8906_MSA_November2024_Newsletter

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it’s not surprising that I have set them up for tracking resources and receipts. All trail work, grooming, and administration resources must be tracked using the forms provided on the state website. Any time anyone does anything for the club, they should fill out a worksheet. I then collect these as soon as possible, and I enter the name and hours into a tracking spreadsheet, which has the same headings as the worksheet. In April when I prepare the reimbursement requests, I can sort, filter, and calculate the total hours for the varying grant applications. I will also collect all receipts for expenses as soon as possible. (They tend to get lost if you wait until the end of the year to ask for them.) I enter the expenses into a spreadsheet where I can sort and filter to provide totals for the grant reimbursements. I have headings for whether the expense was for a Club or Municipal trail, what type of expense it is, and whether it is an allowable expense for grant reimbursement. (See state website for a list of allowable expenses.) We have streamlined our purchases by using a club credit card; how ever, if someone else purchases something for the club that needs to be reimbursed, we also track whether they have been paid yet. I keep all the receipts in a file folder. Before they are filed, they are scanned and saved to Google Drive with a standard naming conven tion. You need to provide copies of all receipts with your grant reimbursement. Because we submit our documents electronically, the scanned receipts all in one place makes them easy to find in April. Trails

when we start inspecting the trails. The trails need to be mowed or brushed, blowdowns removed, signage checked and improved, if necessary. (See MSA sign brochure before signing for guidelines on what and where to put them.) Signs are ordered from the state. There is a lot of information on the websites noted above for maintaining trails. There is also a lack of information; e.g., how to construct a bridge. If you have no one in your group who is experienced in trail maintenance, reach out to a local club. Local snowmobile clubs are the most helpful group of people, and we all work together with the few members we have to provide great trails. During the trail maintenance phase, you’ll start to hear from your landowners, who may want to reroute a trail, request additional sig nage or a safety fence, etc. During the fall there is no end to the work to be done to main tain the trails! IRS This is not tax advice and may not apply to all clubs. Because we were receiving large donations from a business, we pursued getting our 501(c)(3) federal nonprofit status. Clubs are not provided guidance in doing this and are not reimbursed for any expenses involved. It’s helpful to speak with someone who has gone through the process because it’s not as simple as I am going to describe. We consulted with the Windham and Rangeley clubs, who were both very helpful in giving us tips to get through this process. We were eligible to use Form 1023 EZ. It’s helpful to read all the instructions by the IRS and to follow them exactly. A key requirement is that your Articles of Incorporation contain spe cific statements. We had to file an Amendment with the Maine Secretary of State to address these items before we could file with the IRS. If and when you get approved for this tax classification, you are now required to file an annual tax form with the Federal government. We are eligible to file Form 990-N, which is a short postcard format. Different forms are required based on income you receive. I am still learning something new every year! Feel free to message me at wildriverriders@ gmail.com if you have any questions or if you have any tips to make my life easier.

Grants

As if this article weren’t long enough, I could easily write a book about grant preparation. There are resources on the websites noted above for the state and the MSA that you should read thoroughly before preparing your grants. However, I do want to give you some tips on preparing throughout the year to make this an easier process. There are four different types of grants: Club, Municipal, Disaster, and Capital. They have different deadlines, and you should create reminders in your calendar so you don’t miss the deadlines. • Club Grant – this is a grant to maintain your club trails. It is prepared by the club and signed off on by the Trailmaster. It contains an application, which asks for projections of your club’s expenses for the season for trail work and grooming. There is a Project description to provide more specific infor mation about the costs or any large proj ects, which may need advance approval before you begin. This is due by December 1. At the end of the season, you will prepare a Club Reimbursement application, which documents the actual money and hours the club spent. Receipt for all eligible expenses are submitted with the reimbursement. • Municipal Grant – this is a grant to main tain your municipal trails, which are the ITS and main trails of your network. The state can clarify for you which trails are club or municipal if you do not have that information. This grant is prepared by a Project Director elected by your Town. In our case, we asked the Town to elect our President as the Project Director. There fore, we do all the grant preparation to save the Town time, and they review and approve our application. This grant is also due by December 1 and has the additional requirement of not allowing trail work to be done before the grant is approved so it’s best to start working on the grant applica tions when they are mailed out in August. Like the Club Grant, a reimbursement appli cation is also required. • Disaster Grants. These are available in the event of a disaster. They must be completed and filed within 60 days of the disaster. See the state website for further details. • Capital Grants. These are available when the club wishes to purchase additional grooming equipment. There are rules and guidelines for a capital grant. Consult the state website for more details. For all the above grants, you will need to provide logs tracking resource hours and receipts for any expenditures. You may have guessed already that I like spreadsheets, so

Technically, you are not supposed to work on trails until your annual grant applications are approved. In reality, we work on trails year round, but it really ramps up after Labor Day

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