Nonprofit Federal Grant Survey - Data

Top 5 Takeaways:

1. A large portion of the sector could have their funding jeopardized if a federal grant freeze is enacted. 

• 80% of Respondents believed their organization could be impacted by federal grant freezes. (55% “Yes”, 25% “Unsure”) 

2. Grants are sourced from a variety of federal agencies and federally funded programs. There is not one primary source of funding from the federal government coming into South Carolina in terms of impact. 

• Respondents identified around twenty (20) federal funding sources they rely on for their work, ranging from the US Department of Education to Council of Government block funding. 

3. Nonprofits rely on federal funding for a large spectrum of needs, ranging from small to mission critical. 

• Grants identified were valued between $3,500 and $30 million. 

4. There is a lot of funding at stake. Over $200 million in federal grant funding was identified by just 10% of Together SC’s membership. Together SC has around 1,000 members, and the state of South Carolina has over 10,000 registered nonprofits.  

• Respondents have received around $159 million in federal funding. 

• They also listed $76 million in potential awards (applied, not yet awarded). 

• Total: $235 million at risk of being impacted by OMB’s January 27 Memo calling for full freeze of federal grant funding. 

5. There are strong negative impacts to individuals and communities if a funding freeze is put into place. 

• Respondents referenced potential job cuts, a reduction in clients able to be served, entire programs being cut, and even the future of the entire organization – all in question should a federal freeze on grants be put in place.

What’s Next?