Co-Sponsorship Policy

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide requirements for the evaluation, administration, and acceptance of co-sponsorship requests received by the City of Concord. The City recognizes the value of partnering with qualifying local organizations and the benefits to the community while upholding fiscal responsibility. 

Co-sponsorship is the contribution of in-kind support by the City to an external organization, in exchange for which the external organization: (a) acknowledges the City and the City’s contribution; and (b) grants to the City the right to associate the City’s name, products, or services with the external organization or the external program or service. 

Professional and personal development conferences, workshops and programming that the City participates in are exempt from this policy (ex. – tenant/landlord workshops, local/state/federal government conferences and trainings, homebuyer workshops, fair-housing events, etc.). 

Policy

Because a co-sponsorship affiliation may affect the reputation of the City among its citizens and its ability to govern effectively, the City Council retains sole and final decision-making authority for determining the appropriateness of a co-sponsorship association and reserves the right to refuse any offer of co-sponsorship if deemed to not be in the best interest of the City, or if acceptance would create a conflict of interest for the City. The City of Concord reserves the right to refuse any request of co-sponsorship. 

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA REVIEW

In the event of conflict between the Co-Sponsorship Policy and other City policies, this policy will prevail pending proper approvals. City Council, at its discretion, may grant deviations to this policy. 

The City’s Public Affairs Office is responsible for the initial assessment of co-sponsorship requests that are received in the form of an application. In accordance with the policy, co-sponsorship requests will only be considered for events and/or organizations hosting events that meet the eligibility criteria listed below. The City’s Public Affairs Office will seek consultation with appropriate City stakeholders as needed and present eligible applications to City Council for consideration. 

• Initial applications must include information regarding any in-kind support that will be needed from City staff or City equipment. 
• Only staff-determined eligible applications will be submitted to City Council for consideration. Eligible applications must include the estimated value of City staff/equipment in-kind support which will be prepared by City staff. Examples of in-kind support include, but are not limited to, salaries and benefits of City departments such as, public safety, parks & recreation, marketing & communication efforts, solid waste services, electric service, transportation, and building & grounds support. 

CRITERIA

1) Event must be sponsored by an organization that is classified as a non-profit, which is federally tax-exempt under the Internal Revenue Code 501 (c) (3);

• City Council may consider applications from not-for-profit community groups that are not federally recognized tax-exempt organizations. These organizations must provide additional justification of their services to the community. 
• For-profit organizations should follow the City’s Special Event Procedures which cover events not sponsored by the City of Concord. 

2) The organization must provide a service or program that is compatible with those provided by the City of Concord; 

3) The applicant must be based in the City of Concord and hold the event which support is requested in the City of Concord; 

4) The event should be open to the public and provide services on a non-discriminatory basis; 

5) The event organizer, and any participating vendors, must be able to show proof of liability insurance as required by the City of Concord; 

6) The event organizer must demonstrate that the organization has the experience and expertise to undertake the planning and execution of the proposed event; 

7) Co-sponsorship applications must be submitted no less than 90 days prior to the event. Any exceptions may be granted by City Management. 

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

The following limitations shall apply to co-sponsorship of any program or event: 

• The applications will be reviewed on a first come first served basis; 
• The availability of City in-kind support at the time of the application; 
• Events or programs under consideration for in-kind support must begin during the fiscal year in which support is given. 
• If alcohol or beverage sales are included, the application must be accompanied by the applicable required ABC permit. 
• The event must be compliant with the City’s policies & procedures for Special Events. 
• If the event requires insurance coverages, the City’s minimum insurance limits must be maintained. Please note that additional insurance coverage and/or higher insurance limits may be required depending upon the nature of the Co-Sponsored event.
  
  General Liability Insurance: $1 million per occurence
  
  Automabile Liability Insurance: $1 million per occurrence
  
  If the organization does not have company owned autos, then non-owned automobile liability coverage of $1 million is required. 
  
  Workers Compensation Insurance: $500,000 E.L. each accident; $500,000 E.L. diseases - each employee; and $500,000 E.L. disease-policy limit
  
  Workers compensation insurance is a North Carolina Statutory requirement for employers with 3 or more emploees.
  
  If alcohol is served, liquor liability insuracne coverage of $1 million is required.

PROCEDURE

The applicant shall submit their application (using the City cosponsor application form) to the Public Affairs Office, along with: 

• A detailed description or flyer for the event; 
• IRS Determination Letter; 
• W-9 Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification; 
• Proposed budget if applicable; 
• What in-kind support the applicant is requesting from the City. 

City Logo

The City’s logo standards shall be followed by those who are approved for co-sponsorship. The City’s Public Affairs & Project Manager may be contacted to ensure all guidelines are followed, 704-920-5210. 

IN-KIND SUPPORT

The Public Affairs Office will work with City staff to determine the value of in-kind services. Personnel costs will be determined by accessing current payroll information and equipment/vehicle values will be calculated with the current adopted FEMA rates and/or the City Fee Schedule. 

A co-sponsorship application is not complete unless it includes all of the documents listed above. Incomplete applications will not be considered, and any exceptions must be approved by City Management. 

In accordance with the stated policy purpose and fiscal responsibility, the City reserves the right to request post-event financial records – including but not limited to monetary and/or in-kind donations from event sponsors and any event earnings credited to the event sponsor – to help determine future appropriateness of City co-sponsorship. 

APPROVAL

All co-sponsorship applications that staff deems complete will be submitted to the City Council. The Public Affairs Office will provide the information to the City Clerk so the item can be added to the City Council agenda. 

The City Council will have the final determination as to whether the application is approved or denied, at a regularly scheduled Council meeting. 

The City Council reserves the right to approve an event for multiple years as long as the City services required for the event do not materially change. The application must still be completed each year. 

RESPONSIBILTY

It is the responsibility of City staff to adhere to this policy. 

It is the responsibility of the City’s Public Affairs Office to review and recommend any changes to this policy as needed. Any changes must be approved by the City Council. 

The Public Affairs Office will notify the applicant regarding the City Council decision. 

NON-APPROVAL

Applications that do not receive co-sponsorship approval may still be allowed to hold their event. Those groups would follow the normal procedures for holding events in the City, and the City’s associated costs for these events would need to be paid before the permit is issued for the event. 

CITY EVENTS NOT CONSIDERED CO-SPONSORSHIP EVENTS 

City hosted events/workshops are not considered co-sponsorship events.