Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign Applying for Participation in the FSECC Using the Electronic Application Process

2 To identify resources for finding important FSECC application process information To recognize the benefits of using the electronic application To learn the registration and application entry process with the electronic application To understand the role of umbrella groups in facilitating the application process for member organizations Presentation Objectives

3 Application process information(timelines, eligibility criteria, etc.) is included in Section , Florida Statute and Rule 60L-39, Florida Administrative Code Deadline for submitting an application is March 1 at 11:59 p.m. eastern time; DMS recommends submitting application well in advance of deadline Paper process will remain in place for those without access to online application, however use of the electronic application is encouraged Information at General Information

4 Convenience for applicants (particularly in subsequent campaign cycles since information is saved and future applications only need to be updated) Reduced costs to administer the campaign which means more funds for participating organizations Reduced chance for clerical mistakes that would result in incomplete applications without the electronic process Benefits of Online Application

5 Gather all materials – while the method for applying has changed, the information you will need is similar to past campaigns Information you’ll need includes: An active address for registration; Most recently file IRS Form 990; Proof of Registration as a Charitable Organization with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; Excerpt from your organization’s annual report that describes your organization’s activities(only necessary if you choose to attach a file rather than use the space provided in the “detailed narrative” question) Access to electronic copies of this information is even better as you’ll be able to submit electronic attachments with the application(otherwise, organizations must submit required supporting documentation via mail) Getting Started

6 The application will be available in early January and located on the DMS- FSECC webpage at: New users should click “new registration”, Returning users may skip this step and proceed to sign in with existing account information (log-in information is saved from year to year) Enter an account to which you have access and enter the same address in the second box to verify Enter your desired password in the box below and confirm the password THE ACCOUNT WILL FOREVER BE TIED TO THE ADDRESS ENTERED. THE ONLY WAY TO CHANGE THE E- MAIL ADDRESS IS TO CREATE A NEW USER AND ALL PREVIOUS APPLICATION INFORMATION WILL BE LOST. It may be more appropriate to use an account that will not change with staff turnover. For example, is an address that will not change regardless of who is employed at Click “submit” Follow online information provided which instructs user to check account to receive the user password associated with the account Register a User

7 Enter user address into the appropriate field Enter user password in the appropriate field Click “Sign In” If you forget the password, click “forgot password” on the sign in page and an will be sent to the address associated with the account. If the account is no longer active, you must create a new FSECC online application user account. If you forget the address with which your organization is registered, there is no way to obtain the user name and you must create new FSECC online application user account. “Sign In” to the System

8 Special Note for Returning Users Returning users from last campaign cycle will notice they can view any previously submitted applications Instead of recreating an entirely new application, returning users may select “copy as a new application” next to the previously submitted application they wish to copy By selecting this function, a new application is created for this year which transfers the majority of information from last year’s application that does not need to be updated The user must still provide certain information that is left blank because it typically needs to be updated from year to year but the data entry workload is significantly less using this function Be sure to review the entire application to ensure all information is correct and update as necessary before submitting

9 To enter information on your application, click “create new application” or if you previously saved an application for this current campaign year that has not yet been submitted, click on the appropriate application number to continue working on the application Create New Application

10 The application is divided into seven tabs: Organization Info(Q. 1-9); Campaign Brochure(Q.10-11); Expenses(Q.12a-f); DOACS Registration(Q.13a-d); Services(Q.14-21); Attach Documents; Affidavit To navigate tabs, enter information in appropriate field, click “save”, then click “next”(Fields designated by (Required) and left blank will prevent user from submitting application) You may also toggle between tabs by clicking directly on the tab to which you wish to navigate WARNING: IF YOU DO NOT SAVE THE INFORMATION YOU ENTER IN A PARTICULAR TAB BEFORE MOVING TO THE NEXT TAB AND WISH TO RETURN TO A PRVEIOUS TAB TO MAKE EDITS BEFORE SUBMITTING, INFORMATION MAY BE LOST. IN ORDER TO AVOID THIS SCENARIO, IT IS BEST TO CLICK “SAVE” ONCE YOU’VE COMPLETED ALL REQUIRED INFORMATION IN THE TAB BEFORE PROCEEDING TO THE NEXT TAB. Enter Application Information

11 Enter required information regarding the application’s organization NOTES: 1. The manner in which the organization’s name appears in the required field is the way it will appear in the campaign brochure if the organization is approved for participation. 2. The affiliation selected will determine which questions the organization is required to answer on the application. It is imperative to correctly identify your organization’s affiliation so that the Steering Committee can determine the appropriate criteria for evaluating your organization’s application. Click “Save”, then “Next” Enter Organization Info(Q. 1-9)

12  The 25 word statement, telephone number & website address will appear in the applicable campaign brochures, which are distributed to state employees, if your organization is approved for participation  The detailed narrative provides more information to the Statewide Steering Committee which may be helpful in determining the services provided by your organization(this information may be typed in the space provided, uploaded to the electronic application, or mailed as a supplement to the application)  Click “save”, then “next” Enter Brochure Information(Q.10-11)

13  Questions “a” through “c” require input; question “d” is calculated automatically based on the responses in “a” through “c”  Check the box in “e” to acknowledge that the appropriate pages of the most recently filed IRS Form 990 must be uploaded as an attachment or mailed directly to the Department as supporting documentation  If the calculated value in “e” exceeds 25%, “f” becomes an active field and requires a response to describe the extraordinary circumstances for the excessive administrative expense  Click “Save”, then “Next” Enter expense information(Q.12a-f)

14  Enter DOACS registration number and expiration date in appropriate fields  Organizations which are exempt of excluded from registration with DOACS may leave the registration field blank but must check that the organization is excluded or exempt as appropriate  NOTE: Organizations which are duly registered must provide proof of such registration by uploading the document in the “Attachments” Section of the application or by mailing proof of registration to the Department  Click “Save”, then “Next” Enter Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services(DOACS) Registration Information(Q.13a-d)

15  Question 14 allows for more than one box to be checked if applicable  Question 19b and 20b are only required by organizations answering “yes” to questions 19a and 20a, respectively  Question 21 is only required for organizations that identify themselves as independent unaffiliated organizations in question 2 of the application  Questions are not applicable for United Way organizations  Click “Save”, then “Next” Enter Services Information (Q.14-21)

16  Documents may be scanned and attached in this section of the application  To attach a document: Click “browse”, find the document location, double click the document, click “attach files”  Check box acknowledging application is incomplete until all supporting documentation is received either through mail or as electronic attachments to the application  Click “Save”, then “Next”  NOTE: For the IRS Form 990, it is only necessary to attach page 9 and 10 of the document. Any more pages will result in an file size too large for the system to process. Attach Documents

17 Complete the affidavit by entering the appropriate information in the fields Click “Save” Review your application to ensure information is correct; once the application is submitted, no changes may be made to the application Affidavit

18 Review information to ensure your application is accurate and complete; once you click submit, you will not be able to make changes to the document Check the affidavit box to certify that the information is truthful and accurate Enter the password used to log-in to the system Click “submit” If you were unable to attach documents electronically, the application is not considered complete until the supporting documentation is received by the Department via mail Submit Application

19 System will not allow user to submit application unless “required” fields contain data –If system recognizes a blank “required” field, the system will provide an error message noting the question numbers that need to be completed System will not allow user to submit application with attachments with excessive file size After correcting errors, re-certify the affidavit and click “submit” to submit the application Error Messages

20 Changes may only be made to an application before it has been submitted; no changes are permitted once the application has been submitted If a change is necessary, a new application must be completed and submitted. The most recently submitted application will be considered. Changes to Applications

21  If you would like to print a hard copy of your application for you organization’s records, perform the following steps: ◦ Click “my application” in the top right corner of the screen ◦ Click “view” on the application you would like to print ◦ Click “print”, Click “ok” when the system notifies you that any unsaved information will be lost ◦ Click the export icon(picture of disk and document) ◦ Select “acrobat format(pdf)” from the dropdown menu ◦ Click the printer icon Printing an Application

22  May use one of three strategies for ensuring members information is entered into the system: ◦ Umbrella groups may submit application on behalf of the member organization under the umbrella group’s user account ◦ Umbrella groups may instruct each member organization to register on its own and submit its own application ◦ A combination whereby individual organization enters application saves the information without submitting it and the umbrella group reviews the application by logging into the individual member’s user account Umbrella Group Strategies to Ensure Member’s Apply

23 Information regarding the application process can be found in Florida Statutes and Florida Administrative Code – links can be found at Using the electronic application can save time and resources In order to use the system, organizations must register as a user, then create and submit the applications for the applicable organizations Umbrella groups may determine how their member organizations will apply for participation Review