Hello Nonprofit Leaders and Supporters, |
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I hope you are enjoying the continued sunshine!
This week, our entire NAO team was able to come back into the office – it was wonderful to gather as a full staff for the first time in over a year! Being all together in our office has been a nice reminder that while technology has provided a way for us all to work remotely, attend events, and connect with colleagues all over the world – nothing will replace the ability to meet in person to collaborate and connect.
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I’m excited to announce that NAO’s 2021 Compensation and Benefits report is now available! Within this report, you’ll find a treasure trove of information about compensation and benefits across the state and sector. This data was collected from 230 charitable nonprofits throughout Oregon and is intended to provide nonprofits with an essential tool to assist in creating or updating compensation and benefits policies and practices. This year's report is especially important when thinking about how to move forward after such a turbulent and difficult 2020. Our Compensation and Benefits Report is a valuable resource for nonprofit organizations of all sizes – I encourage you all to purchase a copy and use it as a guide to help your leadership make informed strategic decisions. |
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Please be sure to read the Federal section below for information about how you can sign onto the letter to Senator Wyden to advocate for the IRA Legacy Act. This initiative is being led by the American Heart Association (AHA) with the support of our friends at Independent Sector.
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Stay healthy and be safe,
Jim White
NAO Executive Director
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Northwest Health Foundation is excited to announce their first ever Narrative Fellowship! This fellowship will bring together 2-3 staff members – at least one of whom has organizational or programmatic decision-making power – from 11 organizations in the Pacific Northwest. Over the course of this six-month program, participants will develop long-term strategic communications skills, dust off best practices, and strengthen their ability to change common sense. Please visit their website to learn more about this opportunity. In addition to all of the information available online, they are hosting an informational webinar about the Narrative Fellowship on June 16 – we hope that you are able to attend!
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At the State Level
Two Bills Curbing Camping Regulations On Public Lands Pass In The Legislature
House Bill 3124 requires local governments to provide at least three days’ notice before clearing houseless camps – the current law only requires a 24-hour written notice. In addition to extending the notice period by two days, the local government will be mandated to collect valuables left at a cleared campsite and store them for at least 30 days at a facility within the same community from which they were collected. If items go uncollected, they can be donated to charity.
House Bill 3115 sets state restrictions on how cities can enforce anti-camping laws. This bill requires local governments to adopt policies around houseless camps that are considered “objectively reasonable” when regulating how and where people can live outdoors. House Bill 3115 forces local governments to officially change any language that does not follow the 2018 decision set by the 9th Circuit of Appeals which decriminalized houseless camping when shelter beds are unavailable. However, since this court decision does not clarify which public lands the houseless are allowed to camp on, some cities have worked around this ruling by enforcing “no camping” laws on some public land. House Bill 3115 would rewrite all local laws to allow the houseless to sleep, sit, and keep warm and dry on public property in most circumstances.
NAO is reaching out to discuss these new laws with nonprofit leaders throughout the sector to learn more about the impact these policies could have on nonprofit organizations throughout the state.
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At the Federal Level
Senate Finance Committee Chairman, Ron Wyden (D-OR) is expected to bring up a retirement proposal later this summer, and we are advocating that the Legacy IRA Act will be included. The Legacy IRA Act would be a small piece of the retirement package but could raise significant amounts for the sector, as seniors typically make up more than 40% of the donor base for charities. The American Heart Association is leading a letter addressed to Senator Wyden to show the support the Legacy IRA Act has in Oregon. NAO has put our support behind this bill and signed on. We are asking state and local organizations in Oregon or national groups with Oregon branches/affiliates to sign onto this letter.
You can find the organizational sign-on letter here and you can sign on by filling out this form by Friday, June 25. Please note that you may have to sign up for a free Google account to access this form. For more background information including a list of the 55+ endorsing charities, please see the FAQ sheet here. If you have any questions, feel free to contact AHA’s advocacy lead Emily Horowitz at Emily.horowitz@heart.org or Sally Schaeffer at sally@uncorkedadvocates.com.
Infrastructure Bill Negotiations
The formal White House-Republican negotiations over infrastructure legislation collapsed this week. The Washington Post summarized the situation saying: “President Biden and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) ended negotiations over the president’s infrastructure package on Tuesday as the two sides failed to strike a deal after weeks of talks.” This result was expected; the two sides are $700 billion apart. The full WaPo story can be found here: White House infrastructure talks with Capito collapse, leading to finger-pointing as Biden shifts strategy.
Twenty moderate Senators – 10 Democrats and 10 Republicans – are working to put together a new $900 billion infrastructure package to build roads, bridges, tunnels, ports, and perhaps provide greater broadband access. Leading the bipartisan group are Senators Manchin (D-WV), Portman (R-OH), Romney (R-UT), and Sinema (D-AZ). The overarching challenge of how to pay for the package remains. Republican moderates like Senator Romney have suggested “repurposing” or clawing back COVID-relief funds. The White House continues to push tax hikes or international tax revenue raisers. Each proposal is anathema to the other side.
Donor Advised Funds Under Scrutiny
The Accelerating Charitable Efforts Act (ACE Act) was introduced yesterday by Senators King (I-ME) and Grassley (R-IA). The bill would impose mandates and restrictions on Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) and private foundations. According to the Senators’ news release, the “ACE Act would reform private foundations, ensure DAFs make resources available to working charities in reasonable period of time.” The sponsors explain that the bill would:
- Replace existing DAFs with two new types:
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15-year DAFs: Those under which a donor would get immediate tax benefits (as under current law), but only if DAF funds are distributed (or advisory privileges are released) within 15 years of the donation.
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50-Year DAFs: As an alternative, donors who want more than 15 years to distribute their DAF funds would be allowed to elect an “aligned benefit rule” under which the donor would continue to receive capital gains and estate tax benefits upon donation, but would not receive the income tax deduction until the donated funds are distributed to the charitable recipient. All funds would be required to be distributed outright to charitable organizations no later than 50 years after their donation.
- Provide special rules for community foundations:
- The ACE Act would allow donors to hold up to $1 million in DAF funds at any community foundation without being subject to the proposed payout rules.
- For amounts over $1 million, a donor could still receive up-front tax benefits if the DAF requires a five percent annual payout or if donations must be distributed within 15 years of contribution.
- Restrict private foundation spending practices by preventing them from meeting their five-percent payout obligations through salaries or travel expenses to a donor’s family members, or through distributions to DAFs.
Those that support the act say that it will ensure the over $140 billion currently set aside for future charitable gifts would be distributed within reasonable timeframes and providing incentives to speed up donation timelines.
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Funding Opportunities
Funding Opportunity for Rural Nonprofits – Application now open
As we noted last month, USDA Rural Development issued a Funding Opportunity Announcement for the Rural Decentralized Water Systems Grant, which provides seed funds to allow nonprofits to set up revolving loan funds (RLFs) for eligible individuals who own and occupy a home in an eligible rural area rural areas and towns. This grant application is now open and can be found here.
Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) is hosting an Office Hour/Webinar on June 15 at 11 a.m. to discuss how to write a strong proposal for their open Recovery, Rebuilding, and Resiliency grants from their Community Rebuilding Fund. These sessions are incredibly helpful and often instrumental in writing a competitive grant proposal, we hope all who are planning on applying are able to attend!
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Upcoming Online Sessions
NAO offers practical, affordable learning and convening programs in a variety of formats, including conferences, resource round-ups, informational sessions and mini-workshops through webinars, and deeper-dive learning through virtual learning cohorts. Please scroll through and sign-up today!
Webinar Sessions
Building Inclusive Teams and Mitigating Structural Bias
Tuesday, June 15, 10 – 11:30 a.m. PT | Presenter: Gerardo Ochoa, Linfield University
As the demographics of our communities continue to change, organizations are striving to reflect the communities they serve. This interactive session focuses on how the implicit attitudes, behaviors, policies, and practices may influence how we engage with individuals and/or groups and make decisions in the workplace. More details and registration information here.
Nonprofit Board Treasurer Training – Understanding Your Responsibilities and Creating Strong Financial Stewardship Processes
Thursday, June 17, 10 – 11 a.m. PT | Presenters: Erin Zollenkopf, Susan Matlack Jones & Associates and David Atkin, Center for Nonprofit Law
Are you the Treasurer, or interested in becoming the Treasurer, of a nonprofit organization’s board? Join us for this interactive session that will provide a framework of knowledge for how you can best serve your organization’s needs as a financial steward. Participants can expect to understand the roles and duties, legal and otherwise, of the Treasurer position; learn how to engage board, staff and committees in creating financial oversight and controls; and review compliance procedures, including payroll tax, donor restrictions and federal and state tax reporting requirements. More details and registration information here.
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Thank you to the following SUPPORTERS and SPONSORS who are supporting NAO’s online events and communications during these challenging times. Their support is vital in helping NAO to bring much-needed resources and information to Oregon’s nonprofits – thank you. |
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FRIEND PLUS PARTNER SPONSORS |
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FOLLOW NAO ON SOCIAL MEDIA |
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