PLACER COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

PCF is an enduring organization that seeks to build permanent, lasting resources for our community. It is PCF’s goal that, through endowment, we can grow the number of grant dollars we distribute each year.

By building personalized, endowed charitable funds that are invested for the long-term growth, PCF can expect to leverage greater and greater grant dollars that are distributed to a variety of causes on an annual basis. With assets in our endowment pool reaching $100 million we could expect to distribute as much as $5,000,000 annually into our community—providing support to address: vulnerable, underserved and disenfranchised individuals and families, preservation and conservation of open space and wildlife, at-risk and underserved youth’s successful transition into adulthood and a vibrant and flourishing arts community.

Placer Community Foundation grows giving by operating within four unique strategies:

Personalized service - We work closely with people who give and their professional advisors to help each donor achieve his or her personal, charitable and financial goals. We keep them engaged in their giving by sharing opportunities that align with their interests and promote planned giving to carrying on and inspire their legacy with the next generation.

Charitable Fund Management - We manage charitable funds to provide the highest level of earnings and benefit—to our donors and to the causes they support. Our Board of Directors and Finance Committee oversees investments and benchmarks our performance. As a public charity, we make financial reporting and investment practices available to the public at placercf.org.

Local expertise - We gather information and track the local agencies and programs working for our community. Based on this information, we make grants and direct resources to the most appropriate areas. We stay alert to emerging issues and foster giving and volunteerism in our community, bringing groups of people together to work on solutions to community problems.

Community leadership - We play a key role in addressing community needs… now and in the future. We act as a community catalyst, bringing diverse voices and groups together to address local issues in our community. We build endowments to ensure grants are always available to support the community and we support high-impact opportunities.

PCF is a local organization staffed by people from our community and led by a local board of trustees. This group of people has an in-depth knowledge of the issues, opportunities and resources that shape our community. This enables PCF to play a key role in solving community problems, while helping donors learn more about local needs in order to make their giving as effective as possible.

PCF’s history reaches back more than 70 years to when the Auburn Community Foundation was created in 1948 as a private foundation. In 2005, a few visionary residents saw the opportunity to expand the private foundation to a public one. That is when Placer Community Foundation was born, putting expertly guided charitable giving within reach for any Placer County resident. Today, PCF is a secure, accredited, and well-managed public resource with a multi-million-dollar consortium of funds. The Foundation has grown to be a strong leader, convener and connector, equipped to tackle our region’s most urgent challenges and seize promising opportunities to improve lives throughout Placer County and beyond.

PCF has been accredited since 2007 by the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations, which is administered by the Council on Foundations in Washington DC. Accreditation is renewed annually based on a rigorous evaluation of PCF’s operations, ensuring that donor services, investments, grantmaking and administration meet the highest standards. PCF’s consistent compliance with program requirements is a nod to our expertise in the field and provides quality assurance to donors and professional advisors.

Personalized service – In 2020 our Community Foundation exhibited a record $4.3 million in grant dollars distributed, the bulk of which to support safety-net providers addressing the needs of vulnerable people during the pandemic. We informed our Donor Advised fundholders of weekly calls that we held with local nonprofits so they could direct their grants towards the greatest needs. We code and track when grants are based upon the information we provide. In 2020, 46% of all Donor Advised Fund grants resulted from our recommendation. In 2021, it was 41%. We strive to engage all our donors in local giving during their lifetime. This builds trust in our community knowledge and encourages planned gifts.

Charitable Fund Management – In 2021 PCF established an ESG (Environment Social Governance) investment pool to further our efforts to keep our philanthropic footprint diverse, equitable, inclusive and sustainable. Our donors expect and rely on our leadership and transparency in this area.

Local Expertise – PCF works closely with our County of Placer’s Health and Human Services Department to identify gaps in delivery of programs and services to targeted, underserved and marginalized communities. We then support nonprofit organizations to directly canvas and serve them. In 2020 and 2021 this work resulted in 746 applicants accessing over $9.6M for rent and utility relief through the Federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program. 116 low-income families accessed a simplified online tax filing tool to receive Federal Child Tax Credit (CTC) benefits. As a result, these families who may not otherwise have received the benefits for which they qualify, are receiving an average refund of $3,250. For Placer County overall, these additional CTC sign-ups have resulted in $370,100 in claims to date. And finally, 6,055 vaccination doses have been supported through our incentive program and partner vaccination clinics, including mobile clinics and events targeted toward vulnerable communities.

Community Leadership - We view our leadership role as vital in our community and stand firm that quality, safe and affordable housing is the foundation for a healthy community. PCF continues to lead a campaign alongside nonprofit partners and community stakeholders to advocate for construction of affordable housing. This work has greatly heightened PCF’s role as a leader and community catalyst, bringing diverse voices and groups together to address our county’s dire housing crises and to identify solutions for real change. Most recently this work resulted in 79-units of low to very-low income housing in our county’s government center. Placerhousingmatters.org