The council’s common good fund, which gives cash to good causes in Aberdeen, is projected to overspend its budget by nearly £40,000.
The revenue budget for the centuries-old fund, of which the council is a trustee, amounts to £534,000 but it is expected it will be £39,000 above that figure.
Council assets held across the city contribute to the fund and no monies are taken out of council tax receipts.
There are a number of criteria a group must meet before being awarded funding such as “upholding the dignity of the city”.
The common good fund is said to have originated when King Robert the Bruce granted the whole of Stocket Forest to the Burgesses of Aberdeen in 1319 for the payment of a yearly sum.
Hazlehead Estate was bought for £42,500 in 1920, and Kincorth Estate, extending to 632 acres, was purchased in 1928 at a cost of £45,000.
A report to the finance committee, which meets next week, said: “As trustee of the common good fund, the council has a duty to ensure that cash balances are maintained at levels to generate sufficient annual income to fund any future expenditure from the common good deemed appropriate.
“As a public sector organisation, the council has a legal duty to be open, transparent and accountable for spending public funds.”
Last night finance committee vice-convener Ross Thomson said that the fund would be reviewed before the budget next year.
He said: “We decided at a meeting a while ago that we would have to review the fund and make sure all the money is being spent properly.
“The common good fund is a great thing for the city and it’s in a much healthier position than most similar funds in other cities.”