Mission

The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government and influences public policy through education and advocacy.

Education Fund

Whom should I contact for more information about the Education Fund?
For information about the League of Women Voters of Washington Education Fund, see lwvwa.org/edfund/index.htm. For information about the national League's education fund, visit the website for the LWV of the United States, lwv.org.

What is the Education Fund?
Local leagues in Washington State have been invited to set up accounts managed by the League of Women Voters of Washington Education Fund, which is a legally separate entity with its own board of directors and its own projects and goals. By setting up an account with the Education Fund, the Snohomish County League (and other local leagues) may accept, hold, and spend tax-deductible contributions. The Snohomish County League's work depends on contributions from donors who are able to give to the League only if they know the donations can be tax-deductible. Such donations come with many 'strings' attached: the Education Fund places requirements on use of the money, and it documents the fact that the donated money is used for tax-exempt purposes.

Is the Education Fund a granting body?
No. Money received from the Education Fund is not a grant. Think of it as a temporary bank account (but not a savings account) whose use is thoroughly scrutinized and documented. Any money that our League takes out of our Education Fund account is money that our League put there earlier.

Why doesn't our League have its own Education Fund?
A local League like ours could set up and administer its own entity for receiving tax-deductible contributions, but it would be a lot of work and would require a perpetual outlay of resources to administer properly. Whereas our local League is a 501(c)(4), the Education Fund is a 501(c)(3) corporation set up in 1995 and granted tax-exempt status in 1997. Oversight and administration of the Education Fund are provided by a board of directors. One way to think of it is, having the Education Fund available to us at the state and national levels is a benefit our members receive for paying dues.

How can the local League take advantage of the Education Fund?
We can use it to pay for projects that educate the public, projects like:

Developing a new voter guide

Producing pro/con fact sheets

Conducting candidate forums

Preparing directories of elected officials

Attending and conducting educational conferences

Conducting, preparing, and distributing studies

with the following proviso—these projects must not be used to further our League's action program, membership development, or fundraising efforts. In other words, project work supported by Education Fund money:

Must not involve just some of the candidates or just some of the political parties

Must not advocate just one side of an issue

Must not urge action on legislation

Cannot be used to support the member consensus work of the League

Cannot be used to put on a League fundraising event

What is the general procedure for using the Education Fund?
The local League has to have a project in mind first (money is earmarked). The project has to be approved by the Education Fund board (a deliberate process). The project must have structure (for example, a project director must be appointed, there must be a budget, time limits are placed on use of the funds, and acknowledgement must be given to the Education Fund on any published products). The local League has to solicit contributions for its own project (the local League is responsible for identifying and approaching donors). Finally, when the project is underway, there are reporting and record-keeping requirements that must be satisfied, and the project director is responsible for that as well.
Note—If an event paid for by the Education Fund does generate income, that income must be handled as an additional contribution to the Education Fund account for that project only (a corollary to the restriction on using Education Fund money for fundraising). Also, any interest earned by the money held in an Education Fund account simply goes to the state league.

Is the Education Fund a pooled resource?
Although it is possible for the Education Fund to hold funds for unrestricted use (that is, not project-specific or League-specific), the Education Fund does not usually hold funds of this type. For funds to be unrestricted, the donor at the time of giving must specify that they are to be unrestricted.

LWVSC Structure

Coordination

Administration