Community Backyards Program Rules

The #1 rule people forget to follow: read your voucher! All of the program rules and rebate item requirements are listed directly on your voucher. These rules are also listed below. Because this program is funded by local municipal funds, there are rules that all participants must follow in order to receive reimbursement, no exceptions, and regardless of how, where, what reimbursement you get. We reserve the right to DENY rebates if these rules are not followed to protect the integrity of our program. 

• Limit one rebate per household per year - If you attempt to get multiple rebates in one year, you will be invoiced for the overage, and you could be temporarily or permanently banned from the program. Funds are limited. If you want multiple rebates, come back next year and participate again. You can participate every year - just once per year though. For example, if you want both a rain garden rebate and a native plant rebate, you have to pick ONE this year. Then, come back and participate again the following year for another rebate. If you use your voucher twice, we will find out, and we will invoice you for the overage or ban you. 

• Residential Addresses Only - Vouchers may only be used at residential addresses (owned or rented). No P.O. boxes, commercial addresses, or other non-residential properties will be accepted. It must be a residential address that has not been used this year already. This is because vouchers are limited to one per household per year. If you are with a commercial property, business, school, non-profit, etc. please check out our new Community Beyond Backyards Grant Program - which was created for non-residential sites. 

• No Expired Vouchers - Vouchers expire due to the popularity of the program and limited funding. If vouchers didn't expire, we wouldn't be able to keep the program open from spring to fall. The expiration date is listed directly on your voucher in red. We will not accept expired vouchers. We reserve the right to deny your rebate application if your voucher is expired at the time of submittal. 

• Surrender PHYSICAL, PAPER Voucher @ Immediate Vendors - If redeeming at an immediate discount vendor, you must surrender a PHYSICAL copy of your voucher to the vendor at the time of purchase in-store, or provide a physical copy at pickup if you ordered online. We have allowed emailed vouchers in the past and during COVID, trying to reduce contact and paper usage, but we have had issues with people not turning in their vouchers but saying they emailed them when they check out, or vendors misplacing them. To fix this, beginning in 2025, we are requiring everyone to turn in a printed physical copy of your voucher when you purchase in-store or when you pickup if ordering online. Absolutely no digital, emailed, electronic forms of vouchers will be accepted. If you do not have access to a printer, you can request your voucher to be mailed when you participate, or reach out to us for assistance.

• Receipt Requirements - You must provide a PRINTED and ITEMIZED receipt from a legitimate retailer or store. No exchanges between private parties will be accepted including but not limited to: Facebook, Craigslist, OfferUp, eBay, etc. Due to State Auditor regulations, we cannot accept handwritten receipts or any receipts that are not itemized or not from a legitimate retailer. If your receipt does not follow these standards, we will deny your reimbursement. This will be strictly enforced so we can keep this program going! 
  • Sometimes, you might go to a legitimate business but receive a handwritten receipt. If that happens, you MUST request an official INVOICE from the vendor if you want reimbursement through our program. Failure to provide an official invoice from the vendor will result in a denied rebate application. One common local business where this often happens is Natives In Harmony. Make sure to get an official invoice! 
  • Any re-sale or private/person-to-person marketplace purchases or exchanges will not be accepted. Examples are Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, eBay, OfferUp, etc. 

• Purchase Date - Item MUST be purchased in the CURRENT YEAR. If you participate in 2025, you must have purchased your item in 2025 (NOT a previous year). This is a State Auditor rule we have to follow in order to prevent fraud. It is ok if you purchase the item before you participate as long as it was purchased within the current calendar year. 

• Eligibility - You must be ELIGIBLE for the rebate item are you submitting. Whatever is listed directly on your voucher is exactly what you are eligible for. If it is not listed on your voucher, you are not eligible for it. Eligibility for rebates will vary based on your tax district and can change from year to year if you are a repeat participant. We have no control over what or how much rebate funding is available for each community - the municipality makes the final decision based on their available funding, and we then run the program. If you are not eligible for something and you submit it for reimbursement, we will NOT reimburse you for it because you are not eligible. No exceptions. 

• Rebate Item Requirements - If you are eligible for the rebate item, the item MUST FOLLOW THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THAT ITEM! 
  • Rain Barrels - Must have a FULLY CLOSED LID, A DIVERTER HOSE that is INSTALLED PROPERLY, SECURELY CONNECTED TO THE BARREL AND DOWNSPOUT and is LEVEL/STRAIGHT! We will NOT reimburse any direct downspouts or open tops. We will NOT reimburse any diverters that are not straight/level. This is to prevent overflow up against your home's foundation and mosquito breeding. We HIGHLY suggest the RainStation model by the EarthMinded aka EarthMark brand, but you MUST install the diverter level/straight as well. 
  • Native Plants - Must be planted in the ground (NO POTS!). No seeds, annuals, herbs, aquatics, vegetables or invasives (including any and all cultivars of an invasive species) will be reimbursed. Must be LIVE plants or bare roots - no seeds. Must include photos of plant tags or plant names in the comments of your rebate submission. Please choose NATIVE PLANTS for our native wildlife and pollinator before choosing non-native plants. 
  • Compost Bins - Must be rodent-proof (aka totally enclosed on all sides and top) per Public Health's recommendations to prevent rodent activity. Tumblers and worm bins are already rodent proof by design. Some on-the-ground compost bins are not rodent proof if they do not come with a bottom. If they do not have a bottom, you MUST add rodent proofing to the bottom in order to receive reimbursement. You can use hardware mesh or patio pavers to create a rodent proof bottom barrier, and you must also submit photo proof that the rodent proofing has been completed. Homemade compost bins or piles, bokashi bins, kitchen bins, or home composting services such as Compost Exchange are NOT ELIGIBLE for reimbursement.

• Columbus GreenSpot - All program participants will be invited to become a Columbus GreenSpot member via email. It is a FREE local program with resources and toolkits on how to go green at home - from reducing your water usage to improving your home's energy efficiency. You are free to decline if you wish, but you will miss out on great resources. 

Following these rules will speed up your reimbursement process and keep things moving as fast as possible. It saves you AND our tiny but mighty team time while protecting the integrity of our program!