Grants to Meet Vital Community Needs

Community development is a top priority for CB&T when awarding grants. Specific regard will be given to grant applicants that focus on providing vital community services to revitalize or stabilize low- and moderate-income communities, including those that promote:

• Affordable housing
• Small business/micro-enterprise development
• Community economic development

Grant Eligibility

Priority is also given to grant requests from organizations in geographic areas where CB&T has a presence. Grants will be considered for specific projects, as well as for operating support. Generally, support is given for a period of one year, and organizations must reapply for a grant each year they wish to be considered for additional support.

Organizations applying for a grant are required to:

• Demonstrate fiscal and administrative stability by showing strong board commitment, good management policies and practices, and the ability to produce a budget and organizational financial statements
• Provide verification of nonprofit, tax-exempt organization status as defined under Section 501(c)3 of the IRS code

Organizations and their projects should also have broad community support and address the specific community needs (as described in the previous section).

Grant Application Process

Organizations interested in being considered and applying for a grant from CB&T should prepare a brief request containing the following information:

• A statement of the specific amount desired and purpose for which the grant is requested
• Background information about the organization, including contact information for the key contact person, the mailing address and telephone number
• A brief statement of mission
• A copy of the IRS letter of designation (commonly known as the 501(c)3), along with the tax identification number
• A current list of board members and their affiliations
• Financial information for the previous year and a budget for the current year
• The population and geographic area served
• A list of sources and amounts of other funding obtained, pledged or requested for this purpose

This package should be sent to the address listed below. Please note that contents of all requests become the property of CB&T and may not be returned to applicants.

Exclusions

We cannot fulfill every request made. As a result of limited budgets and federal regulations, CB&T generally will not consider grants to: organizations without public charity status; memorial campaigns; fund-raising events; political activities; religious organizations for sectarian purposes; research; advertising; or organizations that discriminate on the basis of age, race, creed or sex.

Timing & Grant Award Notification

Decisions regarding funding requests are ongoing. All requests are reviewed in a competitive process. Because of the volume of requests we receive, there may be some delay in responding to applicants.

For More Information

Should you have additional questions regarding our Community Development Grant Program, giving guidelines or application procedures, please let us know. CB&T prefers all such correspondence to be in writing and sent to:

California Bank & Trust
Community Reinvestment Department
16041 Goldenwest Street, Second Floor
Huntington Beach, CA 92647

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