State Historical Fund | Supporting History | Picking Applicants: A How-To Guide for Nonprofits and Private Organizations  <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <meta name="WT.cg_n" content="SHF"> <meta name="description" content="The mission of the Colorado Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (OAHP) is to help individuals, communities, and organizations to identify, protect, and preserve the State's cultural resources and to foster widespread appreciation of and respect for Colorado's cultural heritage. 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valign="top"> <td width="13"> </td> <td width="137" colspan="2"><a href="../../../infoman/infoman.htm" class="subnav"> Survey & Inventory</a></td> </tr> </table> </td> <td width="560" valign="top" height="100%" >  <table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="10" cellpadding="5"> <tr valign="top"> <td height="389"> <p class="size10">Supporting History</p> <h1>Picking Applicants: A How-To Guide for Nonprofits and Private Organizations</h1> <p>August, 2001</p> <p> Staff at the State Historical Fund are often asked who would be the best applicant for a particular grant-funded project. It's a valid question, especially from not-for-profits, private individuals, and for-profit organizations. </p> <p> The enabling law that guides administration of the State Historical Fund requires that grants be made "primarily to public entities." The term "public entities" is defined in state law as " . . . the state, county, city and county, incorporated city or town, school district, special improvement district, agency, instrumentality, or political subdivision of the state organized pursuant to law." The Colorado Historical Society's Board of Directors has interpreted this provision to require that more than 50% of all grants must be awarded to public entities. Note that not-for-profit organizations are not included in this definition.</p> <p> The enabling law goes on to say that grants may be made to other entities such as not-for-profit organizations, but only if they apply "through" a public entity. Fund regulations explain that this requirement can be met by obtaining a signature from the local government authority in the area where the project will occur. The Board has also, through policy, decided that grants will not be made directly to private individuals or for-profit organizations. This policy strengthens the legislative intent that every grant should benefit the general public. </p> <p> When the not-for-profit organization is carrying out its own project, it may choose to be the grant applicant, or it may seek out a like-minded public entity willing to become the applicant for their grant. The public entity as an applicant will have a better chance of being funded, due to the statutory language cited above. However, the public entity "edge" should not be over-emphasized. In any one grant round, it may be the difference between competing for 51% instead of 49% of the available funding. If the not-for-profit organization has been around for awhile and has experience in carrying out projects of this kind, there is no need to look for a public entity applicant. If, however, the not-for-profit is inexperienced, or if its mission is not related to historic preservation, then a public entity applicant might help. And remember that if the not-for-profit organization decides to be the grant applicant, they will still need to get a signature from the local government on their application. This signature should not be confused with having the public entity actually become the grant applicant. It carries no legal or financial obligation. It simply tells the Fund that the local government is familiar with the project and believes that it will have public benefit. </p> <p> This leaves us with projects that will be carried out by private individuals or for-profit organizations. In these cases, the individual or organization is required to find a public entity or not-for-profit organization to apply for the grant on their behalf, and to administer the grant if their application is successful. This is not just a matter of finding someone to sign the application. The successful grant applicant will ultimately be required to sign the grant contract. They will become legally and financially responsible for seeing that the project is carried out successfully. In the event that something goes wrong, they may be called upon to return funds to the grants program. To protect their interests, they may (and should) require that the private individual or for-profit organization indemnify them in some way. </p> <p> Because public entities enjoy a preference in this program, they should be the first point of contact when private individuals are looking for someone to be their grant applicant. When the local government comes forward with a grant application for a project, the Fund knows that this public entity has chosen this particular project from all of the possible projects in that community. This tells us that the project will have public benefit. </p> <p> Though many public entities gladly take on the responsibilities for applying for and administering grants for private individuals or for-profit organizations, some refuse for various reasons. They may be limited from doing so by spending or revenue limitations. Or they may simply have a policy against supporting one for-profit project in competition against others in their community. In such cases, a not-for-profit organization is the only option.</p> <p> When identifying a not-for-profit organization to be the grant applicant for a private individual or for-profit project, review that organization's mission statement. The best fit will generally be with a local historical society or historic preservation organization. They may have some previous experience dealing with the State Historical Fund, and their mission will typically run parallel to ours. In the absence of such an organization, consider a not-for-profit whose mission deals with the same issues that the project is likely to address. For example, a loft project that includes below-market-rate units for low-income individuals might apply through a local housing organization. A retail project might apply through the local Chamber of Commerce or Main Street organization. There might also be a not-for-profit that focuses on a particular part of town, like Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods, Inc., in Denver.</p> <p> When shopping for a grant applicant, remember that you're asking them a very big favor. They may charge for that responsibility, perhaps based on the amount of the grant obtained. The Fund generally expects those charges to be paid by the private individual or for-profit organization as part of their cash match.</p> <p> Some private individuals, hoping to avoid the necessity of forming partnerships, have suggested setting up their own nonprofits just for the purpose of applying for grants from the Fund. That action is not likely to be successful. When reviewing grant applications, new organizations with no track record, or organizations created to carry out a single project, are not likely to compete well. And anyone seeking to avoid partnering with logical public and not-for-profit entities is unlikely to obtain the Fund's support.</p> <p>For more information on the grant application process, contact our Technical Advisors, Lyle Miller at 303/866-2779, or Rachel Yank at 303/866-3493. <p>BY MARK WOLFE, Director, State Historical Fund<br> </p> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </body> </html>