Programs and Convenings

SCG offers informative programming on policy issues impacting the philanthropic sector, actively connects funders to key players in the public sector and promotes opportunities for cross-sector collaboration. SCG hosted a series of funder convenings with Aileen Adams, deputy mayor at the Office for Strategic Partnership, housed in the City of Los Angeles Mayor's office, at which the deputy mayor met with foundation CEOs and corporate grantmakers to examine how the public, philanthropic and corporate sectors can work together more effectively. SCG has also hosted interactive discussions with California State Assembly Speaker Karen Bass and other regional and local policymakers.

Resources

Update: Nonprofits at Risk of Losing Tax Exempt Status

Beginning May 17, many nonprofit organizations will begin to lose their tax exempt status. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 requires all nonprofit organizations with revenues under $25,000 to file an eCard registration with the IRS within three years or lose their tax exempt status.

The National Center for Charitable Statistics at the Urban Institute has provided a search portal to check the IRS revocation status of nonprofit organizations in California. Nonprofits can complete an eCard, a simple, one-page online return form, on the IRS website.

Funding Public Policy

Applying Policy Tools to Achieve Long-Term Change
W.K. Kellogg Foundation

California Counts! A Funder's Guide to the 2010 Census
Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network

Foundations on the Hill
Giving Forum

Funding Voter Education, Voter Registration, and Get-Out-The-Vote Efforts (GOTV) of Public Charities
Northern California Grantmakers

Government and Policy News
The Chronicle of Philanthropy

How to Engage in Public Policy
Northern California Grantmakers

Nonprofits Count! Mobilizing Communities for the 2010 Census
Nonprofits Count!, a project of the Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network 

Research and Policy
Corporation for National & Community Service

Shape Public Policy
Independent Sector

Social Innovation Fund
Corporation for National and Community Service

Why Fund Public Policy
Northern California Grantmakers

Sacramento and the California Budget Crisis

How the Other Half Fared: The Impact of the Great Recession on Women
The Women's Foundation of California partnered with the California Budget Project to develop this policy brief on how the recession and budget cuts have impacted women and their families in California.

Governor Releases May Revision to the 2010-11 Budget Cuts
A new California Budget Project analysis provides a summary of key provisions of the Governor's May revision.In the

Midst of the Great Recession: The State of Working California 2009
A new California Budget Project report finds that the current recession stands apart from prior downturns for both the depth and breadth of job losses.

Uncharted Waters: Navigating the Social and Economic Context of California's Budget
A California Budget Project analysis examines the impact of recent economic and demographic trends on the budget, and what the recent budget agreement means for California.

What Does the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Mean for California?
A California Budget Project analysis examines the impact of the federal economic recovery package on the state.

New Fiscal Year Brings No Relief From Unprecedented State Budget Problems
The unprecedented state fiscal problems brought on by the worst decline in tax receipts in decades show no signs of letting up. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities' most recent survey of state fiscal conditions found many signs of the depth of the state budget crisis.

Federal Government

Making Government Work: Pursuing a More Open and Accountable Government that Promotes Fairness and Equity: 2009 Annual Report
OMB Watch

Progressive Growth: Transforming America’s Economy through Clean Energy, Innovation, and Opportunity
The Center for American Progress

Proposed Charity-Compensation and Governance Amendments Put on Hold
According to an article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Sen. Charles E. Grassley, the senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, did not pursue votes on two amendments that he proposed to the committee’s health-care bill affecting executive compensation and governance at charities.

Government and Politics Watch
The Chronicle of Philanthropy provides a variety of articles about policy relating to philanthropy.

Race to the Top: What Funders Can Learn From the First Round
This Foundation Center study examines the foundation community's lessons learned in providing critical financial and technical support to states applying for the first round of the U.S. Department of Education's "Race to the Top" education reform competition.