Due to the rollout of new state Commercial Co-Venture (CCV) laws, Bonfire has made recent changes to how we send payouts to nonprofit organizations in order to protect our company and the nonprofits using our platform. This new process ensures that funds raised on Bonfire are received by organizations safely and securely, without negative tax implications.
What is CCV?
CCV stands for Commercial Co-Venture. CCV is a legal term adopted by the US government that refers to a contract between a nonprofit organization and a for-profit company that is created to support charitable causes. The for-profit business in this relationship is known as a commercial co-venturer. As you may have guessed, Bonfire’s many Campaigns that support nonprofit causes make us a commercial co-venturer!
Every state has its own version of a law that explains the exact requirements for how a CCV relationship must work and the different reporting that must take place. These laws were created to protect nonprofits from being taken advantage of and to ensure that for-profit companies are correctly managing funds meant to go to charitable causes.
Why do the funds raised go to Our Change Foundation? Why did my nonprofit receive a grant from Our Change Foundation? Does my payout have to go through Our Change Foundation?
CCV laws are constantly growing and changing. To best keep up with these laws, Bonfire is working with Our Change Foundation (“OCF”) to simplify compliance for everyone.
Because Bonfire’s platform allows users to raise funds for thousands of different charities, keeping up with contracts and reporting for all of the nonprofits would be nearly impossible. By sending all payouts to Our Change Foundation, the contract, registration, and reporting requirements only fall on Bonfire and OCF. The nonprofit receives a grant from Our Change Foundation, which is a much simpler process and helps avoid the complex legal processes associated with CCV.
Although this may change in the future, if you are a nonprofit raising funds for your own organization on Bonfire, your funds do not have to be sent to OCF and can be paid directly to your organization.
What is Our Change Foundation?
Bonfire uses GetChange Corp ("Change") as the third-party service provider for donation processing. Donations made via Change's platform are to Our Change Foundation ("OCF") 501(c)(3) (EIN: 86-3353394), a nonprofit organization that gives grants to the nonprofit selected as the beneficiary of the Bonfire Campaign.
Are there fees associated with Our Change Foundation?
OCF does not charge platform fees related to claiming the donations.
How will my nonprofit receive money from Our Change Foundation? Do I have to register/create an account?
Payments from Our Change Foundation ("OCF") are made as grants from OCF to your nonprofit.
You can register with GetChange Corp (“Change”) at any time to set up your preferred payment method and track your payouts.
If you do not register with Change, you will receive a mailed check to your organization with your first grant. Change will notify your organization of subsequent grants available. To collect these, you must either: (a) register with GetChange Corp, where you can then set your preferred payout method; or (b) contact their support team at hello@getchange.io to confirm receipt of the first grant and to receive any future grants via check. Change requires this checkpoint to avoid grants getting lost.
How can I sign up with Change? How can I change my Change payout method? How do I track my grant from Change?
You can claim your nonprofit here: https://getchange.io/claim-my-nonprofit. GetChange Corp’s (“Change”) platform is completely free for nonprofits. With Change’s platform, you can track your grant, update your preferred payout method, and fill out your nonprofit profile.
If you need help claiming your nonprofit or want to know more about registering with Change, you can contact the Change Support Team at hello@getchange.io.
How do I get access to my donor list?
Your nonprofit must sign up and create an account on Bonfire to access full donor lists. Once we successfully verify your nonprofit, you can navigate to your Dashboard, select the “Organization” tab, and then “Reports” to access donor lists.
How can I contact Change?
For information about your organization, contact the Change Support Team at hello@getchange.io. Your nonprofit will need to sign up and create an account on Bonfire to receive full donor lists.
How long does it take for a grant to get to the nonprofit? How can I know when my donation has been sent to the charity I intended to benefit?
Donations sent to Our Change Foundation (“OCF”) are processed on the first and fifteenth of each month. Once the payout has been requested from Bonfire’s dashboard, the chosen nonprofit should receive their grant within 30 days.
In rare cases, OCF is not able to grant a donation to the recommended nonprofit. If OCF is unable to grant a donation to the chosen nonprofit, Bonfire will work with the seller to recommend a different nonprofit organization with a similar mission. If the seller doesn’t respond, Bonfire will do our best to recommend a similar nonprofit to OCF.
If you want to know if a specific grant has been received by a nonprofit, you can reach out to the Change Support Team at hello@getchange.io.
What address will Change send checks to for our organization?
Your check will be sent to the address on file with the Change Foundation. To learn more or update your organization's mailing address, please register with GetChange Corp.
Bonfire uses GetChange Corp (“Change”) Foundation as the third-party service provider for donation processing. Donations made via Change's platform are to Our Change Foundation ("OCF") 501(c)(3) (EIN: 86-3353394), a nonprofit organization that gives grants to the nonprofit selected as the beneficiary on the Bonfire Campaign
If you have questions, our Customer Support team is eager to help. Send us a message on our contact page!