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Demokratiskolan
The Grants card from MethodKit for Society and Politics
Card 106 of 128 · MethodKit for Society & Politics
  • AreaThe state & public administration
  • Centre of gravityThe municipality
  • Points of influence3 on the journey
  • Decisive electionThe municipal election
The state & public administration

Grants

Supporting causes for the public good

The football club, the study association, the village society and the young company have one thing in common: somewhere in the background there is often public money. Support for associations, culture and business is one of the quietest ways society shapes what happens. Closest to you is the municipality's support for associations, and it is decided in the municipal election.

Where does the power lie?1

  • Municipality · association grants & venues · approx 40 %
  • Region · culture & regional development · approx 10 %
  • State · state grants via agencies · approx 35 %
  • EU · funds & state aid rules · approx 15 %

For most associations the municipality is the most important door. The municipal election decides which activities get support near you.

How it works: the breakdown

The municipalityEveryday life for associations · centre of gravity
The regionCulture & development
Central governmentThe big pots
Who decides?
The municipal council (kommunfullmäktige) and usually the culture and leisure committee (nämnd).
The regional council (regionfullmäktige) and the region's culture committee.
The Riksdag sets the frame. MUCF, the Arts Council (Kulturrådet), Vinnova and Tillväxtverket distribute.
What do they decide?
Activity grants, venue grants, subsidised halls and meeting spaces, and sometimes support for events.
Support for cultural life, study associations and folk high schools, plus regional development funds for projects.
State grants to civil society, culture, research and business, often with their own conditions per grant.
Where are decisions made?
In the committee's grant rules, public documents on the municipality's website.
In the region's culture plan and development strategy, both drawn up after public consultation (samråd).
In the agencies' calls for applications, open to anyone who meets the conditions.
Who pays?
The municipal tax.
The regional tax plus state funds that the region passes on.
The central government budget.
Fastest way in?
Municipal election Apply for an association grant, book the municipality's venues, talk to the politicians on the committee.
Regional election Respond to the consultation on the culture plan, apply for regional project funds.
General election Apply to calls at the right agency, respond to referrals (remiss) on grant conditions.
EUThe EU's funds co-finance projects across the country, and the EU's state aid rules set limits for support to companies. Shaped in the European Parliament election.

Read the table by column to understand one level, or by row to compare the levels. The green level is the area's centre of gravity.

How it works: follow the decision

The case A sports club applies for support
  1. Municipality

    The association is formed

    Statutes, a board and an annual meeting. Most municipalities require an association to be democratically organised and open to all in order to receive a grant.

    Point of influence

    Starting or getting involved in an association is in itself one of the strongest ways to make a difference locally.

  2. Municipality

    The culture and leisure committee assesses the application

    An activity grant per training session, a grant towards the venue rent and subsidised slots in the municipality's halls. The rules are political decisions and differ between municipalities.

    Point of influence

    The grant rules are decided by elected officials. If you think they disadvantage a group, raise it with the committee or in a citizen's proposal (medborgarförslag).

  3. Region

    The region can scale it up

    District federations and study associations receive regional support, and regional project funds can finance efforts that reach across municipal borders.

  4. State

    State grants pass through the system

    The state's support for sport is distributed through the sports movement itself, on to federations and clubs. Other parts of civil society apply directly to agencies such as MUCF and the Arts Council.

    Point of influence

    The agencies' calls are open. An association can apply directly, and the conditions for the state grants can be shaped through a referral response (remissvar).

  5. EU

    EU money for larger projects

    The Regional Fund and the Social Fund co-finance larger projects, for example around integration or rural development. The way there usually runs via the region or an agency.

  6. Your everyday life

    Training on Tuesday at 18:00

    The hall is booked, the fee is low and the coach has taken a subsidised leadership course. Three levels of support systems fit into a perfectly ordinary training evening.

The journey looks the same in reverse: what has been built came the same way, through the same decisions. Whoever knows where the decisions are made also knows where they can be changed.

Questions to discuss

  1. Which associations in your municipality get the most support, and do you know why those in particular?

  2. Should public money go to activities that only some benefit from, and where is the line?

  3. What would happen to community life where you live if the municipality's support disappeared?

  4. Who should decide what counts as culture worth supporting?

  5. Which initiative in your area would you fund if you got to allocate a pot of money?

Glossary

Aktivitetsstöd
A grant counted per completed activity and participant, available both municipally and nationally.
Utlysning
An open invitation to apply for money within a defined area and a defined period.
Statsstödsregler
The EU's rules for when the public sector may favour individual companies with money or benefits.
Civilsamhälle
Associations, congregations and foundations: everything organised that is neither state, municipality nor market.
Medfinansiering
The requirement that whoever receives EU support or project funds also contributes their own money or working time.

Go further

Footnotes

1) This is an estimate of how decision-making power over the issue is split between the municipality, the region, central government and the EU, based on how responsibility is divided in legislation. A teaching guide, not an exact measurement.