Are you planning to found a booster club in Oregon? Are you confused about the legal requirements around creating an Oregon booster club? It may seem a little overwhelming, but with the help of this article you will be able to more easily navigate the process in Oregon.
When gathering all of the information needed to create an Oregon booster club, we suggest starting with the Oregon Secretary of State website. Here you can find general information to help you launch your Oregon booster club. With a general sense of what a booster club is and the requirements you can begin to collect all of the legal documents. If you are unsure if you have the right forms, you can call 800-829-1040 for assistance. Furthermore, bookmark the Oregon Secretary of State website as it is a great resource to refer to later if you experience any hiccups.
Choosing a name for your Oregon booster club is extremely important. The name should be professional and unique. A good strategy when thinking of names is to incorporate your associated school and activity that the club will be affiliated with. An example would be Central High School Football Boosters or getting even more specific: Portland Central High School; Football Boosters. These naming details allow donors, supporters and volunteers to understand what your booster club does, where its located and the school it is associated with! To avoid selecting a name already in use, we suggest that you compile a list of 5-10 names. Once you have your list you can verify their availability on the Oregon Secretary of State website here.
Once you have a name for your Oregon booster club, you should develop the club mission statement. A great place to start is by looking at your affiliated school’s mission, so that your organization is aligned with the same ideas and values. If you have never written a mission statement, it is a top-level short statement (2 sentences) defining the broad goals around why your organization exists. Your Oregon booster club mission statement should tell people: who the organization is, why it exists, and who benefits from the existence of the organization.
Before you file your articles of organization with the state of Oregon, you’ll need to have bylaws that comply with Oregon law. Your Oregon booster club bylaws are really the rules and procedures your corporation follows for holding meetings, electing officers and directors, and taking care of other corporate formalities required in Oregon. Even though bylaws are not filed with the state, they are critically important as your internal operating manual.
Picking your Board of Directors is important for a number of reasons. You need to choose individuals who are business minded with strong management skills. Furthermore, anyone appointed to your Oregon booster club’s board of directors needs to be trustworthy and operate with the club’s best interest in mind. It is important that the board of directors understand the importance of their role to the club and its future, and are committed during their time served.
Your Oregon booster club officers are the overseers of the day to day booster club operations. These positions are critically important to the organization as they make sure that every department is operational and also communicate issues and needs to the board. It is important to select a group of booster club officers who are great communicators, business minded and organized. Make sure you are choosing your officers based on their expertise, interaction with parents and kids, as well as their focus on the development and growth of the club. A club with great officers and a great board can really become a force to be reckoned with.
The first meeting of your Oregon booster club is very exciting, yet very busy! During the first meeting all members will be called in to vote of several different topics and also to discuss the goals for the clubs. Some of the topics the club will have to vote on are electing directors and officers (if not already named in your articles), approving written bylaws, setting an accounting period and tax year, and approving any initial transactions of the corporation, such as the opening of a corporate bank account. Once the votes are in, the group can then focus on matters related to fundraising, etc.
The IRS website is another very useful site when it comes to creating a new booster club. It really becomes handy when you’re organization needs to apply for an Employee Identification Number (EIN). Everything you need to start the EIN registration process is on the IRS website. From guides to forms, they lay out the easy steps for the application process.
In order for your Oregon booster club to become a nonprofit organization, you need to jump through a few extra hoops with the IRS. Take a quick trip back to the IRS website and they again provide you with all of the information and forms needed to register as a non-profit with the Federal Government. In addition to registering your company, the IRS also provides tax information for nonprofits looking to take the next steps to become tax exempt organization.
While tax-exempt status not necessary, we here at Booster highly recommend going through the extra steps to apply for state tax exemption for your Oregon booster club. Becoming tax exempt grants your booster club the opportunity to save money by not collecting and managing sales tax, and allows your donors to write their donations off of their taxes. All of the information and paperwork for become tax-exempt is available on the IRS website. The basic step-by-step process listed on the site is as follows:
Opening a business bank account for your Oregon booster club is the last step of the club creation process. Your booster club bank accoung is essential in managing the club’s finances and collecting donations both online and offline. Furthermore,having a bank account also makes the club transfer process to new management much simpler.
Now that your Oregon booster club is up and running, there are a few things to keep in mind. Be sure that your booster club stays up to date on Oregon law around booster club management. Also know that there are yearly fees and dues that need to be paid to the state of Oregon to maintain good standing. If you need further help managing or marketing or fundraising for your booster club, be sure to check out the articles and toolsets available on booostr.co. Happy Fundraising!
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Booostr is the first booster club software platform with a connected set of tools designed to help booster clubs and nonprofits better manage their organization. From Communication, to Management, to Fundraising, Booostr's connected software improves booster club efficiency and allow them to focus on surpassing their goals.
