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Grants, guidelines and the end of the hanko
Much rural revitalization in Japan runs on grants. Prefectures and national ministries publish programs with 要綱, guidelines in a dense written style full of ～ものとする ("shall"), ～こととする and ～に際し. A typical program pays a fixed share of eligible costs, the 補助率, often one half, up to a cap, with the municipality or applicant covering the rest. Applicants usually submit competing quotes, receive a decision, carry out the work within the fiscal year, and file a completion report with receipts before any money is paid. The activity costs and allowances of 地域おこし協力隊 members themselves are largely supported by the national government through special local allocation tax, up to set limits, which is one reason many municipalities take part. For decades, forms required a personal seal (はんこ). From 2020 the national government pushed to remove seal requirements from most administrative procedures, and many prefectures and municipalities followed, so a signature is now often enough. The grammar of this lesson is the grammar of forms and regulations: に際して, の上, 次第, ものとする and こととする.