People have only two weeks left to nominate their favorite community-centric corporations for Washington’s highest civics award.

Secretary of State Sam Reed is reminding the public that Aug. 31 is the deadline to nominate businesses for a Corporations for Communities Award.

Reed launched the Corporations for Communities program in 2009 as a way to recognize exceptional Washington businesses that demonstrate a commitment to giving in order to improve local or regional social and environmental conditions. Each year, Reed selects one large and one small corporation from among the public nominations to receive a National Association of Secretaries of State Medallion, which is the highest civics honor awarded by the state.

“This is an opportunity to encourage standout corporations that are choosing to make their community a priority,” said Reed. “Particularly in these tough economic times, it’s important to cheer on businesses that are going above and beyond to make a difference in Washington.”

In 2010, GLY Construction in Bellevue and Dissmore’s Foods in Pullman were picked from a statewide pool of nominees as Corporations for Communities Award recipients. Winners for the 2011 Awards cycle will be announced in September.

Anyone is able to nominate businesses for this honor. Any size for-profit corporation, Limited Liability Company (LLC), or Limited Partnership is eligible. The nominee must be registered with the Office of the Secretary of State and be in compliance with state and federal laws.

Nomination forms are available on the Secretary of State’s Web site at http://www.sos.wa.gov/corps.