Nonprofit organizations face an uncertain future as they struggle with decreased government funding and increased competition from private businesses. They often have to adapt their missions to meet government priorities in order to receive funds, weakening their independence. Small nonprofits that do not receive government money struggle even more to survive. While civic engagement and new organizations offer some hope, nonprofits will continue struggling unless government funding is stabilized and their importance recognized.

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Emily Horn
Mrs. Corbett
10 November 2012
AP Lit
The Future of Nonprofit Organizations
"Those who cherish the independence of American philanthropy and the nonprofits it
supports actually have reason for worry," (Husock). Nonprofit organizations are in danger of
going extinct. Many of the larger organizations survive off of federal funds, and without those
federal funds, it is possible that they crumble. However, some smaller organizations survive
without the help of the government. These organizations face other difficulties as they struggle to
compete in the large business economy. Needed nonprofit organizations are in danger of
disappearing as they face the disadvantages of their attempts at helping the world and its people.
Nonprofit organizations often compete for federal funds to aid their causes. The Kennedy
Act offers large amounts of money to new programs.This causes the independent efforts to move
toward federal dollars and do as the government wants them to do rather than what they set out
to do (Husock). In order to get federal funds, organizations must do what the government wants
them to do. If the government finds a cause to be more important than the organization‟s
program, the organization must do the government‟s program or lose their funding. This defeats
the organization‟s purpose; however, in order to keep from going extinct, the organization will
bend over backwards for the government in order to keep the funds. If the government suddenly
decided to cut these funds for any reason, the organization would have a hard time keeping its
head above water.
The government is inefficient in their funding as well. More than fifty non-profit housing
organization volunteers have sought government funding and been denied because the

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government claims to either lack the funds or they lack interest in financing the already existing
construction. Instead the government prefers to fund new buildings("No Money
Available?(Letter to the Editor)," A6). The housing this government decides to support $3
million dollars to finance and holds housing for 77 people along with $8 million to buy 132 old
apartments. The nonprofit organization asks for $750,000 in order to house more than fifty
people. Instead of paying a logical amount to help the organization, the government ignored
them leaving these people to have to find new housing as their home is likely to be taken away
and destroyed to build housing for a few higher class people. This governmental lack of support
causes this organization to become endangered. Without the government funding, likeliness of
survive is low.
"With the recent emphasis on deregulation and ''privatization'' of health care and other
public service activities, there has been an influx of investor-owned companies,"("Non-Profit
Groups.(Financial Desk)(Letter to the Editor)," NA).These companies work off their own
investments rather than depending on the government for aid. Nonprofit organizations have to
adapt to the competitive environments of the business world in order to avoid being taken out by
larger corporations.They have a little support from the government through their tax exemptions,
but this is not enough. “The tax exemption granted to non-profits is a means of recognizing that
they return surplus revenues to the community in the form of additional services,”("Non-Profit
Groups.(Financial Desk)(Letter to the Editor)," NA). Nonprofits don not try to use their tax
exemptions to go against local small businesses. They constantly need new funds to make up for
recessions in the Federal funding. Their tax exemptions contribute a small relief from their lack
of access to needed funds. It is a constant battle for them to keep the funds needed to continue
their projects.

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The government has also created multiple projects seen as useless and ineffective.
Different nonprofit organizations have tried to right the government‟s ineffective projects by
creating their own; however, they soon discover the difficulty of finding funds. It does not take
them long to figure out that a good cause is not always enough. Upwardly Global is an
organization that saw government programs putting skilled immigrants in low class jobs. This
organization now finds positions that allowed the immigrants to use their skills and reach their
full potential. Another organization, Boston-based Year Up, works to replace “outdated
government job-training programs with technical education and corporate apprenticeships for
urban young adults,” (Husock). These are just a few examples of the organizations that fight to
correct the government‟s programs. However, the government has more power than any one
organization, and government funds often persuade organizations to run the way the government
wants them to run.
A study asked the question “do Christian nonprofits receiving government funding differ
in how they express their religious identity compared to those that do not receive public funds?”
and got the answer,“Government-funded nonprofits were less likely to use religious keywords
when expressing their identity and the religiosity they do express is more inclusive and
„„spiritually‟‟ focused,” (Scheitle 816-833). The government funds even affect Christian
nonprofits. The idea of separation of church and state most likely plays a part in this. In order to
keep government funding, Christian organizations have to quiet their beliefs. This is just one
theory. It is possible that the Christianity of the organization is corrupted by government funding
as many people can be corrupted by wealth. There are many theories to how this result came to
be. Christian organizations who do not receive government funding tend to speak their religion

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louder. They are very open about their beliefs and make them known to the community. The
government funding somehow has the power to corrupt this open faith.
“Funding is one of the primary aspects of government-nonprofit relations. Government
grants andfees-for-services comprised 29.4% of nonprofit revenues in2005,” (Vaughan 486-512).
In 2008 it was discovered that 61% of nonprofits organizations had experienced cuts in their
funding. This is frightening for the nonprofits that rely heavily on the government for funding. If
they continue to lose funding they will be unable to support themselves and will eventually fall
apart and become extinct.
This problem lacks a true solution; however, as long as people continue to support
nonprofit organizations there is a chance for them. In order to keep this profession going, the
government needs to be made aware of the importance of the organizations and the needs of the
people. Along with getting the government‟s attention, people need to continue to support and
create nonprofit organizations. Even if all the organizations do not flourish, the persistence
behind the effort will drive others to try as well. This is the only possible solution to keep the
organizations alive.
The outlook for nonprofit organizations is grim. With government funding being cut and
nonprofit organizations having to fight to get the revenue they need in order to continue their
projects, it is not likely that many will survive. Even Christian organizations have quieted their
beliefs as they fight to survive. They bend to every will of the government in order to keep the
funds even if they disagree with the methods. However, there is still a chance as new
organizations enter into the mix supporting themselves and finding their own funds in order to do
what they feel is right. It is this hope and determination that allows nonprofit organizations to

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survive through even the toughest of times. Nonprofit organizations still have a chance in the
future.

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Works Cited
Husock, Howard. "Eating from the Hand That Bites You."Wall Street Journal.N.p.: n.p., 2009.
N. pag.Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 8 Nov. 2012.
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action=2&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CEJ3010749228&userGroupName=cant48040&jsid=
4484ad67b3f60218943307c0e2e4b439>.
"No Money Available?(Letter to the Editor)." 21 Apr. 1986: A6. Global Issues In Context. Web.
7 Nov. 2012.
<http://find.galegroup.com/gic/infomark.do?&source=gale&idigest=b527955b5caccdb4b4a2d40
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e=retrieve&contentSet=IAC-Documents&version=1.0>.
"Non-Profit Groups.(Financial Desk)(Letter to the Editor)." 30 June 1985: NA. Global Issues In
Context. Web. 7 Nov. 2012.
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e86fe061a&prodId=GIC&userGroupName=cant48040&tabID=T006&docId=A176548692&typ
e=retrieve&contentSet=IAC-Documents&version=1.0>.
Scheitle, Christopher P. "Identity and Government Funding in Christian Nonprofits." Social
Science Quarterly (Blackwell Publishing Limited) 90.4 (2009): 816-33. Academic Search
Complete.Web. 8 Nov. 2012. <http://proxygsu-
sche.galileo.usg.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN
=44628353&site=ehost-live>.

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Vaughan, Shannon K. "The Importance of Performance Assessment in Local Government
Decisions to Fund Health and Human Services Nonprofit Organizations." Journal of Health &
Human Services Administration 32.4 (2010): 486-512. Academic Search Complete.Web. 8 Nov.
2012. <http://proxygsu-
sche.galileo.usg.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN
=51701768&site=ehost-live>.