Yesterday, in The Daily Wrag (Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers), President Tamara Copeland explored “What sequestration means for philanthropy:”

I want to focus on the hidden issues. Much of the impact connected to sequestration will be far less overt. The social worker in me says that as already stressed individuals deal with this reality, mental health-related incidents will also increase. There may be increased incidences of domestic violence, more emergency room visits and falling school performance as home environments become tense. Consider this article about the recession’s impact on our region’s mental health, written when our local economy was actually faring better than the rest of the country.

“The Recession’s ‘Silent Mental Health Epidemic,’ the October 2011 Business Insider article to which Copeland points, discusses a Rutgers University study of “the long-term unemployed,” which found that “32 percent were experiencing a good deal of stress” and “at least 11 percent reported seeking professional help for depression.” Moreover, many more did not have the insurance benefits or financial resources to seek such help, despite potentially needing it.

As Copeland suggests, while our region’s funders should of course ensure that basic needs are met, “it is critical that we keep in mind the less obvious needs [as] a failure to support those, particularly mental health care, can lead to dire consequences.” She also points out that, as much or more so than sequestration, tax reforms could have a critical and perhaps longer-term effect on the national and local nonprofit community.

What are your thoughts? What might be the more “hidden” effects of sequestration?

In speech, DC mayor pledges investment in affordable housing, other city programs (Washington Post): “A ‘prosperity dividend’ from the District’s continued economic growth should be used to make investments in key city government programs, Mayor Vincent C. Gray said in his annual State of the District address Tuesday.” In the third year of his term, Gray has his first opportunity to “pursue significant new spending — starting with a $100 million commitment to affordable housing.” Additionally, the mayor’s upcoming budget proposal “will include a $15 million ‘investment fund’ for city nonprofits. The fund would make competitive grants to groups involved in arts, job training, the environment, health and other areas.”

A Million Strong: Helping Them Through (New York Times: Education): “As often as not, they float in and out of college like nomads, juggling deployments, families and jobs. If they are in service, they take classes at night or on weekends, studying between combat patrols and 12-hour duty schedules [...] Some have physical injuries or mental health issues that can strain their ability to study.” Thus the questions arise: are veterans given the information that they need to make the best enrollment decisions, and then provided with the resources to complete the degree requirements? To answer them, federal agencies are “creating new metrics that reflect military and veteran students’ tendencies to attend multiple colleges and to take more than four to six years to graduate.”

Three Key Takeaways from Nielsen’s 2012 Social Media Report (Nonprofit Quarterly): “Social media is here to stay, and even as others catch up, Facebook remains miles ahead of the pack [...] If you want to go where the growth is, go mobile. Mobile technology really took root in 2012 with a whopping 120 percent increase in mobile app usage.” And of those surveyed, more than 50% shared their positive and negative reactions about brands over social media — implying that organizations that are not on Facebook or Twitter “could be missing out on helping your stakeholders understand or resolve issues or concerns.”

At rally, leaders promise action on affordable housing (Greater Greater Washington): “Over 300 people rallied for affordable housing this weekend with the Housing for All Campaign [...] The next few months will be critical for housing funding. The task force is scheduled to release its report in the next few weeks, and Mayor Gray will announce his housing plan.” Do you agree that affordable housing is poised to become “key political issue?”

Report: Current Approach To Strategic Philanthropy Is Limiting (The NonProfit Times): “The current top-down approach to strategic philanthropy limits its overall effectiveness,” according to a new study by the Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). Says NCRP Executive Director Aaron Dorfman, “All grantmakers want to maximize the impact of their grants [...] What they may not realize is that the missing piece in their grantmaking strategy is the social justice lens.” What do you think of the report’s central suggestions?

Free Tax Help Clinics Begin Friday (ARLnow): “Starting this Friday, Arlington County is holding free clinics to assist residents with tax preparation. The clinics are intended to serve residents with ‘low or moderate income.’” Several clinics list a maximum income for those interested in taking part; all clinics begin in February and run through April, with locations at public libraries, Department of Human Services, and ECDC Enterprise Development Group.

by Marie LeBlanc, Community Partnerships Coordinator

While many Americans across the county rang in New Year’s Day 2013 with pomp, circumstance, and auld lang syne, the United States Congress was (for once) hard at work — barely scraping through the passage of legislation that averted the dreaded “fiscal cliff.” However, is the danger really past? Various news outlets and media sources have been reporting on the “wins and losses”of the fiscal cliff bill, trying to help citizens make sense of it — and understand the real-world implications on their wallets this month and tax bills come April. Yesterday, the Nonprofit Quarterly’s Rick Cohen offered his take on the implications for nonprofits.

According to Cohen, changes made to charitable deductions and marginal tax rates (increasing only on households with annual incomes above $450,000) “constitutes an absolutely minimal touch on charitable contributions.” Due to various tax provisions, on everything from the expiration of the payroll tax “holiday,” to changes in capital gains and dividend income tax rates, the “fiscal cliff bill not only raises less revenues than the President’s proposal, but even less than Speaker Boehner’s Plan B.” However, many programs serving working class and lower income populations have been saved for now, including unemployment benefits and various tax credits on earned income, children, and renewable energy.

The specter of the cliff itself impacted municipal and county-level spending, even before emergency legislation was passed. According to the DC Fiscal Policy Institute, “the impact of the federal budget impasse on the District was felt 10 days before the New Year’s Eve fiscal cliff deal.” Despite signs of growth in the DC economy, instability in the federal budget prevents these signs from being fully recognized and providing the foundation needed for expanding, and even maintaining, levels of social spending. Programs for domestic violence, mental health, and educational enrichment have fallen victim to the budget gridlock.

Ultimately, Cohen offers this perspective on the budget solution, and its potential future impact:

The fiscal cliff isn’t just a matter of “saving” the maximum deductibility of charitable donations or avoiding the reinstatement of the arcane and minimal Pease amendment, but recognizing how dysfunctional the nation has become and how the communities’ nonprofits serve are the primary victims. If the focus of nonprofit advocates leaving shoe leather in the halls of the Capitol is simply on maximizing the value of the charitable deduction or, perhaps more accurately, maximizing the value of the deduction for ultra-wealthy tax itemizers, then the result, reflected in the fiscal cliff legislation and future bills to be addressed in the next couple of months, will be a truly pyrrhic victory for the communities nonprofits serve.

From “Editorial: Our Endorsement? Vote!” in The Nonprofit Quarterly:

We at the Nonprofit Quarterly take pride in being both opinionated and, in terms of political elections, nonpartisan. We don’t endorse or call for the rejection of candidates for public office [...] We will, however, tell you to vote, because if you don’t, you’re sacrificing your stake in the American political process. When you do, we hope you use your brains and tap your values as you check the boxes or pull the lever. [...] If you believe in democracy, no matter what ideological wing you represent, you have to do your duty and go to the polls on November 6th.

- Nonprofit VOTE offers an interative map with “up-to-date information from your state’s elections officials” on checking registration, finding your polling place, and more. And you can check out their “Election Day Toolbox” right here.

- Rock the Vote provides an interactive map as well and a guide to what to bring and what’s on each ballot; you also can sign up for text message reminders about elections.

Hospital Team Works To Keep Kids With HIV Healthy (WAMU): “In 2005, 6% of all babies in the United States born with HIV were from Washington, DC. But there’s been some progress; there hasn’t been a baby born with HIV in the District since 2009 because of better screening and medical advances. That’s because if a mother who’s HIV positive takes her medications regularly, there’s a less than 1% chance of the virus being transmitted. But it isn’t easy taking several pills every day, even as an adult.” As Dr. Lawrence D’Angelo reports, “… we have a lot of young people will end up succumbing to this illness, if not during their teenage years, certainly during their adult years, unless we can get them to be adherent to medications.” Similarly, educating at-risk teens about the transmission of HIV, and all sexually transmitted diseases, is both critical and challenging.

Baker moves to take a more active role in Prince George’s schools (Washington Post: Local): “With the 123,000-student system in search of a superintendent and a majority of seats on the school board up for election in the fall, [County Executive Rushern L.] Baker is positioning himself to take a greater role in county schools [...] Baker, who realizes that good schools are key to the county?s prosperity, has staked a lot on improving the school system, telling residents to “judge this administration” on what happens with the schools.” In general, the county executive has relatively little non-financial control over his region’s system — when compared, say, to the mayors of DC or Philadelphia — and not all constituents agree with his particular approach. For Baker, “improving schools [is] a key component of his economic development and overall agenda.”

What could DC do to encourage diversity in schools? (Greater Greater Washington): “If diversity is a worthwhile goal for DC schools, but the numbers are moving in the opposite direction, what could DC do?” In his final element of a four-part series, David Alpert (founder of GGW) argues that “there are essentially 2 ways to include out-of-boundary, poorer children in the most exclusive public schools: make the schools bigger, and entice some in-boundary families to go elsewhere.” For example, many of the cities most desirable magnet programs are located in the same geographical areas as those more exclusive schools — so could some of those programs be moved eastward? To repeat Alpert’s final question, “what steps do you think DC could take to foster diversity while also maintaining and even increasing the educational quality of its schools?” Start with part of the series here.

What’s Driving College Costs Higher? (WAMU): Just days before student loan rates are set to double for millions of Americans, President Obama and congressional leaders haven’t reached an agreement on legislation to keep those rates at 3.4 percent. The debate reflects the growing concern over the debt burden many take on to get a college education. About two-thirds of bachelor’s degree recipients borrow money to attend college, and collectively, student debt has topped $1 trillion [...] The average college senior in the U.S. now carries $25,000 in student loan debt at graduation. Those figures rise when graduate degrees are figured into the equation.” We’ve written about the briefing at the White House on College Affordability before and highlighted some of our nonprofits that are dedicated to college affordability. What needs to improve besides interest rates?

County officials, nonprofits fear domestic violence funding cut due to Congressional gridlock (Gazette): “Prince George’s County officials and advocates for domestic violence victims said they are worried that gridlock in Congress could jeopardize essential services to victims and their families [...] nonprofit and government organizations in Prince George’s County received $4 million in VAWA funding last year, through a total of 91 federal grants.” County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks says that “the largest impact will be to the outreach and support efforts for victims, particularly in the Latino community.” You can learn about, and support, nonprofits in Prince George’s right here.

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Social Ethics: A Peek Into 2012 (Huffington Post): “Business as usual is changing. Or at least the way business leaders think about philanthropy is changing. In an era of global connectivity and instant media, companies increasingly view philanthropic campaigns as an intrinsic component of a successful business strategy, rather than an external obligation [...] The field is growing and changing so rapidly that its boundaries are still being drawn.” The article also cites a 2011 report from the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy finds that corporate giving is on the rise again and that 53% of companies gave more in 2010 than they did prior to the recession.

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Objections to Reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act (WAMU: Diane Rehm Show): “The widely praised Violence Against Women Act faces a tough reauthorization battle. Though introduced in a bipartisan way, it passed the Senate Judiciary Committee on a party-line vote with all the Democrats voting to move it to the full Senate and all the Republicans voting against.” Terry O’Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, explains that the bill “as passed out of the Senate committee, recognizes the LGBT community [and] immigrant women who are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse;” but the bill does not include a “mandate for holding batterers accountable” or a reparations provision. 17 CFP nonprofits, including the DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence, focus particularly on girls and women and women; learn more right here.

President Obama’s Budget Request for the NEA: The Fine Print (Americans for the Arts blog): “We learned early that morning that President Obama is proposing an increase of $8 million (from $146M to $154M) for the NEA, which was a very positive start. In the past two years, NEA funding has dropped almost $22M and has yet to recover from the enormous cuts from its high of $176M in 1992. In particular, the budget of the Our Town program, which rewarded over half of its grants to communities of less than 200,000 in 2011, would increase from $5 million to $10 million. Two months ago, the NEA also announced Operation Homecoming, a partnership with the Department of Defense that will host “a new series of writing workshops for returning troops at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.”

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How Many Students Really Graduate From High School? (WAMU): “Now, for the first time, the federal government is requiring states to follow a standardized method. As a result, DC’s public school graduation rate could drop by about 20 percent under the new calculation, according to the office of the state superintendent [...] The new method, called the adjusted graduation cohort rate, requires states to follow every individual child from the ninth grade on until he or she walks across the stage to receive that diploma. It takes into account students who change schools and get held back.” A new State Longitudinal Education Database will track each DCPS student from kindergarten through 12th grade through a special identification number. Could a more accurate picture of graduation rates be a critical step towards improving them?

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