awarding 14 grants ranging from $2,500 to $6,500 for a total of $75,000.
The grant announcement was posted on the city’s Facebook page and advertised via the City’s website and newsletter. The deadline for proposals to be submitted via email or in person was September 30, 2025. The period of performance for grants awarded will be January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2026.
The CAC established a Non-Profit Grant Subcommittee of four regular CAC committee members to review all applications received and recommend grant awards. The Subcommittee conducted two workshops on August 26 and 27, 2025, to explain the application process to interested applicants. The CAC received 35 grant applications and reviewed 33. The two applications not reviewed were incomplete. The total amount of grant funds requested was $215,100. Of the 35 applications submitted, 14 are recommended for funding. As in prior years, grant awards are restricted to activities and programs that are based within the City of Visalia.
The CAC Subcommittee reviewed the applications and came to a consensus recommendation to award 14 grants between $1,500 and $6,500 for a total of $72,500. The recommendation was presented to and reviewed by the full CAC committee at its November 5, 2025 and January 7, 2026 meetings. The CAC unanimously adopted the subcommittee’s recommendations.
Table 1 compares grant application statistics from the last two cycles with the current cycle:
As shown in table 1, the number of applications increased from last year. This increase caused the CAC youth grant committee to review and recommend the proposed applications that focus on achieving greater impact. During review, there was a lot of focus on programs that display their contribution to more youth. There were also new programs that demonstrated their effectiveness to grow beyond their initial goal to obtain seed funds. The CAC made the collective effort to provide funding to programs that focus on youth from various backgrounds and areas that may not be as represented. With all 14 applications recommended, 2 of the applications are not fully funded.
Table 2 lists the Non-Profit funding recommendations and program descriptions.
Fiscal Impact: The 2025-26 General Fund appropriation of $75,000 is already in the budget, and no additional funding is requested.
Prior Council Action: Adoption of FY 2025-26 Budget - June 17, 2024.
Other: Committee/Commission Review and Action - CAC Review and Adoption of Subcommittee Recommendations - November 5, 2025 and January 7, 2026.
Alternatives: Redirect awards within the $75,000 amount allocated by the City Council.
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
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I move to award the non-profit grants as recommended by the Citizens Advisory Committee as shown in Table 2.
Environmental Assessment Status: N/A
CEQA Review: N/A
Deadline for Action: 1/20/2026
Attachments: Attachment 1 - Grant Applications Recommended for Funding; Attachment 2 - Grant Applications Not Recommended for Funding