The Grant Cycle
Eligibility & Criteria
A hallmark of the LCC Program is the emphasis on local autonomy and decision making. LCCs are free to make funding decisions that best meet the needs and priorities of their community within the parameters of the broad state guidelines. Mass Cultural Council imposes few restrictions on the eligible uses of local funds, as long as the criteria set forth in the LCC Program Guidelines is met. The LCC Program Guidelines are a valuable resource for LCCs; it is useful to download a complete copy to refer to and bring to LCC meetings.
Eligibility
Application deadline: All applicants must submit completed applications by the statewide deadline in October. Late applications cannot be accepted.
Types of grants: LCCs may approve grants for a broad range of projects and programs, such as operating support, ticket subsidies, field trips, artist residencies, public art, fellowships, community events/programs, site specific projects, and other activities, based on local priorities. Each LCC determines its own local eligibility requirements based on the community input process. Local priorities are published to the Council’s Profile each cycle.
Grant amounts: Local Cultural Council grants vary and are determined by each LCC. Mass Cultural Council strongly encourages granting no less than a minimum of $250 to each approved application. To get a sense of typical award amounts, applicants should review the funding list on each Council’s Profile.
Program eligibility: Applicants may apply for grants for programs that take place during an 18-month window of eligibility: from July 1, preceding the application deadline in October, through December 31 of the following year.
This means that applicants may apply for projects that have already happened or which happen prior to grant announcements of the current fiscal year cycle, with the knowledge that funding is not guaranteed. LCCs are authorized to establish a smaller window of eligibility; if they do so, they must publish the eligible dates in their local guidelines.
Applicant eligibility: Applicants must reside or be located in Massachusetts. LCCs may accept applications from anyone included in the following list. LCCs are authorized to prioritize eligible applicant types or limit which types of applicants they fund; if they do so, they must publish the eligibility in their local guidelines:
- Individuals. Individual applicants, including sole proprietors, must show that a public benefit results from the project for which they are applying. Individual members of LCCs may apply for funding from their own LCC but must observe all conflict of interest laws and regulations in the granting process. LCCs may also establish their own rules regarding applications from fellow members if these are consistent with the state’s conflict of interest laws.
- Non-profit organizations. Organizations organized or registered as non-profits with the Secretary of the Commonwealth or organizations with federal tax-exempt status.
- Unincorporated associations. A group of individuals coming together with a common purpose (e.g., local community band, theater group) that do not have non-profit status.
- Incorporated non-profit organizations. For-profit organizations organized or registered with the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Applicants must show that a public benefit results from the project for which they are applying.
- Tribal, federal, state, and municipal government organizations. This includes any governmental entity such as public schools, libraries, other municipal agencies, and Local Cultural Councils.
- Religious organizations. LCCs cannot fund activities that are “inherently religious” such as religious worship, instruction, and proselytization. Religious organizations or groups with a religious affiliation are eligible to apply for funding for a project or program that:
- Is available to the general public.
- Has purpose of benefiting the public, not the religious organization.
For more information read the LCC Program’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
Criteria
These four rules must be followed in the review of all funding decisions and are equally important. LCCs have the option of developing local review criteria and may decide how to weigh their importance:
- Arts, Humanities, and Sciences
- Public Benefit
- Non-Discrimination
- Local Priorities
Arts, Humanities, and Sciences.LCC funds may only be used to support the creative and cultural sector through programs in the broadest sense.
How does Mass Cultural Council define the arts, humanities, and sciences?
- Arts refer to the creation of work in the crafts and performing, visual, media, folk, design, literary, and inter-disciplinary arts. They also include the presentation, preservation of, and education about works in these disciplines.
- Humanities are types of learning that deal with human values and aspirations, human thought and culture, language, and creativity. Examples include, but are not limited to, history, social studies, philosophy, criticism, and literature.
- Science is limited to its cultural, interpretive, and educational expression and refers to types of learning that deal with nature, science, and technology in ways that explain how they relate to people’s lives. Some organizations that conduct this type of activity include aquariums, botanical gardens, nature centers, natural history museums, planetariums, and science centers.
Public Benefit. LCC funds must support activities that contribute to the cultural vitality of the community rather than benefiting any private individual or group. However, this does not mean that a large crowd of people needs to participate to satisfy the public benefit requirement. Whenever possible, activities funded by LCCs should be available to the public or community by exhibit, performance, demonstration, reading, or other means. An important component of public benefit is advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and access. Programs do not need to be in-person to provide public benefit. Virtual and remote programming are also effective ways to make programming available to the public.
In looking at the requirement of applicants to offer public benefit to a community, LCCs should look towards responses from their community engagement process to better inform their local priorities.
Non-Discrimination. In accordance with state law, LCCs may not discriminate against applicants and/or programs based on age, ability, ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, nationality, geographic origin, or immigration, military, or socio-economic status. Nor may LCCs fund projects that discriminate based on these attributes.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that persons with disabilities have access to public programs or services on an equal basis with the rest of the public. Federal law mandates that any programs or services that receive federal or state funding must be accessible to persons with disabilities and there must be reasonable accommodation made to provide an accessible environment. All events and programs funded by LCCs must consider access for persons with disabilities, including the facility or event location, as well as the content of the program. To ensure equitable access, an applicant’s first step is a candid assessment and identification of barriers (physical, virtual, cultural, communication) followed by a bold and innovative plan for improvement.
If an applicant puts forward a proposal for a project with strong potential for public benefit, but the LCC has concerns about access for persons with disabilities, the LCC may choose to award a conditional approval (Refer to the “Grant Provisions” section). This would allow the applicant the opportunity to address the concerns and improve access as a condition of receiving the grant.
For further information on ensuring accessible programming, please refer to the Accessibility Compliance Tools for Grantees and for the Agency’s Access Policy.
Local Priorities. LCCs are authorized and encouraged to develop additional criteria based on their annual community input process and may give priority to their criteria to reflect local concerns and community cultural needs. LCCs should formulate local priorities that ensure funding is broadly available to the widest range of diverse community needs.
Local priorities must be posted to the Council’s Profile on Mass Cultural Council’s web site to be used as criteria for granting decisions.
Based on community input and community need LCCs could consider:
- Encouraging applications for operating support to allow organizations more responsive, flexible support.
- Loosening local requirements for a set date and set venue at the time of application.
- Prioritizing funding for historically under-funded communities including Native American, Indigenous, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities, individuals with disabilities, low-income communities, and individual artists.
Grant Restrictions
Grant funds received from an LCC may not be used to purchase alcoholic beverages of any kind per Mass General Laws governing municipal finance.
