TIDES FOUNDATION THE ADVOCACY
FuNnD
PO Box 29903 PO Box 29229
San Francisco, CA 94129 San Francisco, CA 94129
deathpenalty@tides.org
deathpenalty@tides.org
2014 DEATH PENALTY MOBILIZATION FUND STATE STRATEGIES
Request for Proposals for Fall 2014 Funding
General Information:
The Death Penalty Mobilization Fund (DPMF) is a collaborative of Tides Foundation and The
Advocacy Fund that supports strategic collaborations of local, regional or national nonprofits
[501(c)(3)'s and 501(c)(4)’s] working to abolish the death penalty at the state and/or federal
levels.
Background Information:
DPMF was initiated in 2000 by a Tides advisor and is sustained through the support of individual
and institutional partners. To date, the DPMF has awarded over $6 million in grants.
Death Penalty Mobilization Fund - State Strategies Grants:
The upcoming State Strategies segment of the DPMF, in coordination with Themis Fund will provide
grants to state-based activist organizations working on death penalty abolition or reform efforts in
the US. Grants can be used for organizational and/or staff capacity, campaign development or
implementation, public education, and direct and grassroots lobbying. Priority will be given to
states where a grant will make a significant contribution towards securing a concrete victory or
strategic outcome. (See note below regarding the coordination between the DPMF State Strategies
and the Themis processes.)
DPMF State Strategies Fall 2014 Funding Cycle:
With the changing landscape in the field and the evolution of the Death Penalty Abolition
Campaign, funders of the Death Penalty Mobilization fund will focus their resources on strategic
pieces of work that have been identified as priority areas. As a result, we have streamlined the RFP
process this year, eliminating the step of the LOI and inviting only those organizations who fit the
strategic priorities to apply. Those organizations that have been selected to submit a proposal will
be notified in early July, 2014. Proposals are due by 5pm PDT on Friday, August 1, 2014.
Funding decisions will be announced in October.
DPMF State Strategies and FADP Application Process:
DPMF and Themis are committed to streamlining the funding process for all state-based organizations.
Because of this, ALL state-based campaigns that seek funding from Themis should submit a DPMF
State Strategies application and NOT an additional one to Themis. Our hope is that this will simplify
the process for the campaigns, and maximize flexibility and coordination for participating
foundations. The DPMF State Strategies applications will be used to determine funding from Tides
Foundation and The Advocacy Fund and other Themis funding sources. Therefore, the amount
requested, as well as submitted budget information, should reflect the full amount you are
requesting from DPMF and Themis combined. Please request the level of funding appropriate to
your organization's current needs. Actual grant amounts will be determined in consideration of a
full spectrum of needs and opportunities within the field as well as funds available.
Applying for Funding from 's Foundation and The Advocacy Fund:
Your organization or collaborative is welcome to apply for funding from both Tides Foundation and The
Advocacy Fund depending on your funding needs. If your organization/collaborative is applying for
funding from both Tides Foundation and The Advocacy Fund for one project, you must submit separate
cover sheets and project budgets, although all other application materials can be the same for each
proposed project, including the narrative describing both 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) activities.
Proposal Narrative:
Please submit a narrative that includes answers to the following questions. Feel free to use the
narrative submitted in the LOI process as the basis for your proposal, as some questions are repeated
here. Please keep the narrative to a maximum of 6 pages using a standard typeface no smaller than
12 points and no less than 0.5” margins.
a. Goal: What policy goal is your campaign or organization trying to achieve and by when?
b.Program & Activities: Describe your campaign or program. What is your strategy for
achieving your goal or building the capacity of your organization to achieve the goal in the
future? What are your specific activities? Include a timeline of your activities/outcomes.
Describe any ways that the work proposed will address racial justice and engage the
participation and voices of communities of color.
c. External Assessment: What is the external political landscape in your state? Include both
political openings that make your goal more winnable and political roadblocks that could
impede your effort.
d. Internal Assessment: Briefly describe your organization/coalition. How is your group well-
positioned to take advantage of the opportunities and overcome the roadblocks identified in
question “c”? What are your challenges to doing so?
e. Evaluation: What will success mean to you and how do you plan to evaluate that?
f. Fundraising: What is the status of your fundraising activities? What are your fundraising goals
and what is your plan for achieving them?
Application Process and Deadline:
* Please send one email with all attachments to deathpenalty@tides.org no later than 5pm PDT
on
Friday, August 1, 2014.
« Acomplete proposal submission will include:
(1) a completed Cover Sheet Template ((please use the Tides Foundation and/or The
Advocacy Fund cover sheet as needed, and please resubmit even if no information has
changed since you submitted your LOI),
(2) Proposal Narrative (see questions above),
(3) Brief Bios of key individuals in the organization or campaign. Please identify each
person’s role (please resubmit even if no information has changed since you submitted
your LOI).
(4) Finances:
a. Most recent, completed full year organizational financial statement (expenses,
revenue and balance sheet).
b. Organization’s operating budget and actuals YTD for the current year including
revenue listing all major sources of income. Please update the budget template
that you submitted with your LOI to include your YTD numbers.
c. Committed Grants template. (Please resubmit even if no information has changed
since you submitted your LOI).
d. If the grant request is for a specific project, please submit a current project budget.
If the grant request includes grassroots and/or direct lobbying expenditures, please
note in the provided budget template. (please use the Tides Foundation and/or The
Advocacy Fund cover sheet as needed)
e. most recent financial statements, preferably audited.
f. Projected operating budget for the next fiscal year if available.
(5) A copy of your IRS 501(c)(3)/(c)(4) letter. If you do not have 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4)
status, please include a copy of your fiscal sponsor's letter.
Please note:
. All of the template documents were attached to your email invitation to submit a proposal. If
you need that email resent to you, please contact Tides/TAF at deathpenalty@tides.org.
* Please name each document with your organization's name in the following manner:
“orgname_date_document name.pdf”. (Examples: Tides_20140801 Bios.pdf,
Tides_20140801 Narrative.pdf, Tides_20140801 a _finances.pdf,
Tides_20140801 b finances.pdf)
* — If possible, we prefer you submit all documents, including your financial materials, in Adobe
PDF format. We will also accept Word and Excel documents if necessary. Please use a
standard typeface no smaller than 12-point with no less than 0.5” margins.
* Please send ONE email to deathpenalty@tides.org with the attachments labeled following the
format above.
RESTRICTIONS ON GRANTMAKING
* DPMF does not support the production of videos or films.
* DPMF does not support the writing and publication of books and other publications but
may consider strategic distribution of publications.
+ DPMF does not support capital defense/legal representation (unless activities include a
systemic change component.)
* DPMF does not support dissertations, postgraduate work or research.
° DPMF will not provide support to individuals. In particular, journalistic and academic
projects are not supported.
Questions:
Please contact Tides/TAF at deathpenalty@tides.org with any questions regarding the proposal
submission process. For more substantive programmatic questions, please contact Pat Clark at
pclark@proteusfund.org noting “DPMF question” in the subject line.
