Latest Releases from the Field - July 2018

Check out the latest releases from around the nonprofit sector featuring items from National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy.

Complete Count Committee Guide 
US Census Bureau 
This guide has just been released and answers questions on why we take the census, how census data are used, and confidentiality. It also provides a thorough report on Complete Count Committees, including what they are, when they should organize, and their overall benefits.

2018 KIDS COUNT Data Book
Annie E. Casey Foundation
The Annie E. Casey Foundation has released its 2018 KIDS COUNT Data Book, the latest edition of its state trends in child well-being research. The report warns that the 2020 census is mired in challenges that could shortchange the official census count by at least 1 million kids younger than age 5. This discrepancy would put hundreds of millions of federal dollars at risk and, in doing so, underfund programs that are critical for family stability and opportunity. It also looks at trends in child well-being during a period that saw continued improvement in economic well-being but mixed results in the areas of health, education and family and community factors.

As the South Grows: So Grows the Nation
National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy
The fifth and final report in NCRP's As The South Grows series presents a roadmap for funders to invest fairly and effectively in Southerners on the frontlines of change. Within the report you’ll find a blueprint to reckon with shared history, take meaningful risks, and leverage existing Southern work; a tip sheet for organizing philanthropic peers to invest equitably in the South; and new data on grantmaking for diverse communities and structural change strategies in every Southern state.

Philanthropic Strategies to Support Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees
This report profiles 10 donors’ diverse approaches and strategies to supporting refugees and asylum seekers, and offers key lessons gleaned from their experience. These profiles are designed to provide a roadmap for supporting refugees, asylum seekers and unaccompanied children seeking protection in the United States and abroad. It highlights donors who assist these populations through the prism of education, workforce, economic development, capacity development or legal services.

Recommendations for Funders Building Power
Funders' Committee for Civic Participation
From January - May 2018, FCCP’s Power Impact Team examined what it takes to build power. The Team presents the following recommendations as a work-in-progress​ set of values and ideas for how funders can best resource power-building over the long-term to realize their institutional goals. These are intended for funders supporting or interested in supporting building community power and for funders who see power as a necessary component to policy wins.

Building Power Across the Impact Investment Field
Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation
While demand for impact investing and social justice grantmaking has grown, gaps in documentation and accountability have left investors with few tools to navigate the field. This report highlights findings from the foundation's seven-month-long search for a mission-driven investment advisor as part of an effort to better align its endowment with its social justice mission. Based on thirty-four responses from impact investment advisors to the foundation's call for LOIs, the study found a broad spectrum of advisory services with wide-ranging definitions of and approaches to the field.

Charitable Giving and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
American Enterprise Institute 
This paper investigates how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act affects household charitable giving in the United States. AEI finds that the law will reduce charitable giving by $17.2 billion (4.0 percent) in 2018 according to a static model and $16.3 billion assuming a modest boost to growth. Four-fifths of this decline is driven by an increase in the number of taxpayers who claim the standard deduction. AEI also investigates two policy options that could boost total giving above previous levels: an above-the-line deduction and a tax credit.

CRM Integration for Nonprofits
Idealware
Nonprofits interact with a lot of people, from program participants to donors to volunteers to board members. A good Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) solution lets you track and analyze those relationships in meaningful ways. But if your broadcast email, fundraising software, volunteer databases, and all the other systems you use to interact with constituents aren’t sharing relevant data with your CRM, are you sure you have an accurate picture? CRM Integration is the process of connecting those systems so they can pass data back and forth, giving your staff a more holistic view of your organization’s interactions that can improve fundraising, outreach, program delivery, and reporting. This new publication explains why you should integrate, what systems you should include and how to plan for a smooth, successful integration project. 

Cross-Border Philanthropy and Counterterrorism Regulations: Guidance for U.S. Grantmakers
GuideStar
If your private foundation, donor-advised fund or corporation supports non-U.S. organizations, a number of regulations exist to prevent the transfer of charitable funds to terrorist organizations or activities. Failure to comply with all of them can have severe consequences, including adverse publicity, damage to your foundation or company’s reputation, asset freezing, civil penalties, loss of 501(c)(3) status, and even criminal prosecution. This report examines the relevant regulations and U.S. agencies responsible for enforcing them; discusses the consequences of noncompliance; offers recommendations on how best to reduce the risks of diverting funds; and identifies key resources to help grantmakers stay on the right side of anti-terrorism laws.

Funding the News: Foundations and Nonprofit Media
Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and Northeastern University’s School of Journalism
This report examines $1.8 billion in grants made in the name of journalism by more than 6,500 foundations from 2010 through 2015. Key findings include only about 20 percent of those dollars directly supported digital news nonprofits, and only a quarter of that went to organizations operating at the local or state level. By contrast, foundations dedicated a third of the funding to college journalism programs, research, technology development, legal support, and other ancillary efforts.

Philanthropy Field Guides
J.P. Morgan
The philanthropy field guides are designed to help philanthropists develop actionable giving strategies and to connect with ongoing efforts. Each guide, created by Geneva Global in partnership with The Philanthropy Centre at J.P. Morgan, defines a particular issue, explores its global trends and provides useful resources. Topics include poverty alleviation, the global refugee crisis, climate change and conservation, and women and girls.