Election Action Grants
WHAT IS THE GOAL OF THE ELECTION ACTION GRANTS?
In Wisconsin this fall, there are eight seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, sixteen seats in the State Senate, and ninety-nine State Assembly seats up for election, along with many local offices. In an effort to increase the number of individuals with disabilities who are informed voters and who will vote, this special DAWN Action Grant is being made available. The Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities (BPDD) is offering to provide financial support for well-defined non-partisan election related activities. This may include, but is not limited to:
- Organizing a candidate forum in a contested race;
- Get-Out-the-Vote (GOTV) efforts;
- Registering individuals with disabilities and their family members to vote.
WHO CAN APPLY?
- People with developmental or other disabilities;
- Family members of people with disabilities;
- Local or statewide consumer-led grassroots advocacy organizations where people with a disability and/or family members are a majority of the membership and, if applicable, the board of directors.
HOW MUCH CAN I APPLY FOR?
Grants are available up to $500 for an advocacy project. Approved grants will be distributed on a first come, first served basis until the funds are expended. Application deadline is September 22, 2008.
HOW DO I APPLY?
Complete the two-page DAWN Action Grant Application. The Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities will notify you of our decision as soon as possible after receiving the application.
WHAT CAN I USE THE GRANT MONEY FOR?
The following are some but not all the ways you may use the grant:
- Organize non-partisan candidate forums;
- Develop, send, and tabulate candidate questionnaires;
- Get-out-the-vote activities (ex. Making phone calls, sending mail);
- Organize and provide transportation to get people to the polls;
- Public awareness activities (ex. Making your constituents aware of candidate’s positions);
- Registering people to vote;
- Media outreach (ex. Letters to the editor, op-ed articles);
- Recruit and educate constituents to become poll workers.
WHAT REPORTING INFORMATION WILL I BE RESPONSIBLE FOR?
In order to comply with Federal reporting procedures, the BPDD will need to know some important facts and statistics related to your event or activity. For instance, you will need to report: how many people attended/participated in the activity/event, approximately how many people were family members, and how many people were individuals with disabilities. If you will be working on a project to give people rides to the polls, you will need to report the number of people who were given rides to the polls due to your efforts. You will also be required to develop a sign-up sheet that lists the names, addresses, and phone numbers of the individuals that participated in your event or who were assisted by your activity, ex. registered to vote. This information will be used solely for GOTV efforts of the BPDD.
WHAT ELSE SHOULD I KNOW?
You cannot use the money for salary, operating expenses (rent, utilities, equipment) or to replace any existing funding. DAWN funds can only be used for non-partisan activities and therefore cannot be used to support a candidate or party. Application materials are available from the WBPDD, 201 W. Washington Ave, Suite 110, Madison WI 53703, (608) 267-9337 (voice), (608) 266-6660 (TDD/TTY), (608) 267-3906 (fax) or from the DAWN website.
