MRC de La Haute-Yamaska — Circular economy call for projects

• Completed application form including the project budget
• Quotes justifying the value of the expenses
• Letters of support, if applicable
• Resolution of the promoter organization
• Business plan or other documents showing the project’s solidity

Who is eligible?

• Non-profit organizations, cooperatives, for-profit businesses with a Quebec enterprise number, and self-employed individuals in business
• Municipalities on the territory of La Haute-Yamaska and other municipal organizations
• Citizen groups, such as neighbours or tenants, if they present a project with the assistance of an organization that sponsors the project
• Establishments under article 79 of the Act respecting health services and social services and educational institutions, only if the project is carried out in a municipality with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants and its benefits are shared with the community
• All eligible applicants must carry out activities on the territory of the MRC de La Haute-Yamaska

Who is not eligible

• Government ministries, agencies, state-owned corporations, subsidiaries, and any company or business controlled directly or indirectly by a provincial or federal government
• Health institutions under article 79, hospital foundations, health cooperatives, and private or public clinics offering health care
• Educational institutions, including schools, school service centers, cégeps, universities, and their associated organizations
• Non-profits whose activities do not resemble community action, including foundations, professional orders, unions, political organizations, religious organizations, and bodies created by a public authority for public administration interests
• Financial-sector for-profit businesses, persons not in business except under an agreement with the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, applicants listed in the RENA, applicants barred by the Charter of the French language, applicants under insolvency proceedings, and applicants who failed to meet obligations linked to previous financial aid within the last two years

Eligible expenses

• Salaries and wages for employees, trainees, and similar staff assigned to the project, including employer contributions and benefits
• Professional fees
• Technologies, software, equipment, and similar purchases, excluding rolling equipment
• Construction, fitting out, implementation, or setup costs
• Administration costs up to 5% of eligible expenses before taxes, plus other costs inherent to the project and any other expense deemed relevant by the MRC

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Expenses incurred before the agreement is signed, expenses for already completed projects, and expenses incurred after the final report filing date
• Operating deficits, interest, loan repayment, working capital replenishment, loans, loan guarantees, and equity investments
• Planning studies, fundraising, collections, preliminary or exploratory studies, strategic planning, and research
• Costs not directly related to the project, existing assets, current operating expenses, and refundable taxes
• Expenses with RENA-registered companies, severance pay, lobbying activities, certain legal fees, government-budget-regulated activities, business relocation outside the municipality where it is established, and funding for scholarships, prizes, or contests

Eligible geographic areas

• MRC de La Haute-Yamaska

• Nature of the project, weighted at 45%: relevance to the program objectives, positive community impact, and reproducibility
• Capacity to deliver, weighted at 50%: realism of the budget, financial contribution from the promoters or partners, realistic and detailed timeline, expertise of the promoter and partners, feasibility, and sustainability
• General quality, weighted at 5%: quality of the application presentation
• Criteria 1, 5, 7, and 8 must each reach a correct 50% score, and any project scoring below 50% is automatically rejected

• Consult the explanatory guide to learn the objectives and participation rules.
• Download and complete the registration form when it becomes available.
• Review the evaluation grid to understand how projects are assessed.
• Complete the application form, including the project budget, and gather the requested supporting documents.
• Send the complete application by email to amgrandmaison@haute-yamaska.ca.
• Wait for the acknowledgment of receipt; incomplete files will not be analyzed.

• An acknowledgment of receipt is sent when the application is received by email.
• Only files received by email are considered, and incomplete files are not analyzed.
• Projects are reviewed for completeness and compliance, then evaluated by an advisory committee.
• Committee recommendations are submitted to the MRC council for approval, and applicants are informed whether their project was retained.
• If funding is awarded, an agreement is signed between the MRC and the promoter organization.

• Applications must be complete to be reviewed.
• A funding agreement is signed before project start.
• The organization must provide progress and final reports.
• Projects must be carried out with local community consultation.