Mn Council Of Nonprofits

Minnesota's nonprofits feel the pain of government shutdown

"We need the agency with whom we have that contract to say, 'Yes, you perform, we will pay.' They did not say that,'' explains Kathleen Corley, interim executive director of Minnesota AIDS Project, which has service contracts with the state Department of Human Services and the Department of Health.

In fact, Mikkel Beckmen says his agency, St. Stephen's Human Services in Minneapolis, received letters from various state departments last month "basically saying" they could not guarantee reimbursement for any services provided during the shutdown. Cash reserves and lines of credit help cover expenses for July, St. Stephen's executive director says, but if the government impasse continues beyond that, the agency will be "hard-pressed" to cover the costs of providing emergency shelter, short- and long-term rental assistance and outreach services to the homeless. He's been told some rental assistance funds will be available from Minnesota Housing.   

Questions and confusion remain despite Ramsey District Court Chief Judge Kathleen Gearin's ruling last week aimed at clarifying an extremely complex situation. Under that declaration payouts from federal assistance programs such as Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families would continue that "ensure the health safety and welfare of Minnesota citizens" as would "critical core government functions" such as "basic custodial care" of nursing home residents and those in state correctional facilities. Tuesday, a stream of folks representing nonprofits like the Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center and Lutheran Social Services argued before former Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz, the special master in the shutdown case, that state coffers should stay open to them, according to Jeannie Fox, deputy public policy director for the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.

Minnesota's Troubles Take Toll on Charities - State Watch - The ...

“Minnesota’s budget deadlock reflects a national deadlock over the role of government and how it should be funded,” Mr. Pratt says. “Nonprofits are hurt by the lack of compromise.”

While the strain on nonprofits is growing clearer every day, few groups will collapse because of the shutdown unless it goes on beyond a few weeks, says Mr. Pratt.

“Most groups have enough to get through this week or even July,” he says. But “only about a quarter of our charities have deep enough reserves to get through more than a month or six weeks without a problem,” he says.

Even so, Mr. Pratt says he keeps hearing about groups facing short-term problems.

On Thursday, he heard of a domestic-violence shelter in western Minnesota that is sending its clients across the line to North Dakota for help. On Wednesday, the Minneapolis Urban League laid off 42 people, about half of its work force.

Read more about the challenges facing Minnesota leaders—and how they are coping.

Minnesota nonprofit survey, factors in executive director compensation, summary of results : report to the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits

National foundations 2001 factbook

Minnesota philanthropy and disadvantaged people supplemtary tables

Nonprofit Management, Principles and Practice

Voluntary Regulation of NGOs and Nonprofits, An Accountability Club Framework