Whereas the Province has required all local governments to develop accessibility plans that must be renewed every 3 years: Therefore be it resolved that the Province establish a granting stream with UBCM to support local governments in the development and implementation of their accessibility plans.
Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction The BC Government is committed to supporting the implementation of the Accessible BC Act and Regulation and supporting all public sector organizations with requirements under the Act. The following programs are available specifically to support local governments with accessibility projects: - Disability Alliance BC DABC Accessible Organizations Project: Government has provided 3M over three years to DABC to develop resources that will support public-sector organizations to meet the legal requirements of the Accessible BC Regulation. - SPARC BC Local Community Accessibility Grant Program: Government has provided SPARC BC with 5 million for the Local Community Accessibility Grant Program. Under this grant program all local and regional governments are eligible to apply for up to 25,000 to support the implementation of projects identified within their Accessibility Plan or by their Accessibility Committee. - Rick Hansen Foundation BC Accessibility Grant Program: The Rick Hansen Foundation is seeking to support 5 additional municipalities who are ready to improve accessibility in their communities through the BC Accessibility Grants 202324 Program. The Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction continues to champion governments leadership in advancing our accessibility goals and this means an ongoing conversation about the support that is available for local governments and other organizations who are helping to advance this work.