My Biz: Business helps charities expand their reach

CEDAR RAPIDS - Raising money to fund a not-for-profit can be a daunting enough task. But try raising money from another state.

Charity Capstone Resources, based in downtown Cedar Rapids, focuses strictly on charitable solicitation registration for not-for-profit organizations in the 40 states and territories that require such registration. While Iowa is not a state that requires registration, surrounding states such as Minnesota and Illinois do have such requirements, said Theresa Bornbach, Capstone's founder.

'States like Florida are diligent because of their elderly population,” she noted, referring to increased scams for fake charities that target older people.

Bornbach explained that not-for-profit groups that are soliciting must be registered in each state in which they are trying to raise funds. The penalties for failing to register a not-for-profit also vary, but can include prison time, financial repayment to each state's government for the dollars raised in perpetuity and financial liability for the organization's board of directors.

One of only 20 companies to do such work in the country - the others are mostly legal and accounting firms.

'We really strive to make it affordable and accessible,” she said. 'This is not something that most nonprofits have the staff or time to keep up with, especially when the regulations are constantly changing. And we don't want nonprofits not registering because it is cost-prohibitive. We offered bundled packages to ensure a finite cost.”

Clients range from arts and culture organizations and health related charities to entertainers and sports professionals and even professional fundraiser who also need to go through the registration process.

'Our technology helps us make sure we aren't missing a deadline,” she said, noting that each state not only has different fees - ranging anywhere from $50 to $400 - but also has different regulations and deadlines.

'Investing in that technology was important to us and now we have a really good process and want to be a leader in the marketplace. We do a lot of research,” she said.

While Capstone Charity Resources, begun in 2014, only has been in business for a short time, it is growing quickly.

'We just added new team members and currently have six full-time employees,” said Bornbach. 'We will probably be at ten by the end of the year.”

This time of year can be particularly busy as they work to meet end-of-the-fiscal year deadlines and work on proposals for organizations seeking to use their services in the coming year. 'Everything needs to be signed for these registrations and there's a whole process you've got to back into. We are always thinking about how we can do our work more efficiently. If something is due on May 15 we can't start working on it May 12.”

Over the past 30 years, Bornbach has held executive positions in regulatory and compliance roles.

'I have a strong regulatory background,” she said, noting that after the flood of 2008 she worked with the program that provided Jumpstart funding to flood affected businesses. 'That gave me experience working with the small business community, the city and the state. We had to come up with programs that would meet the requirements of Housing and Urban Development.”

At a glance

l Founder: Theresa Bornbach

l Company: Charity Capstone Resources

l Address: 222 Third St. SE, Suite 600, Cedar Rapids

l Phone: (319) 730-7606

l Website: http://capstonecharityresources.org

l Know a business in operation for more than a year that could make a good 'My Biz”? Contact michaelchevy.castranova@thegazette.com.