As we blogged on earlier, reliance on government funding is very risky for nonprofits, and causes them to either curtail whatever private fundraising from individual donors they have been doing, or in more cases than not, they don’t do any at all.
Every year about 80% of all philanthropy comes from individuals and considering that last year about $300 billion was donated, it is obviously the deepest pool of generosity nonprofits need to reach out to, especially smaller organizations.
This article from Pennsylvania reveals the tragedy striking human service nonprofits in that state that are too reliant on government funding.
An excerpt.
“More than half of the midstate's human-service agencies are still feeling the financial impact of last year's state budget impasse.
“Last year, human-service agencies throughout Pennsylvania went almost four months without state aid during the standoff. From July 1 through Oct. 9, state money for day cares, drug and alcohol treatment services, emergency shelters, food banks and more was held up while Gov. Ed Rendell and state lawmakers fought over taxes and spending.
“A statewide survey of nearly 350 agencies conducted by the United Way of Pennsylvania indicates that the impasse hurt social-service agencies at precisely the time when more residents were turning to them for help. Some are still recovering.”
About
- David H. Lukenbill
- I am a California native, married, we have one daughter and live close to the American River with two cats and all the wild critters we can feed. I am a management consultant to nonprofit organizations and have an Associates of Arts degree in Administration of Justice from Sacramento City College, a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Behavior from the University of San Francisco and a Master of Public Administration degree, also from the University of San Francisco.