Donation Certificates or Non-Profit Bonds By Chad Lupkes Democracy for Wall Street

Problem 1 Low National Savings Rate Lowest since 1932 People are pulling out of their equity to fund their lifestyles

Problem 2 Low Funding for Charities I get calls, letters or s every single day The claim that people will donate is a lie, in my estimation. –Those that can afford it don’t, unless it serves their interests –Those that can’t afford it can’t Right now, Charities focus on large donors, and have trouble getting significant donations from the population. Most don’t even try. We need a long term solution.

Problem 3 Ownership of the US Current events show that the people of the US do not have controlling ownership over our own infrastructure –Port deals –Trade Deficit at record high –National Debt at record high –Perpetual Deficits as far as we can predict I think we can change this.

Savings Ownership Funding Where’s the Bring it all together connection?

New idea Donation Certificates –Sell like Bonds –Provide a funding source for charities –Gives a sense of ownership to individuals

Where to start? Schools Foundations & Institutes Churches & Charities

Example: Schools The PTA is a 501(c)3 organization Parents want to save for their kids’ future Kids need to learn about money The PTA needs operational funds to provide to school programs of their choice

PTA: How it might work When children start school, each child gets an account within the larger PTA account. Parents buy certificates, and the money goes into that account. The account earns interest at the bank. Each interest payment is split in half –Half goes back into the account for next month –Half goes to the PTA General Fund for use in the school.

PTA: How it might work (2) During the school year, the parents have the opportunity to purchase more certificates and add money at any time. The student can also do this. At the end of the school year, the certificates can be cashed in or held over for the next school year. The value will be based on the certificates purchased and interest earned. Accounts could be transferred between schools and PTA groups.

PTA: How it might work (3) Upon graduation, the student has the ability to cash in the bonds as a down payment on a house, a car, to start a business or their future education needs. It’s their money. The PTA fund will constantly be in flux as students come into the school system, but it will be something they can count as an asset, not just for the money they get, but for the future they are building.

Example: Foundations A Foundation opens a Trust account with a bank. Let’s say they negotiate a 4% return. The Foundation sells bonds to the public, offering a 2% return on investment. 2% goes to build the account balance. 2% goes to fund whatever charity or project the Trust account is designated for.

Foundations: It’s our money It’s our money when we buy the bond It’s our money when we cash in the bond We’re saving for our own future while providing a funding stream to the project or charity

Example: Churches The Church sets up a Savings Trust, and negotiates a return on the trust from the bank. Let’s say 4%. The Church sells the bonds to their members and supporters, offering a 2% return. 2% goes to build the account balance. 2% goes to fund the operations, programs and activities of the Church.

Churches: It’s our money It’s our money when we buy the bond. It’s our money when we cash in the bond. We’re saving for our own future at the same time we are providing a funding stream to the Church that we support.

Other Potential Examples Any other 501(c)3 organization 501(c)4 & political organizations Municipal Governments For-profit companies –Just redefine “profits” a bit

Why not just invest or donate? People are of course able to invest or donate, but these are the ends of a spectrum. This idea fills in the middle and lets people do both at the same time. This creates the notion of Return on Investment that can be applied much further in the creation of a civil society.

Disadvantages & Solutions Starts small, requires large account balances to produce significant funding stream –Encourages more people to get involved –Encourages “Angel Investors” to get things started Interest Rates are currently low –Can be negotiated with the bank as the account balance goes up. –Encourages exploration of more investment opportunities. Stocks pay dividends that could be split in the same manner as interest from savings accounts.

What’s the next step? Non-profits are not currently set up to sell Bonds. This might require a change in Tax Law. There is a way around this, which would require an organization to be established that would be a coordinating agency for tracking the sale of the bonds and the distribution of the interest/dividends to the charities. I’m looking at creating one of these organizations.

Questions This is a list of questions and notes from conversations I have had with people –How is this different from a normal savings account? –Who has Fiduciary Responsibility? –What is the Federal Government component that might need legislation? What other questions are important?

They Say: “It’s your money” – and they are focused on taking it away from us. I Say: “It’s our money” – and we should be building our civilization on a foundation of wealth, instead of a foundation of debt.

Summary We can increase the national savings rate We can provide a funding stream for charities & other needs We can teach our children (our future citizens) that ownership of their country is ownership of their future This is the progressive answer to the “ownership society”

Questions? Please contact me. I’m still fleshing out the idea, and I’d love to get more input. Chad Lupkes Roosevelt Way NE #12 Seattle, WA