Kodiak Borough confronts $130,000 nonprofit funding gap, debates two-tier grant system

The Kodiak Island Borough Assembly has $270,000 budgeted for nonprofit grants this year across three funding categories — $85,000 for health and social services, $85,000 for education, culture and recreation, and $100,000 for college and libraries — and received requests well exceeding that amount, with health and social services alone drawing more than $277,000 in requests against its $85,000 budget. That substantial gap drove Thursday's first work session on how to divide limited dollars among organizations serving health, education, and community needs.

Public commenters made clear what is at stake. Susan Smith of Brother Francis Homeless Shelter told the assembly the shelter provided more than 4,000 bed nights and more than 15,000 meals last year, and that borough funds help keep the facility open 365 days a year. Carly McChesney spoke in support of Hope Community Resources, noting that Medicaid cuts are affecting clients who rely on the organization for basic needs.

Borough Manager Amy Williams laid out the math. The health and social services line alone drew more than $277,000 in requests against an $85,000 budget. "We have $85,000 for that line item with $277,000-plus in requests," she said.

Assemblymember Scott Smiley proposed a two-tier structure: established organizations eligible for a larger grant, newer applicants capped at a smaller amount. "For applicants that are new to our system and are asking for the big amount of money, we don't have a history of how you deal with finances," Smiley said. "So I think the temperate thing to do is to limit them to the lower amount of money." His Option A sets tiers at $15,000 and $3,500, landing the borough about $11,000 over budget. "That adds up to $181,000, which is $11,000 more than we have, but $11,000 should be close to doable," he said.

Assembly members also explored redirecting some applicants to tourism development, opioid settlement, or fisheries economic development funds rather than the general nonprofit pool. Members discussed shifting museums, Island Trails Network, and the fair and rodeo to tourism-related funding. Williams said using tourism dollars for those applicants "would be a great use" of those dollars. Williams also noted that four applications were aimed solely at the opioid fund balance of $68,169, and that the fisheries development fund would grow when the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center returns $4,882 in unused grant money. On CANA, which applied to support Women, Infants, and Children and Infant Learning programs, Williams noted the group administers state programs rather than funds them. "They are not the funders. Those are state programs that they're just administering," she said.

Staff will return July 30 with a revised spreadsheet mapping each applicant to a proposed funding source.