After Congress passed a measure last month to keep the US government funded, nonprofits in Delaware are figuring out the current landscape - and looking to an uncertain future as more funding cuts loom and federal workers are being fired by the thousands.
When Congress narrowly passed a continuing resolution to fund the government last month, that measure did not have the congressionally-directed spending, or earmarks, that the budget rejected by Congress had.
“Because they didn't pass that budget, that money goes away, and that impacts nonprofits that were planning to use that funding, either for new programming initiatives or capital initiatives," says Sheila Bravo, the President and CEO of DANA, the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement.
That funding resolution is just one thing contributing to the shifting landscape facing nonprofits, however. Bravo says organizations are looking apprehensively at the next budget facing Congress, which could have up to $2 trillion in cuts.
“Especially as we move forward with the fiscal 2026 budget that Congress will be focusing on now, because if they have an October 1st fiscal year, that's where we're going to begin to see the impacts," she says.
In addition to budget cuts, however, the mass firings of federal employees spearheaded by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency are also affecting nonprofits.
“Even if your grant is still active, you may not be able to get somebody else on the phone to ask a question," Bravo says.
Federal funding cuts from a variety of agencies have already begun to hit home in the First State, with widely-reported cuts being seen at the Food Bank of Delaware and CLASI, a housing advocacy group.
As federal funding looks increasingly shaky, other sources of funding and support are doing their best to fill the void.
State lawmakers in the Newark area held a donation drive for the Food Bank of Delaware on Tuesday, while Milford-area lawmakers hold a similar event on Thursday.
And the Delaware Community Foundation on Tuesday opened up applications for a total of $600,000 in grant funding, up to $50,000 per organization through their Verino and Midge Pettinaro Charitable Fund. Applications will open soon for the first round of funding, with another application period expected in August.
DANA's Bravo says her organization has been working to provide information and resources to nonprofits, including help with contingency planning, something DANA developed during the COVID pandemic.
Note: DANA does provide some underwriting support to Delaware Public Media
