Whether it's daycare slots, helping the elderly age in place, mental health concerns or dozens of other social programs, nonprofits in Connecticut do the bulk of the work to provide these services.
With soaring inflation in recent years and flat funding from the state, many are begging for more resources right now.
And with a fat rainy day fund and more surpluses projected in the state budget, they say now is the time Connecticut can afford to do more for them.
NBC Connecticut's Mike Hydeck spoke with CEO of the Connecticut Nonprofit Alliance Gian-Carlo Casa.
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Mike Hydeck: Look, you've worked, we were just talking about it before we came on air. You've worked for the State Office of Policy and Management, Connecticut Conference of Municipalities. You've seen a lot of sides of how money flows through our state. What's the biggest challenge facing nonprofits right now?
Gian-Carl Casa: It is funding. Nonprofits have lost 30% of their buying power since 2007. So there is nobody, no entity, no person who can do the same amount of work with 30% less buying power than they had almost 20 years ago, let alone organizations like nonprofits, which have seen increasing demands, had to deal with COVID, etc.
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Mike Hydeck: Right. So that includes just paying to get the lights on, much less hiring a counselor or a nurse to go to one of those services. So when you have, though, programs like Medicaid, community colleges, special needs programs, and schools are a big drain on local budgets as well. How do you suggest the state start to prioritize here? This is a big list, right?
Gian-Carl Casa: Yeah, you know, nonprofits have, took the hits when the state had difficult budget years, because they're in the half of the budget that is susceptible to hits. And so now it's time for the state to make up for it. The state's run surpluses of over a billion dollars for many of the last several years. That money should be made available for helping people today. We understand that the so-called fiscal guardrails have been put into place, and that those are, right now, have been paying down the state's long-term liabilities. But what we say is, look, if you had a family and the family was having trouble putting food on the table and paying its mortgage, it would do both. It would pay the mortgage and put food on the table. We're asking the state to strike the same kind of balance, to pay down the pension debts as the guardrails have been doing, but also to take care of problems that are here today.
Mike Hydeck: So this is a problem, as you said, since 2007 and years subsequently. How do you start attacking it from your side, right? So you see that the numbers add up. How do you change hearts and minds to get it done?
Gian-Carl Casa: You know, I think that our members have terrific stories to tell. Sad stories often about people who need help and have gotten it, but they also can tell a lot of stories about people who are not getting it. So for instance, there are about 2,000 people on a waiting list for services provided by nonprofits that work with people who have developmental disabilities. Those 2,000 people aren't getting services.
Mike Hydeck: And other things like job training or even healthcare services.
Gian-Carl Casa: Sure. Substance abuse treatment, for instance. You can't really ask somebody who needs substance abuse treatment to say, well, you know, we're saving money for the future. Let's wait till then.
Mike Hydeck: So you have Democrats calling for change in spending caps. If more funding could be provided, is it going to mean there is a meaningful difference here? Is it going to be incremental, do you think?
Gian-Carl Casa: Well, let's hope it's a meaningful difference. The state has increased funding to nonprofits the last few years, but that has only essentially let them keep up with inflation the last few years, and they were 30% behind in 2021. They are 30% behind in terms of buying power today.
Mike Hydeck: Now, some of the Democrats in the state, many of the Democrats in the state legislature, are on your side. We need to adjust the caps. Have you had any meaningful conversations with either the governor or Republicans who disagree? Those are some of the hearts and minds you have to change, right?
Gian-Carl Casa: Yeah, we talked to the governor's office. We've written to the governor himself. They understand our position. We've talked to Republicans, made the case to them as well that, you know, people are supportive of nonprofits. It's a matter of how to get funding to them. I have, through the years, not wanted our organization to talk about funding, talk about revenue, because if they're talking about revenue, they're not talking about the needs of the people that they serve. But I've come to the conclusion that as long as these so-called guardrails are tight and are not updated, it will be impossible for nonprofits to get the funding they need.
Mike Hydeck: So lawmakers are also now calling for more transparent discussions around talking about these budget guardrails, if they decide to adjust them or vote not to. Should the same be said about how nonprofits spend their money? Are your balance sheets open? Can people say, 'Look, we're going to give you $20 million, how are you going to spend it?'
Gian-Carl Casa: They're audited by the state. These nonprofits have contracts with the state that require them to justify their expenditures. Their books are open. Nonprofits nationally file their tax returns with the state, with the federal government, and those are often published online, available to the public.
Mike Hydeck: So where do you think it goes from here? First step in the new year as the legislation starts, are you knocking on doors?
Gian-Carl Casa: We're making our case. We have hundreds of nonprofits across the state that want to make their case. They're talking to their legislators. They're asking people to come to their facilities and see the kind of services they provide and can provide to others. People of Connecticut answered a poll that we had done in July. About well over 60% of the people said the state should strike the kind of balance that I described. Both pay down pensions and pay for the services people need today.
