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Funding for local governments

Regional district and the Village of Burns Lake receive grants.

The Village of Burns Lake and the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako (RDBN) have received a portion of grant funding from the provincial government.

The grant funding is part of the provincial government's Strategic Community Investment Fund (SCIF) which will see communities in the Bulkley-Nechako region receive over $1.5 million dollars in funding.

Burns Lake will receive $309,218 in funding, while RDBN will receive $122,432 in SCIF funding this year.

"These SCIF grants are incredibly important to rural communities, especially given the smaller tax base they have to work with, versus the amount of services they provide to the community," John Rustad, MLA for Nechako Lakes said.

Sheryl Worthing, Chief Administrative Officer for the Village of Burns Lake notes the grant is received every year by the village and the amount of money received is based on the population.

"We budget for this annually and use the funds for general operating purposes and it helps to offset taxation revenue," Worthing said.

"We are required to report out on the use of the funds by June of every year."

Last year the Village of Burns Lake received $311,157 in SCIF grants in 2013, receiving $88,649 in March 2013, and $222,508 in July 2013, according to the village report on last year's SCIF funding.

The report also indicates that over the course of the SCIF agreement, the grant funding received by the village must be used to support the village's administration needs.

The Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako uses the funding towards administrative costs, with a portion going towards rural services, general government costs and towards Fort Fraser.

This year's funding is part of almost $74 million being invested in communities throughout B.C. this year in SCIF grants, including small community grants, regional district basic grants and the traffic fire revenue sharing programs.

Since 2009, SCIF has provided $678 million in funding to support B.C. communities, and was implemented by the province to provide local governments with greater financial stability in economically uncertain times.