Commercial Co Venturer ($10,000) Bond - Statewide in Alabama

Brief Summary

If your business is promoting a sale or event that benefits an Alabama charity and you take any commercial consideration for it, Code of Ala. 13A-9-71 wants a $10,000 surety bond running to the Attorney General on file before the promotion starts. The bond is a flat $10,000 with no tiers, it is written on the Attorney General's own one page form, and most applicants are quoted the same day.

Alabama requires every commercial co-venturer to register with the Attorney General and post a $10,000 surety bond under Code of Ala. 13A-9-71 before promoting a sale, performance or event that benefits a charitable or religious organization. The bond runs to the Attorney General of the State of Alabama, covers malfeasance or misfeasance in the conduct of the solicitation, and is filed with the $100 registration fee. Registration expires September 30 each year.

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How to Apply for a Commercial Co Venturer ($10,000) Bond:

• Confirm you fall under the 13A-9-70 definition. A business benefiting in good will only, with the charity controlling the money, is excluded.
• Provide the legal name of the business exactly as it will appear on the Attorney General registration, plus the owner's name, home address and Social Security number for the credit review.
• Complete the bond application, review the premium quoted on the $10,000 amount and pay it.
• Receive the executed Attorney General bond form with the surety's signature and seal, and sign as principal.
• File the bond with the online registration and the $100 fee through the Attorney General's iGov portal before the promotion is advertised.
• Renew the registration and keep the bond in force through September 30 each year, and file the closing statement within 90 days after each charity contract ends.

Detailed Information About the Alabama Commercial Co Venturer ($10,000) Bond:

Are you a commercial co-venturer at all

Code of Ala. 13A-9-70 defines a commercial co-venturer as any person who, for profit or other commercial consideration, conducts, promotes, underwrites, arranges or sponsors a sale, performance or event of any kind that is advertised and that will benefit, to any extent, a charitable or religious organization. The exclusion is narrow but important. A business that benefits in good will only is not a commercial co-venturer, provided the collection and distribution of the proceeds are supervised and controlled by the benefiting charity. If you are keeping a share of the proceeds, charging the charity a fee, or handling the money yourself, you are in. A one time cause marketing promotion counts the same as an ongoing program.

The bond

Code of Ala. 13A-9-71 requires the bond in the amount of ten thousand dollars with one or more sureties, running to the Attorney General for the use of the state and of any person who has a cause of action against the obligor. It is conditioned on the absence of malfeasance or misfeasance in the conduct of the solicitation. There are no tiers, no revenue test and no reduced amount for small promotions. The Attorney General's Consumer Interest Division prescribes the form, titled Professional Fundraiser or Commercial Co-Venturer Surety Bond, revision 07/12/23, and the same form serves both registrant types. The principal signs, the surety signs and seals, and the term dates are filled in to match the registration year.

Registration, fee and renewal

Registration is filed with the Attorney General online through the iGov portal. The fee is $100 for the initial registration and $100 for each annual renewal. Every registration expires September 30 regardless of when it was issued, so a co-venturer that registers in August pays again the next month. Keep the bond term aligned with that date so the renewal does not stall on an expired bond. Within 90 days after a contract with a charity ends, the co-venturer files a closing statement with the Attorney General disclosing gross receipts and all expenditures from the promotion.

What the bond does not cover

The bond does not satisfy the charity's own registration under 13A-9-71, which carries a separate $25 fee, and it does not cover professional solicitors, who register individually for $25. A professional fundraiser that also runs commercial co-venture promotions holds the same $10,000 bond but registers under its own category. The exemptions in 13A-9-71(f) for schools, churches, political organizations and small charities apply to the charitable organization, not to the business promoting the sale.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Alabama Commercial Co Venturer ($10,000) Bond:

• Bond amount of exactly $10,000, with no tiers, as set by Code of Ala. 13A-9-71.
• The Attorney General of the State of Alabama named as obligee on the prescribed Professional Fundraiser or Commercial Co-Venturer Surety Bond form.
• A surety authorized to write bonds in Alabama, with the surety seal on the form.
• Principal name on the bond matching the registration exactly.
• Owner credit review. At $10,000 the review mostly sets the rate rather than eligibility.

Alabama Commercial Co Venturer ($10,000) Bond FAQs:

Official and Additional Resources for the Alabama Commercial Co Venturer ($10,000) Bond: