DBA Arts

Working With DBA Arts

 DBA ARTS FISCAL SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM OVERVIEW

About Fiscal Sponsorship

Fiscal sponsorship has evolved as an effective and efficient mode of starting new nonprofits, seeding social movements, and delivering public services. Fiscal sponsorship generally entails a nonprofit organization (the “fiscal sponsor”) agreeing to provide administrative services and oversight to, and assume some or all of the legal and financial responsibility for, the activities of groups or individuals engaged in work that relates to the fiscal sponsor’s mission.

Fiscal sponsors are tax-exempt, charitable ventures that, according to a recent IRS report "have the ability to receive charitable contributions for specific projects, the infrastructure to ensure compliance with applicable federal and state laws and adequate internal controls to ensure that the funds will be used for the intended charitable purposes." Simply stated, fiscal sponsors place responsibility for implementing programs in the hands of project leaders while ensuring appropriate fiduciary oversight.

About DBA Arts Fiscal Sponsorship Program

DBA Arts Fiscal Sponsorship Program is designed for arts groups and individual artist projects that have a non-profit purpose and/or are looking at becoming their own tax exempt non-profit organization.

Non-profit projects and organizations provide programs and services that benefit the public, with all funds except modest operating expenses supporting the programs and services. Some of our sponsored projects are working toward becoming an independent tax-exempt organization, while others will be soliciting funds only for a single project or event.

Eligibility Requirements

DBA Arts supports projects that are consistent with our charitable mission. Projects must be artistic in nature and may not be produced solely for commercial gain. The term "project" is used very broadly, and may refer to a one-time project, an ongoing group or company, or even the work and career of an individual artist.

In general, projects must:

  • Serve artists directly and/or benefit community through the arts

  • Be based in, or produce work in, the Sacramento region

  • Your project must have public benefit and be non-commercial in nature

Examples of the types of projects we sponsor include:

  • Independent artists' ongoing work and creative development

  • Artistic events or festivals • Grassroots or DIY companies, collectives or facilities

  • Emerging arts organizations

  • Arts educators or arts in education programs

What is required for fiscal sponsorship?

  • Your project must meet eligibility criteria

  • You must submit a membership application

  • You must be an organizational member of DBA Arts

Are there any fees?

There is a base annual administrative fee on all project income. These fees apply to donations, sponsorships and grants by check and/or cash. Contributions by credit card may result in additional fees.

  • $0-$100K: 7% fee on gross donations, sponsorships and grants

  • $100K-$250K: 5% fee on gross donations, sponsorships and grants

  • $200K-$1M: 4% fee on gross donations, sponsorships and grants

  • $1M+: 3% fee on gross donations, sponsorships and grants

What is the Relationship Between DBA Arts and its Sponsored Projects?

Fiscal sponsorship has many different models and programs differ. DBA Arts' fiscal sponsorship program is structured as a grantor-grantee relationship. In our program, sponsored projects are treated as separate legal entities that are responsible for their own tax returns, employment taxes, insurance, debts, liabilities and other legal obligations. Although fiscal sponsorship does not give projects 501(c)(3) status, it does enable them to access many of the benefits of DBA Arts' 501(c)(3) status. DBA Arts does not judge your work's artistic quality or merit.

DBA Arts provides a legal and efficient mechanism for funders and donors to support charitable, arts-related activities.

Donations:

By using a fiscal sponsor, donations to your project can be tax-deductible for your donors, but you must follow certain guidelines. You must properly identify your relationship with DBA Arts. Legally, donations to fiscal sponsorship projects must be made to DBA Arts, with your project referenced in the memo line to ensure it is applied to the correct account.

To ensure compliance with these guidelines, use the following verbiage when soliciting donations where donors DO NOT receive any goods or services with their donation:

[Project Name] is a sponsored project of DBA Arts, a nonprofit arts organization. Contributions on behalf of [Project Name] may be made payable to DBA Arts and are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.

In‐Kind Donations

An in-kind donation is a donation not of cash, but of goods that will benefit your organization, such as office equipment or items for a silent auction. Donations of property are fully deductible, but the value must be determined by the donor.

Contact DBA Arts in advance of accepting an in-kind donation if the donated item’s value is larger than $1,000. DBA Arts does not take an administrative percentage of the value of in-kind donations.

Donated services are not tax-deductible. This includes any rent, legal, accounting, graphic design, web design or printing services. Of course, this doesn’t mean you cannot receive those kinds of donated services, but the donor cannot get a tax deduction for them.

Deposits

CHECKS MUST BE MADE OUT TO DBA ARTS ONLY. THE MEMO LINE MUST INCLUDE YOUR PROJECT NAME.

We cannot accept checks made out to your project’s name or [Your Project]/DBA Arts. They will be sent back to you. Please make sure your project name is in the memo line.

All fiscal sponsorship income is held in a separate fund account. The balance of your fund stays with us until you request it. Funds are not available until a deposit has been processed and clears the bank; this can take between a few days to two weeks.

Fund Requests

Disbursement Request forms will be sent to you once we receive a signed contract. To request funds, checks for vendors providing goods or services to your project, or reimbursement to an individual, complete a Disbursement Request form. We will not honor payment requests to vendors without a list of expenses, receipts or an invoice attached. Please save your original receipts.

We will process Disbursement Request Forms once a week. Please submit all necessary information via email before Thursday. Please do not request funds until deposits to cover your request have cleared; it generally takes one week for deposits to clear.

Fund Requests will be honored only if:

1. The Disbursement Request form has been completed and sent via email along with all applicable attachments such as copies of receipts, list of expenses, invoice or mileage form.

2. Funds are requested by an approved signer by your organization.

3. There are enough funds to cover the request.