Tualatin Elks lodge asks council to consider including 501(c)(8) groups in outside-agency grants

CJ McNulty, past president of the Tualatin Valley Elks Lodge No. 2780, asked the council on July 12 to consider broadening the eligibility rules for the city's outside-agency grant program so organizations organized under IRS section 501(c)(8) can apply.

McNulty said the small volunteer lodge, which serves Tualatin and nearby communities, provides local charitable services including a Christmas-basket program that supplies food and toys to families across Tualatin, Wilsonville, Lake Oswego and parts of Tigard. He said the lodge is eligible for some national Elks funding but that those funds cannot be used for the lodge's own facility costs, and that the lodge's shrinking membership has reduced its fundraising capacity.

McNulty noted a prior local donation the lodge made to the Tualatin Police Department — funding a canine-specific uniform from an Elks grant — and said the donation process was conducted without dispute despite the lodge's 501(c)(8) status. "We are a charitable even though the IRS code does not specifically describe us as charitable," McNulty said, arguing the organization serves community needs.

Council President Pratt invited McNulty to send more information and said staff and council can be reached at council@tualatin.gov for follow-up. No change to the grant program eligibility was made at the meeting; McNulty asked the council to continue the conversation and supply any additional materials for staff review.

The request was raised during public comment; staff did not state a timeline for changing grant criteria or for evaluating the lodge's application under current rules.