CMBA FUNDRAISING & SPONSORSHIP POLICY - Adopted July 19 2024

 

Purpose

 

Cambridge Minor Baseball Association (CMBA) recognizes that teams may be interested in conducting fundraising activities or seeking team sponsorship donations throughout the course of their baseball season. These are useful tools in assisting with reducing the costs associated with team activities such as tournament registration, off-season training, etc. These activities can also provide an opportunity for team building and connections.

This policy is intended to provide guidance for all CMBA members to follow while participating in fundraising or sponsorship activities to ensure a consistent approach by all teams across the Association.

This policy is applicable to all CMBA members as defined by the CMBA Constitution including all Executive and Board Members, all EBLO, travel, select, and house league coaches, volunteers, parents, players, and teams. Furthermore, this policy is applicable to all forms of fundraising and/or sponsorship activities.

 

FUNDRAISING

 

For this policy, fundraising refers to any activity that involves players, coaches, and/or parents and the act of raising or collecting funds through events or sales.

Only EBLO, travel, and select teams are permitted to participate in fundraising activities. House league teams are not permitted to engage in fundraising activities without express written permission from the CMBA Board of Directors.

Any house league team wishing to conduct a fundraiser would need to contact the CMBA Board of Directors in writing and indicate the following details: Team Name, Coach, Division, Purpose of fundraiser, type of fundraiser, the amount of revenue expected, and the timeline.

For EBLO, travel, and select teams, fundraising should be viewed as a team building activity and an opportunity to foster strong relationships amongst players, coaches, parents, and team volunteers. As such, the team should participate in fundraising. As coaches develop their team budget for the season, a fundraising plan, including fundraising goals, should be developed, and presented to the team.

Guiding Principles and Procedures

CMBA has created the following guiding principles and procedures to ensure a consistent approach to fundraising throughout the Association.

·        CMBA is not a charitable organization and, as such, is unable to issue any charitable donation receipts for any fundraising initiatives; teams must not present CMBA or their team as a charitable organization under any circumstances

·        When conducting fundraising activities, teams must clearly communicate their fundraising goals (example – the purpose of their fundraising and what the funds will be used for)

·        Teams must clearly communicate that proceeds resulting from their fundraiser are being directed to/for the purpose of their specific team, and not donated to CMBA as an association

·        CMBA considers fundraising a team activity, however, it should not be considered mandatory, and participation must be voluntary. However, when teams are setting fundraising goals, they should clearly outline participation expectations and/or opportunities for parents to pay out of pocket and the anticipated cost rather than being forced to participate in fundraising activities

·        All fundraising participants, including coaches, parents, and players must conduct themselves in a manner that reflects positively on CMBA and in keeping with our Code of Conduct

·        CMBA does not endorse or encourage any fundraising activities that require players to go door to door. If teams elect to engage in such activities, players should be accompanied by a responsible adult

·        All fundraising proceeds must be used by the end of the season and prior to tryouts for the subsequent season. Any unused funds must either be returned equally to the families that participated in the associated fundraising activities, or donated to CMBA or a charitable organization that services our community such as Jump Start or Kids Can Play

·        Fundraising proceeds should be used to reduce team costs for tournaments, training, or other items such as uniforms or player swag.

·        Fundraising proceeds should NOT be used to purchase or pay for team equipment. In the event that fundraising money is used to purchase team equipment, the equipment must either be raffled off to the players or donated to CMBA at the end of the season.

·        The use of the CMBA logo for any fundraising initiatives must be in keeping with the logo use policy

·        Teams are not permitted to organize more than three (3) fundraising activities per season. This is to ensure that teams set realistic fundraising goals and do not exhaust the resources within our community. Teams within to conduct more than three (3) fundraising initiatives during a season must obtain approval from the CMBA Board of Directors. The exception to this rule would be the 12U Tier 1 Cooperstown team.

o   Teams must submit a fundraising application in advance of each fundraiser they are running and wait for approval from the Fundraising Director before initiating their fundraiser.

§  The purpose of this would so that the CMBA Board of Directors is aware of the various fundraising initiatives taking place

Common Fundraising Activities

The following are examples of common fundraising activities:

·        Food or product sales (chocolate bars, pepperettes, cookie dough, holiday products)

·        Events (BBQ, dance, dinner); must be considered safe by local public health authorities and meet all health and safety requirements. The head coach is responsible for ensuring that all legal requirements are met including obtaining any relevant permits or licenses.

·        Services (car wash, lawn cutting, bottle drive); require adequate adult supervision

·        Fundraising Apps (Flipgive, Fundscript); crowd funding sites such as Go Fund Me are NOT PERMITTED

·        Raffles/Lottery Activities – that provide the chance to win a prize in exchange for money

o   The head coach from any team choosing to conduct a raffle or lottery style fundraiser is responsible to ensure that all legal requirements are met, including obtaining proper permits/licenses from the City of Cambridge and AGCO as appropriate

o   CMBA/Cambridge Cubs logos are not permitted to be used for any activity that requires a license or permit without express written consent by the CMBA Board of Directors (including the 12U Tier 1 Cooperstown team)

SPONSORSHIPS & CORPORATE DONATIONS

 

The CMBA Board of Directors is responsible for appointing appropriate members to organize all sponsorship and/or donation opportunities for the Association. This includes sponsorship opportunities for our House League programs, tournaments, and other various events and endeavours.

Any organization who is interested in becoming a CMBA sponsor, should contact the CMBA secretary for additional information.

Since CMBA actively raises funds as an association for various initiatives, teams are NOT permitted to approach any businesses or establishments that are actively sponsoring the Association.

Sponsorship Guidelines
·        House league teams are not permitted to seek out team sponsors; a team may be assigned with a sponsor by CMBA

·        Travel and Select teams are permitted to reach out to prospective sponsors under the following conditions:

o   CMBA is not a charitable organization and therefore is unable to issue a tax receipt for any team or association sponsors

o   No sponsor/donor logos are permitted on the CMBA uniform under ICBA regulations

o   Sponsor/donor logos are permitted to be displayed on a team banner during games and practices but must be removed prior to leaving the venue

o   Prohibited sponsors include: breweries, wineries, tobacco or cannabis dispensaries, and adult entertainment businesses

o   Teams are not permitted to approach any CMBA sponsors – CMBA sponsors are noted on our website; if a team is approached by a business/establishment that is an active sponsor of the Association, they may accept the donation as long as it was not solicited

o   Any banner or sign to be displayed during games or practices should be approved by the Executive Vice President or the Sponsorship director

o   If a team has a social media page or group where a sponsor/donor may be mentioned/thanked and their logo or website displayed, it should not appear that CMBA endorses the business

o   A thank you letter is required to be sent to all sponsors by the end of the season

 

ACCOUNTABILITY & TRANSPARENCY

 

The head coach is ultimately responsible to ensure that all CMBA policies are followed by their team, including fundraising and sponsorship activities in accordance with this policy. The head coach will be the primary contact should any concerns relating to fundraising and/or sponsorship arise throughout the season. Failure of the head coach to ensure compliance with this or any CMBA policy, may impact future coaching or volunteer opportunities with CMBA.

The head coach is accountable to ensure full transparency regarding the use of fundraising proceeds by maintaining an appropriate team budget.

The team budget must be accessible and regularly shared with all players and families. There should be a preliminary team budget, a mid-season budget, and a final budget presented to the parent group and forwarded to the CMBA treasurer.

The CMBA Executive has the authority to monitor and enforce this policy as required. Exceptions to this policy may be made at the discretion of the Executive committee. Any questions or concerns regarding this policy should be directed to the Executive Vice President, or Vice President House League, or Vice President Travel.

Failure of any CMBA member to adhere to this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of such individual’s involvement with CMBA, in accordance with the CMBA con