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Adopt a resolution designating United Way Bay Area as a participating agency in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign for employee payroll deductions in the 2018 calendar year
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Published Notice Required? Yes ____ No _X _
Public Hearing Required? Yes ____ No _X _
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board adopt a resolution designating United Way Bay Area as a participating agency in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign for employee payroll deductions in the 2018 calendar year.
SUMMARY:
The Workplace Charitable Giving Policy (Policy) requires fund distribution agencies to submit a request to participate in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign by August 1st of each year for the following calendar year’s employee payroll deductions. United Way Bay Area (UWBA) has requested to be a participant in the County’s annual giving campaign to be held in the month of November 2017 for the 2018 calendar year’s payroll deductions. The Policy provides employees the opportunity to make voluntary contributions through a payroll deduction to support primarily local non-profit charities and community organizations.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The cost for staff time in connection with the County’s Workplace Charitable Giving Program and campaign is anticipated to be nominal, including the cost for payroll processing in the Auditor-Controller’s Office. Employee contributions to the annual giving campaign are strictly voluntary.
DISCUSSION:
The County’s Workplace Charitable Giving Policy (Policy) requires fund distribution agencies to request to participate in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign by August 1st of each year for the following calendar year’s employee payroll deductions. Fund distribution agencies must be a nonprofit California corporation, 501(c)(3) which distributes funds to member agencies that provide health, human care and community services to the residents of Solano County. A representative from the United Way Bay Area (UWBA) contacted staff in July 2017 and provided required documentation including annual reports, audited financial statements, nonprofit status, and a list of the organization’s board of directors and officers by the August 1, 2017 deadline. Information can be found on UWBA website at <https://uwba.org/>. UWBA was the only agency to request participation in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign.
The Policy supports local non-profit charitable organizations, including participating agency standards, selection and reporting requirements, and campaign requirements to comply with laws covering qualified tax-exempt organizations. The Policy also provides employees the opportunity to make voluntary contributions through a payroll deduction to support charities including local non-profit charities. Setting contributions up as a payroll deduction makes it easy for employees, and gives charities the security of knowing the amount of money they will be receiving in the calendar year following the workplace giving campaign. Employee participation in the annual giving campaign is strictly voluntary. This campaign is normally held in the month of November to allow sufficient time for the Auditor’s Office to process requests before the start of the new calendar year.
UWBA has been a participant in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign for many years. In 2016, Solano County employees voluntarily contributed over $40,000 to UWBA, with employees designating approximately $7,250 to specific Solano County nonprofits and community based organizations, $5,060 designated to nonprofits located outside of the county, and $28,410 pledged to the United Way Community Fund (unrestricted contributions). The local designation combined with the unrestricted contributions represents 88% of the total contributions assisting residents in Solano County. However, the unrestricted contributions are a small portion of the total amounts invested by UWBA in its poverty reduction efforts in Solano County. Through UWBA’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program, $353,000 was issued in grants to social services agencies in Solano County. Below is a summary of the benefits provided to Solano County residents in 2016 through the Community Fund.
Emergency Food and Shelter programs delivered
• 250,000 meals provided
• 4,400 shelter nights provided
• 45 rent or utility bills paid
Health and Social Services’ 211 Program help line sponsored by United Way
• 6,787 calls received from Solano County residents for assistance with basic needs. The 211 Program is a confidential service that is available 24-hours a day, seven days per week. The service provides streamlined access to critical health and human services such as food, shelter, counseling, drug and alcohol intervention, employment assistance, and much more.
Earn it! Keep it! Save it! program, staffed by volunteers
• 19 free tax preparation sites in Solano County that prepared 4,327 tax returns at no cost to residents, resulting in Solano County tax payers receiving $1,006,362 in Earned Income Tax Credits and $4,372,862 in tax refunds.
Rise Together Partnership
• Continuing leadership and direction for a collaboration of 35 Bay Area agencies in efforts to align their work to reduce poverty in the county and across the region.
The UWBA offers seven system changing programs within the eight counties it serves, which include the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Santa Clara, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Solano. Solano County is home to 6% of the Bay Area residents.
The Fund Distribution Agency Selection Committee, consisting of representatives from the County Administrator’s Office, County Counsel, Human Resources, Auditor-Controller’s Office and Health and Social Services, reviewed UWBA’s submittal and recommends UWBA as the participating agency in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign with employee payroll deductions occurring in the 2018 calendar year.
Additionally, Solano County also participates in the annual Food Fight Challenge with Contra Costa County each year. The Food Fight Challenge is a friendly monetary giving competition between the two counties with all gifted funds staying in the respective county where donations were received to assist individuals and families experiencing food insecurity. There are no payroll deductions involved for this workplace giving campaign. In 2016, Solano County employees contributed over $35,000 to the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. A separate staff report will be brought to the Board for consideration sometime in November 2017.
ALTERNATIVES:
The Board could choose to not adopt the resolution designating UWBA as a participating agency in the County’s annual Workplace Giving Campaign (payroll deductions); however this is not recommended as UWBA has been a participant in the annual campaign for many years and employee donations support many local non-profits and community based organizations and services.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The Fund Distribution Agency Selection Committee reviewed UWBA’s submittal to participate in the County’s annual workplace giving campaign and recommends the agency’s participation.