Rules

Boundless San Francisco: Rules & Eligibility

Explore eligibility and terms and conditions of participating in Boundless San Francisco or contact our helpful support team.

Rules

By participating in the Competition and in accordance with these RULES governing the Competition (“RULES”), You are applying to potentially receive various forms of recognition and a possible Award of between $10 million and $50 million USD from the Competition Sponsor. The RULES stated herein are in addition to the Submittable Submitter Terms of Use governing use of the Submittable Website and the Lever for Change Website Terms & Conditions (collectively, “TERMS”), and You are hereby bound to the same extent and by the same requirements as described in the TERMS.

The full TERMS are available for Your review by accessing them on the Website(s). Please read the RULES and the TERMS carefully, as they describe the conditions under which You are allowed to participate. As You participate, You may periodically be asked to recognize Your acceptance of these RULES and the TERMS by clicking "accept" at various pages on the Website(s), but by continuing any use of the Website(s) You expressly consent to all these RULES and the TERMS.

SUBMISSION OF AN APPLICATION IN BOUNDLESS SAN FRANCISCO CONSTITUTES FULL AND UNCONDITIONAL AGREEMENT TO AND ACCEPTANCE OF THESE RULES.

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR TO RECEIVE AN AWARD.

1. Eligibility

Applicants must comply with the following eligibility criteria to be considered for the Competition:

The proposed project must primarily benefit the City and County of San Francisco, specifically those who live and work in the city, with no more than 25% of project activities aimed at benefitting the broader Bay Area outside San Francisco city limits (the counties of Santa Clara, San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa, Solano, Sonoma, Napa, and Marin).
Lead Organizations must be one of the following legal entities:
- An entity based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories that has received a tax determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) and a publicly supported organization described under section 509(a)(1) or (2) of the IRC, and which a tax determination letter is in effect.
- A nonprofit organization for a fiscally sponsored project, provided that the nonprofit organization is an entity based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories and has received an IRS determination letter that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and a publicly supported organization described under section 509(a)(1) or (2) of the IRC and which a tax determination letter is in effect (or meets the equivalency standards for entities organized under the laws of a foreign jurisdiction); fiscal sponsors must exercise discretion and control over the grant funds.
- An entity based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and is also classified as a Type I or Type II supporting organization described under section 509(a)(3) of the IRC, and which a tax determination letter is in effect.
- A public or private college, junior college, university, or other similar educational entity that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and is also classified as an educational organization described under sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(ii) of the IRC and which a tax determination letter is in effect. The specific program must align with sponsored research guidelines.
- A private operating foundation based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS.
- A U.S. tribal government treated as a State pursuant to IRC Section 7871.
- An entity organized under the laws of a foreign jurisdiction which has received a tax determination letter from the IRS or has been determined to be the equivalent of a section 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(1).
- Affiliates of national organizations as long as the affiliate is a separate 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(1) or (2) entity (or foreign equivalent) and has its own board of directors; legal liability rests with the local organization; affiliate’s tax-exempt status was not granted under a group exemption; affiliate makes decisions regarding overall mission, priorities, and strategies of organization and for day-to-day operations; and affiliate does not “fund” general activities of national organization.
- An entity that is recognized under the law of the applicable jurisdiction as a non-governmental organization, a charitable organization, a not-for-profit organization, or similar-type entity that is not a for-profit organization or government agency and that is engaged in charitable activities within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the IRC.
- A national, regional, or local governmental entity.
- A for-profit organization, including LLCs, benefit corporations, or hybrid organizations. Award funds granted to a for-profit Lead Organization are subject to expenditure responsibility under IRC §4945(h); see "Guidance Related to Non-Charitable Activities" below in Section 8.

The Lead Organization must a) be in good standing in the jurisdiction under which it is organized, and b) comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations in its completion and submission of an Application and use of the Award funds.

The Lead Organization is a single legal entity that has the legal responsibility, authority for and control of the use of any Award funds, is responsible for the reporting on any Award funds, and must be able to exercise – in fact and law – full discretion, control, and supervision of the proposed solution and the Award funds. Any Subgrantee, Contractor, or Collaborator will be selected by the Lead Organization in its sole discretion and completely independently of the Competition Sponsor, and the participation of any such Subgrantee, Contractor, or Collaborator in the proposed solution will not be a condition to the receipt of an Award.

2. Ineligible Persons or Entities

The following are examples of parties that are not eligible to apply as the Lead Organization but can serve as Subgrantees or Contractors on an Application and receive a subgrant or contract from the Lead Organization to assist the Lead Organization using the Award Funds in implementing the proposed solution:

Individuals and entities that, from a tax perspective, have the tax status of an individual, such as a single member limited liability company (LLC) where the member is an individual.
An entity that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS under section 501(c)(4) of the IRC and which a tax letter is in effect.

Employees, Officers, or Board Members of the Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change, Submittable (the Competition platform), and any of their subsidiaries and affiliates, and immediate family members (spouse, parent, child, grandchild, sibling, and their respective spouses, regardless of where they live) or persons living in the same households of such employees, officers, and Board members are not eligible to participate as a Lead Organization, Subgrantee, Contractor, or Collaborator.

3. Prohibited Use of Award Funds

Award funds must be used exclusively for tax-exempt purposes. Award funds may not be used:

For non-charitable purposes, i.e., to undertake any activity for any purpose other than one specified in Section 170(c)(2)(B) of the IRC.
For the purpose of lobbying, including to carry on propaganda or otherwise to attempt to influence legislation.
To fund political organizations and political work (such as the work of 527s and certain types of work in which Section 501(c)(4) organizations may engage).

Funds may be subgranted from a Lead Organization to other Subgrantees or Contractors to implement the proposed solution, and not for general funds used for broader purposes. The Lead Organization will retain full discretion and control over the selection of any Subgrantee or Contractor.

4. Collaborations

Finalist teams comprised of more than one organization proposing to work together must demonstrate through a fully executed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or other similar agreement, executed by all parties, that all parties have agreed that a single eligible entity, the Lead Organization, will serve as the Awardee, if selected. As the Awardee, the Lead Organization will have direction, control, and supervision of the proposed solution and management of all Award funds and be responsible for all reporting requirements. While MOUs will not be collected in the initial Application, teams selected as Finalists at later stages of the Competition may be required to submit MOUs.

5. Multiple Applications from a Single Organization and Overlapping Boards

Regional or location-specific branches of larger organizations, as well as departments, schools, and centers within or based in a college/university, can register and submit separate Applications as long as the proposed solutions are different and separate. As long as each Application is submitted by a different team member with a unique email address, some overlap in team members on different Applications is permitted. Lead Organizations, though, are encouraged to select a single project that best represents its ability to deliver a solution that meets the Evaluation Criteria. Overlapping membership of boards and advisory boards among different Applicants is also permitted.

6. Prior Crankstart Grantees

Organizations that have previously received a grant directly from the Competition Sponsor are eligible to participate in Boundless San Francisco. A prior Crankstart grantee may participate in any capacity, including as a Lead Organization, Collaborator, Contractor, or Subgrantee, as those terms are defined in these RULES.

7. Indirect Costs

While using Award funds entirely for general operating support is not allowed, the Competition Sponsor recognizes that Applicants may have overhead costs that are not directly attributable to the proposed solution but are necessary for implementation. The Competition Sponsor will consider paying for these indirect costs up to a maximum of 29% of direct project or activity costs within the $50 million Award limit. Ensure that any indirect costs are accounted for in the budget in the Application.

8. Guidance Related to Non-Charitable Activities

Award funds must be used for tax-exempt purposes – for one or more purposes specified in Section 170(c)(2)(B) of the IRC, and may not result in more than an incidental private benefit to shareholders or other people, organizations, or entities that is a necessary byproduct of the accomplishment of such tax-exempt purpose.

Where the Lead Organization is a for-profit entity, the Award is subject to the expenditure responsibility requirements of IRC §4945(h) and Treas. Reg. §53.4945-5. Such Lead Organizations must be willing and able to comply with expenditure responsibility procedures for the duration of the Award.

9. Financial and Organizational Capacity

Applicants must be in good legal and financial standing and demonstrate their financial and organizational capacity to carry out the proposed solution and to appropriately manage an Award.

10. Grant Agreement

The successful Finalists and/or Awardees will be expected to enter into a grant agreement with the Competition Sponsor, Crankstart, containing key terms and conditions which are separate from these RULES and TERMS posted on the Website(s) for this Competition. Any Award that may be considered pursuant to this process must satisfy legal criteria in the sole discretion of the Competition Sponsor.

NOTE: The terms of the grant agreement with a Finalist and/or Awardees depend on the nature of the proposed solution, the Lead Organization receiving the Award funds, and the Competition Sponsor.

11. Program-Related Investments

Applicants may include a request for a Program-Related Investment ("PRI") in their application if they determine that a PRI is necessary to the success of their proposed project. There is no predetermined cap on the amount of a PRI request; however, applicants must provide an honest and well-supported assessment of their actual financing needs. Submitting a PRI request does not guarantee that a PRI will be offered. If an application advances to the Finalist stage, the specific terms of any PRI — including amount, structure, and any expectation of repayment — will be determined at that time in the sole discretion of the Competition Sponsor.

12. Reporting

Finalists and/or any Awardees will be required by the terms of their grant agreement with the Competition Sponsor to report on progress toward milestones and other goals. Those reporting requirements may vary, based on the organization and the proposed solution, and will be determined by the Competition Sponsor. However, a minimum of an annual financial report and an annual narrative report will be required.

13. Rules Pertaining to Application Requirements

13.1 Your application must be in English.

13.2 You must complete registration to participate in the Competition before the stated deadline.

13.3 Your Application should meet the application requirements stipulated. You are required to register in advance of the registration deadline for the submission of the Application, and You must comply with all other deadlines posted on the Website(s) and incorporated herein by reference. Your Application may not, in the sole and unfettered discretion of the Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change, contain obscene, provocative, defamatory, or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content. The Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to cancel, modify or suspend the Competition in whole or in part without liability. The Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change also reserve the right to disqualify You from participating.

13.4 By participating in the Competition, You represent, warrant, and agree that:

You are the sole author, creator, and owner of the Application;
the Application is not the subject of any actual, suspected, or threatened litigation or claim;
the Application does not and will not violate or infringe upon the intellectual property rights, privacy rights, publicity rights, or other legal rights of any third party;
the Application does not and will not contain any harmful computer code (sometimes referred to as "malware," "viruses" or "worms");
the Application, and Your use of the Application, does not and will not violate any applicable laws or regulations, including, without limitation, applicable export control laws and regulations of the United States and other jurisdictions;
if the Application includes any third party works (such as third-party content or open source code), You must provide the Competition Sponsor and Lever for Change with all appropriate licenses and releases for such third party works. In the event You cannot provide all such required licenses and releases, the Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right, in the Competition Sponsor’s sole discretion, to disqualify the Application.

13.5 You may participate by registering, but You may not register more than one true and uniform identity; multiple registrations for a participant using multiple identities are not allowed. The Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change, and/or Submittable reserve the right to disqualify any Application made by a participant violating this limitation, regardless of whether all of the respective parties had knowledge of such violation. Each registrant may submit at most one Application.

13.6 Upon submitting Your Application, the Application will be subjected to an Administrative Review, to ensure compliance with all of the requirements. Qualified Applications (those that have passed Administrative Review) will then be distributed to other Qualified Applicants during a Participatory Review of those Applications. If Your Application qualifies for this Participatory Review, the Lead Organization will be required to assess at least four (4) other Applications. If You do not complete those assessments, using the tools and process described on the Website(s), Your participation may be terminated. Based on normalized scores from each Participatory Review, a rank order of the Applications will be populated.

13.7 The top-scoring Applications informed by the Participatory Review will advance to an Evaluation Panel review. The Evaluation Panel consists of experts who are identified on the Website(s). Each of the qualified Applications will be assessed by four (4) Evaluation Panel members, who will be assigned to evaluate these Applications either randomly or after considering any potential conflicts of interest, using the Evaluation Rubric that is described on the Website(s) and which is incorporated by reference herein. In cases where an Evaluation Panel Reviewer indicates any potential conflict of interest, the Application will be assigned to another Reviewer. Based on a set of Evaluation Panel review analysis a rank order of the Applications will be populated.

13.8 Once a rank order of Applications has been populated using the Evaluation Process, up to seven (7) top Applicants may be named as Finalists. Each Finalist will receive a project development grant of up to $500,000 USD and technical assistance to strengthen the Finalist proposal through the development of a full investment prospectus. After submitting an investment prospectus, up to three (3) Finalists will be selected to receive an Award of up to $50 million USD each to implement their proposed solution. The Competition Sponsor will review and discuss the top Applications and will determine any Finalists and/or Awardees, using criteria that the Competition Sponsor will apply in its sole discretion and may incorporate considerations beyond the Evaluation Panel’s reviews.

If a Finalist is unable to fully participate in the next phase of the Competition, then the Finalist may forfeit its designation as a Finalist. Final determination of each Finalist and Awardee rests solely with the Competition Sponsor.

13.9 By submitting Your Application, You agree to release, discharge and hold harmless the Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change, Submittable, and their partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies, agents and their employees, officers, directors and representatives from any Loss arising out of Your participation in the Competition and the acceptance and use, misuse, or possession of any Award(s). Neither the Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change, nor Submittable assume responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, or delay in operation or transmission; communications line failure; theft or destruction of or unauthorized access to Competition applications or application forms; or alteration of Applications or application forms. Neither the Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change, nor Submittable are responsible for any problems with or technical malfunction of any telephone network or lines, computer online systems, servers or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any application to be received on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or any website, human errors of any kind, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to competitors’ or any other persons’ computers related to or resulting from participation, uploading or downloading of any materials related to this Competition.

13.10 The Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right in their sole discretion to disqualify any Applicant that: tampers with the application process or the operation of the Competition; acts in violation of the RULES or the TERMS; acts in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner, or with the intent to disrupt or undermine the legitimate operation of the Competition, or to abuse, threaten, or harass any other person.

13.11 Applying as part of this Competition does not constitute applying into any other Lever for Change Competition, Submittable Competition, or promotion that may be offered by the Competition Sponsor and/or its affiliates.

13.12 The names of the Awardees will be posted on the Lever for Change Website for such a period of time as the Competition Sponsor deems reasonable.

13.13 Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, nothing herein represents a commitment by the Competition Sponsor to award any gift to any entity submitting an Application, participating in, responding to, or submitting subsequent information in response to this Competition. The Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to terminate, alter, or suspend this process and the Competition at any time, including by closing the Competition without making any Awards or other grants. The Competition Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to stop all activity for the Competition and/or to make substantive changes to the Competition including these RULES, which might preclude certain Users from participating further. By submitting an Application or information pursuant to this Competition, each Applicant shall be deemed to have acknowledged that the Competition Sponsor shall have no obligation to make any gift and neither Lever for Change nor the Competition Sponsor shall have liability to any Applicant or other person or entity should the determination be made not to proceed with this process or not to make any grants. It is further understood that any gift that may be considered pursuant to this process must satisfy the Competition Sponsor’s legal criteria in the sole discretion of the Competition Sponsor.

14. Intellectual Property

a. Applicant IP Ownership: You represent and warrant that the Application is an original work created solely by the Applicant, that the Applicant owns all intellectual property rights (defined below) in and to the Application including any related Application materials that You submit or that are submitted on Your behalf, and that no other party has any right, title, claim or interest in Your Application, except as expressly identified by You to us in writing in Your Application. Intellectual property rights mean patent rights, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and other protected rights.

b. License to Use Application and Application-related Content: The Applicant hereby grants a perpetual, transferrable, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, fully paid up, non-exclusive license to the Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change and the website host, to use, reproduce, adapt, modify, edit, alter, digitize, publish, distribute, publicly perform, broadcast, exhibit, publicly display, exploit and create a derivative work from Your Application and Application related materials for the purposes described in the Application and Rules and to further Lever for Change’s charitable purposes.

c. Use of Likeness and Publicity Release: To the extent permitted by law, You irrevocably agree that Lever for Change, the Competition Sponsor and the website host, and their respective licensees, shall be entitled to use Your name, likeness and biographical information for all advertising, marketing, publicity and public relations purposes in connection with Boundless San Francisco and with other projects and activities, without additional remuneration. The Applicant hereby waives any right to any form of compensation and all legal claims, including for libel, slander, invasion of privacy, and infringement, related to the Applicant’s name and likeness and Application’s content and its use.

15. Data Protection

Applicant information, which may include personal data (defined below), will be collected, used, transferred and disclosed by the Competition Sponsor, Lever for Change and the website hosting this Competition, in Boundless San Francisco. Applicants may request to review, rectify or delete any personal data held by Lever for Change, the Competition Sponsor or the website host, by contacting Lever for Change at info@leverforchange.org. Lever for Change's Privacy Policy can be reviewed here. The privacy policy of the website host, Submittable, can be reviewed here. To the extent not defined in these privacy policies, personal data is any information that relates to an identified or identifiable living individual.

16. Contact Information

You may contact us with any questions or comments about these RULES by emailing boundless-sf@submittable.com.

Definitions and Interpretations

In this document, capitalized terms have the following meanings, unless otherwise expressly indicated:

“Application” means an entry submitted by an Applicant in response to the Competition. The Application includes all attachments and exhibits, and all inputs provided by the Lead Organization’s collaborators.
“Applicant” or “Lead Organization” means an organization that meets the eligibility requirements of this Competition and that submits or proposes to submit an Application to the Competition and is represented on this Website by a person 18 years of age or older at the time of submission of the Application.
“Award” means any form of benefit or other forms of recognition to declared or selected Finalists and/or Awardees, as set out in the Competition Rules.
“Awardee” means an Applicant whose Application is selected by the Competition Sponsor to receive award funding in accordance with the Competition Rules.
“Competition” means Boundless San Francisco posted on this Website, however expressed.
“Competition Sponsor” means the Crankstart Foundation. The Competition Sponsor has contracted with Lever for Change to manage the Competition.
“Collaborator” means an individual or entity who or which partners with the Lead Organization, and Subgrantees, Contractors, and/or other Collaborators, as applicable, to carry out the proposed solution but does not receive any Award funds from the Lead Organization through a sub-grant, a contract, or otherwise.
“Contractor” means an individual or entity who or which partners with the Lead Organization, and Subgrantees, other Contractors, and/or Collaborators, as applicable, to carry out the proposed solution through a contract with the Lead Organization under which the Contractor is paid using Award funds.
“Subgrantee” means an individual or entity who or which partners with the Lead Organization, and other Subgrantees, Contractors, and/or Collaborators, as applicable, to carry out the proposed solution and receives a sub-grant of Award funds from the Lead Organization.
“Finalist” means those Applicants whose Applications are selected to advance in the Competition and be eligible for consideration of a final Award in accordance with the Competition Rules.
“Loss" means any direct, indirect, special, incidental, or consequential liabilities, damages, claims, losses, costs, expenses, actions, demands or suits, whether in contract, tort (including liability due to infringement of intellectual property rights or due to negligence), statute or otherwise and whether pecuniary or non-pecuniary. This includes, but is not limited to, loss of profits, legal costs and defense or settlement costs.
“RULES” means these rules governing the Competition as set forth herein, as may be amended from time to time, as well as other instructions provided by Lever for Change or the Competition Sponsor.
“TERMS” means the rules with the platform providers of this Website, Lever for Change and Submittable, that apply to Your use of the Website.
“User” means any person who has registered a user account on this Website. The term "User" includes all Applicants.
“Website” means any web pages contained within this domain and any sub-domains and all underlying software and infrastructure which permits the holding of the Competition. Where the context permits, ‘Website’ or 'website' includes the services provided on the Website. This Website platform is run by Lever for Change and Submittable Holdings, Inc. (“Submittable”).
“You" means the person and organization using the Website, including a User, and a Lead Organization duly organized and validly existing under state or federal law in the United States of America that is represented on the Website by a User that is a person at least 18 years of age who is the duly authorized representative of such Lead Organization. Each person submitting an Application must be authorized to submit the Application and to bind the Lead Organization on whose behalf the Application is being submitted to the RULES.
“Your” means the possessive of “You.”

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