Church and Project Fund Standard

General Standards

Church/Project funds are created in accordance with the Funds and Grant-Making Policy for Churches and Projects. Church/Project funds are created for Reliant church/ministry partners to further Reliant's tax-exempt purpose. Monies from church/project funds may be used for Accounts Payable requests, internal fund transfers, Reimbursements and ERBs, and/or grants. (See Reimbursements vs. Grants for more details.)

Roles:

Fund Custodian has ultimate responsibility for the management of the fund and compliance with policy and standards, including the requirements outlined in this standard and the Grant-Making Standard. The Fund Custodian acts as the primary point of contact for matters related to the fund. In some cases, the Fund Custodian may receive and distribute monies on behalf of the church/ministry. The Fund Custodian signs a Master Grant Agreement on behalf of the church/ministry and acts as a representative for all parties associated with the church/ministry. The fund custodian should normally be a Reliant employee or associate. In rare exceptions, an individual who is not a Reliant employee or associate may act as a Fund Custodian after being vetted to the same degree as a Reliant associate and with appropriate approval. The Fund Custodian agrees to receive training/tutorials on forms, processes, and procedures for grant requests.

Authorized Signer(s) is authorized by the church/ministry to approve transfers, reimbursements, grants, and other payments from the church/project fund as outlined on the original church/project fund request form. Fund Custodians are typically also Authorized Signers. In many cases, the church/ministry designates one or more Authorized Signers in addition to the Fund Custodian.

Affiliate Fundraiser is a foreign national raising funds through a church/project fund on behalf of Reliant.  When the qualifications as outlined below are met, they must attend a Reliant training and become an officially approved deputized fundraiser. 

Designated Grantee(s) is a foreign national receiving monies distributed from the church/project fund in the form of a stipend for ministry purposes relevant to the purpose of the church/project fund. Designated Grantees may also be Affiliate Fundraisers. (See Grant-Making Standard for more details.)

Purpose:

The purpose of the requested fund must be in alignment with Reliant's tax-exempt purpose as outlined in the Funds and Grant-Making Policy for Churches and Projects. The fund purpose is documented in the Master Grant Agreement (See details below). If the agreed-upon purpose of the fund changes in the course of the life of the fund, an addendum to the Master Grant Agreement is required. 

Unrestricted Church Fund: The sole purpose of these funds is to absorb leftover monies from staff exiting from Reliant, so that those monies may be redeployed to help support other staff at the same church/ministry who need assistance with raising support. In most cases, these unrestricted church/ministry funds are used in fixed-term programs. Monies in these funds are sourced only through internal transfers and not from outside donations.   Exit transfers must follow the order of eligibility (outlined in Exiting MTD Funds Transfer) for exit funds distribution. Any partner within any program team may create an unrestricted church fund. 

Restricted General Church/Ministry Funds: These funds receive donations from outside donors with the purpose of supporting the general activities and services of a given church or network of churches or other Christian ministries. In contrast with project funds, the restricted general church/ministry funds are broad in nature, used to support the ongoing activities and services of the church/ministry, and fund distribution tends to be determined by church leadership, subject to Reliant grant-making standards. 

Restricted Project Funds: These funds receive donations from outside donors to help support specific projects that the church/ministry/network wishes to accomplish. In contrast to general church/ministry funds, project funds are more specific in nature and typically have a defined end date. The purpose of project funds can vary but they tend to be more specific with a focused purpose in mind.  

Monies for all restricted church/project funds may also be supplied through internal transfers. Monies may be disbursed from restricted funds through grants, AP requests, reimbursements, and internal transfers. 

Fund purposes associated with Affiliate Fundraisers and/or Designated Grantees are explained below. 

Fundraising:

• All contributions are the sole property of Reliant; Reliant maintains full control of the donated funds and ultimate discretion as to their use for Reliant’s ministry purposes. 
• For contributions to a Reliant fund to qualify as tax-deductible, they must be intended by the donor for use by Reliant Mission and the church/ministry and are not personal gifts for any individual, including any individual associated with the fund. Donations to Reliant must not be channeled to individuals for their personal inurement apart from a pre-approved ministry purpose for a Reliant-approved church/project and ministry partner.
• Overfunding of the church/project fund resulting from any support-raising efforts (including those of the Affiliated Fundraiser/Designated Grantee) remains with the fund.
• If any individual associated with the church/project fund moves to another church/ministry, the funds do not follow the individual. Instead, the funds remain as temporarily restricted for the purpose to which they were originally donated, unless they are redirected in accordance with the following bullet. 
• Designated contributions generally will be honored, but Reliant shall retain full discretion and control over the ultimate expenditure or use of those contributions and retains the right to discontinue funding at any time. 
• Consistent with Reliant's tax-exempt qualification as a 501c3 nonprofit organization, Reliant will not issue refunds to donors from contributions received. In the unlikely event of a cancellation of the purpose or plan originally associated with a church/project fund, or if a foreign national who had raised support as an Affiliated Fundraiser decided not to continue in that role, or if a Designated Grantee changed roles, Reliant will retain control of monies in the church/project fund and, as a first priority, will seek to use the funds for other similar Reliant Mission activities beginning with those associated with the connected church/ministry.

If the purpose of a church/project fund includes supporting the funding of a Designated Grantee(s) stipend and/or if there is an Affiliated Fundraiser for the fund, in addition to those criteria outlined above, the following also applies:

• Reasonable due diligence should be exercised to ensure that Reliant church/project fund monies are not raised or directed to known or suspected terrorists.
• In no circumstances should the church/project name be the name of the Designated Grantee. Instead, it should refer to the church/ministry project for which the Designated Grantee is providing ministry activities.

Any Reliant employee/associate may raise funds on behalf of a church/project fund. 

A U.S. citizen who is not a Reliant employee/associate must become an associate with Reliant in order to raise church/project funds on behalf of Reliant. Associates are eligible to submit church/project fund reimbursements and grant requests.

Submission Standard

Requests:

Unrestricted Church Funds may be requested by Reliant partners who have field employees/associates by contacting their Program Team. Program Team submits a request on behalf of Reliant partners. Reliant will review these requests on a case-by-case basis.

Restricted Church/Project Funds may be requested by Reliant ministry partners regardless of whether that partner has Reliant employees/associates. The individual who will become the Fund Custodian may request the funds by submitting a Church and Project Fund Request Form to their Program Team, with the following information completed: 

• Church/Project Fund purpose and fund details
• Signed Master Grant Agreement (which is attached to the Church/Project Fund Request)

Approval:

The Reliant Board of Directors delegates to Reliant leadership the authority to approve church and project funds. If deemed necessary by Reliant leadership, the Reliant Board may be asked for their additional approval. The Program Team will oversee all church/project fund requests, including obtaining approvals, coordinating with relevant departments, and finalizing fund set up. 

All church and project fund requests must be vetted first by the Program Team to confirm the church/ministry partnership with Reliant (including the existence of a signed/executed Memo of Understanding or a Non-Employment Partnership Memorandum of Understanding) and to confirm that this request is one that they believe Reliant should move forward on.

All approvals (including approval from the Reliant board) must be received prior to church/project fund creation.

Approval Workflow:

Unrestricted Church Funds requests are reviewed and approved by the Program Team and shared with Accounting to process the fund creation. 

Restricted Church/Project Fund requests undergo review and approval by The Director of Organizational Affairs to confirm the following: 

• The purpose of the fund is in alignment with Reliant's tax-exempt purpose as outlined in the policy. 
  • If there are questions related to the purpose of the fund, additional approval by the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Executive Officer, or Board of Directors may be deemed necessary. 
• The proposed budget categories included on the restricted church/project fund request for fund distribution through grants are in alignment with the fund purpose given. 
• If additional approval is required related to the projected amount of the church/project fund according to the following:
  • Funds projected to annually receive under $25,000 are approved by the Director of Organizational Affairs.
  • Funds projected to annually receive between $25,000 and $100,000 require approval from the Director of Organizational Affairs and the Chief Financial Officer.
  • Funds projected to annually receive over $100,000 require approval of the Reliant board. The Director of Organizational Affairs will submit a request to the board.

Fund approval authorizes fund creation by Accounting as well as the solicitation and receipt of any donations for the approved funds.