Backcountry Horsemen of California
The BCHC Education Fund, Inc. receives and grants charitable monies to be used in educating BCHC membership and the public about Leave No Trace principles as they apply to stock use in the backcountry. In addition, the charitable funds may be used to support any BCHC Education Fund program. Donated funds are handled in accordance with BCHC Education Fund Grants Policy.
The BCHC Education Fund Grants Committee is led by the
VP of Education and includes the BCHC Secretary and Treasurer plus one Wilderness Rider and one
additional member. The committee accepts, evaluates and recommends funding of grant
applications for qualified projects.
A
501(c)3 Funds Process Flow Chart
showing the process from donation to project completion may be found here.
BCHC’s Education Fund is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Donations to this fund and all
BCHC education programs are tax deductible. (Donations to the BCHC Legal Fund are not tax
deductible.)
The BCHC Education Fund, Inc. Board of Directors may accept on behalf of the BCHC
Education Fund, Inc. any contribution, gift, bequest, or devise for the purposes of this
corporation.
Businesses or individuals may donate to the BCHC Education Fund as a charitable donation in
cash, services or goods. If a donation is of goods or services, the business or individual donor is
responsible for assigning the value of these donated goods/services.
Donors may give their money in two ways:
Any monies donated to the BCHC Education Fund, Inc. which are not specifically designated for the sole use of a particular unit(s) will be designated as unrestricted funds and will be available for all units to access through qualified grant applications.
Any monies donated to the BCHC Education Fund, Inc. with the donor’s specification
that those funds be designated solely for the use of a particular unit(s) of BCHC will be
restricted funds and accounted for as such by the Treasurer. The units will use the same
application process for accessing these funds as they would for unrestricted funds.
Persons or entities donating funds to the BCHC Education Fund, Inc. desiring to have
their donation designated to a particular BCHC unit(s) shall have no say in the use or
disbursement of the funds other than that they are to be for a specific unit to access.
Restricted funds not utilized within five years by the designated unit will be rolled into
the unrestricted fund, at the discretion of the board, and then be available for all
applicants. In the event a BCHC unit ceases to exist, any restricted funds held in that
unit’s name will be rolled into the unrestricted fund.
A unit submitting a qualifying application shall first utilize, if available, restricted funds
held in its name. In the event those funds are insufficient for the project, the remainder
needed will come from the unrestricted fund, if available.
BCHC units in good standing may apply for grant funding. Applicants submit a completed Grant Application, including required forms, to the BCHC Education Fund, Inc. Secretary. Forms must be signed by the unit president. Incomplete or unsigned applications will be returned for completion which may delay funding.
There are two possible deadlines for units desiring to use State Education Funds for
large projects. Completed applications must be submitted no later than March 1 and/or
September 1.
To apply for a State Education Fund Grant, complete all pages of Forms 1 and 3.
Form 1 is the Application Form describing the project, its participants,
how the project will meet BCHC’s educational goals, and how the project will
benefit public agencies and public lands
Form 3 is the proposed Budget for the project and a monitoring tool for
projects extending more than six months.
Upon completion of the project,
Form 5 is the Completion Report to be
accompanied by photos of the project, a report of proposed and actual
expenditures and a description of the project’s education aspect(s).
There is no deadline for applying for Unit-Specific Education Grant Funds. A unit may
apply for its own money at any time.
To apply for Unit-Specific Education Grant Funds, complete all pages on Forms
3 and 4.
Form 3 is the proposed Budget for the project and a monitoring tool for
projects extending more than six months.
Form 4 is the Application Form for unit-specific funds.
Upon completion of the project,
Form 5 is the Completion Report to be
accompanied by photos of the project, a report of proposed and actual
expenditures and a description of the project’s education aspect(s).
NOTE: Form 2 is used by the Education Fund Committee to assess and score
proposed projects.
The Education Secretary will assign a BCHC Education Fund identifier to the form and strip off
all other unit identifying words. The Secretary will fill in the applicable sections of Form 2 prior
to sending to the Grants Committee. In addition, the Secretary will provide to the Grants
Committee pertinent information concerning lines 7-10 of Form 2. The Grants Committee will
then be forwarded this anonymous document for evaluation using Form 2 to score the project.
The Grants Committee functions in accordance with Article 2, Section 2, of the BCHC
Education Fund, Inc. Bylaws. The primary objective of the grants must meet the following
criteria: To educate people on how to utilize the principles of Leave No Trace for preserving and
improving the backcountry wilderness areas of California; to promote educational programs that
benefit stock users; and to promote cooperative interactions with other user groups regarding
safety, care and the protection of our backcountry resources.
The Grants Committee meets from time to time, as need dictates, to conduct its business in
assessing applications and making funding recommendations to the board. The Grants
Committee will forward to the BCHC President and the Secretary their ranked recommendations
for funding of all received applications. The Grants Committee will send all members’ scoring
rubrics (Form 2), the anonymous proposal (modified Form 1), the proposal’s budget information
(Form 3) with their report to the President. They may recommend complete funding, partial
funding, or no funding. If partial or no funding is recommended, the committee will provide a
critique of the project as to why it was not adequate for complete funding. The Grants
Committee will also serve as the review committee for project monitoring and follow-up until
the Completion Report(s) are submitted.
BCHC Education Fund Inc. is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. All 501(c)3 grants must
be education related.
If you have questions about the policy or procedure for donating to or obtaining Ed Fund Grants, contact BCHC Ed Fund Treasurer.