Ah, the operating fund! Thank goodness for this magical pool of money that makes our work possible, because sometimes you have to spend a little money to make a little money.
Did you know that you can take a portion of your endowment earnings (spendable) and transfer it into your operating account? To keep this account from zeroing out you can also raise money specifically for operating expenses. If you receive unrestricted gifts you can choose to put a portion of these receipts into this fund to help you with expenses.
Another option for building up your operating fund is an advisory board giving campaign. SWIF encourages fund partners to achieve 100 percent giving from your advisory board on an annual basis. It illustrates the commitment of your board members to the cause. The size of the gift is not important, but rather, contributing a gift that is meaningful to you.
So what kinds of expenses can you use your operating fund for? Any expense of $50 or more must be paid out of the operating fund. These expenses might include printing of brochures, newsletters, fundraising appeals, thank you cards or envelopes. They might also include paying for advertising to promote events, to thank donors or to announce a new round of grants being made. Other common things paid out of the operating fund are post office box rental, website expenses, or any number of items related to a fundraising or donor recognition event.
But wait! We can’t pay your bills if you don’t have enough money in your operating fund to cover the expenses. In order for SWIF to pay bills that come in to our office we need four things from you:
- An operating fund expense form. (Which can be accessed at the fund portal website).
- Copies of receipts or invoices documenting the expense(s).
- Advisory board minutes that approve any payments.
- Enough money in your operating fund to cover the expenses!
Remember that fund partners may utilize a petty cash option for small miscellaneous expenses (as long as your advisory board treasurer is willing to manage it). Small expenses are defined as those less than $50.00 each, such as a book of stamps, envelopes, post office box rental fee, etc.
A full description of how to raise money for your operating fund or how to pay bills can be found in the resource section of the fund portal website.
