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7 hours ago

Budgetary crossroads

Adobe Stock Photo / Yurii
By Sloane M. Perron

Nonprofits nationwide are grappling with widespread federal funding cuts and terminated grants initiated by the Trump Administration.

In response to unexpected budget changes, Maine nonprofits are finding creative ways to adapt by pooling resources, finding alternative funding, and partnering with one another. Inflation, economic uncertainty and rising demand for services as families also face rising costs are all impacting the sector.

The ripple effect has a particularly potent impact on Maine, which has a higher than national average nonprofit workforce population. Nationally, one out of every 10 workers is employed by a charitable nonprofit, but in Maine 17% of the workforce, meaning one out of every six workers in the state is employed by a charitable 501 (c) (3)nonprofit, according to the Maine Association of Nonprofits.

Mainebiz asked nonprofit leaders how their organizations are responding to cuts in federal funding. Here are the responses, in their own words.

Cultivating partnerships, prioritizing clients

Mufalo Chitam Executive director, Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition

Mufalo Chitam

Executive director, Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition

Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition member organizations are currently under significant stress, adapting to funding losses, policy changes, and a growing fear among immigrant community members. While this period presents more challenges than opportunities, we are addressing these issues through three key strategies.

• Encouraging collaborative applications to maximize funding.

• We are focusing on prioritizing client-funded initiatives, particularly through a fee-for-service partner model.

• Diversifying funding and building reserves: Establishing “rainy day funds” while developing new business relationships to secure varied funding streams.

MIRC has extensive experience leading coordinated coalition responses — in partnership with government and other partners — to provide emergency direct assistance to immigrant families during times of hardship. Specifically, MIRC led its coalition and partners in coordinating state and municipal systems to support emergency crises the Asylum Seekers Portland EXPO in 2019 and 2023, and immigrant communities broadly throughout the 2020-22 COVID Pandemic.

We are uniquely positioned to coordinate a rapid response across our members and partners, supporting Maine-based, immigrant-serving organizations as they navigate funding freezes and policy changes. This approach will allow us to foster coordination and mitigate competition, channeling funds and expertise to our community-based member organizations, thereby strengthening their voice and position in our state.

 

Doubling down to oppose funding cuts

Cullen Ryan Executive director, Community Housing of Maine

Cullen Ryan

Executive director, Community Housing of Maine

Community Housing of Maine creates homes and inclusive communities. CHOM believes everyone deserves to be housed. CHOM develops, owns and maintains high-quality supportive housing as well as affordable housing for working families and older people.

The housing development and operation relies almost entirely on federal funding; federal funding cuts to Medicaid, rental assistance programs and SNAP will be devastating. We are undertaking contingency planning for federal funding cuts.

CHOM has historically relied on positive word of mouth and its strong reputation to generate donations. It has tended to hide discreetly in the background while its housing forms the backbone for collaborative supportive housing partnerships with 55 service provider agencies from Sanford to Houlton and Rumford to Bar Harbor.

Recently, CHOM has pivoted, slightly, making its efforts better known and seeking funds to continue its mission despite federal cuts — to ensure that the 1,300-plus people it serves remain housed and stable in the community.

CHOM has doubled down on opposing funding cuts and draconian policies, advocating instead for federal and state resources to be spent wisely to help Maine end and prevent homelessness and stabilize other populations facing enormous challenges.

Ready to adapt

Denise Cilley Associate director, Sunrise County Economic Council

Denise Cilley

Associate director, Sunrise County Economic Council

At Sunrise County Economic Council, we have long understood that sustaining strong, community-rooted programs means being ready to adapt. Founded 30 years ago by a small group of Washington County business and community leaders, SCEC has grown steadily through a grassroots approach that centers local voices, relationships, and long-term commitment, with a focus on building with, not for.

With recent cuts and delays in federal funding, we have been making thoughtful adjustments to ensure our work continues without interruption. One of the most important steps we have taken is revisiting innovative programs and project ideas that align with our mission and have the potential to generate revenue. These efforts will not just support the budget, but will also provide real value to the communities, employers and businesses we serve.

We also continue to lean into collaboration and partnership building. Through collaboration with peer organizations, we have been able to develop joint funding proposals, increase impact, and reduce redundancy. These partnerships help us access philanthropic and state-level support when federal dollars are not available. Internally, we continually strengthen our financial planning and management practices. That includes refining reimbursement timelines, modeling different funding scenarios, and making sure we scale programs in ways that are financially responsible. We are also building and deepening relationships with individual donors and private foundations that understand the unique challenges rural communities face.

Federal funding is still important to our work, but it does not define what is possible. We are focused on building a more resilient, diversified funding model that gives us the flexibility to continue meeting Washington County’s needs, regardless of shifting federal priorities.

 

Connecting with alternative funding sources

Ray Ruby Executive director, Maine Cancer Foundation

Ray Ruby

Executive director, Maine Cancer Foundation

As a fundraising foundation, Maine Cancer Foundation deeply understands the critical role grant funding plays in supporting Maine’s most vulnerable regions, communities, and individuals. Amidst this time of uncertainty and instability at the federal level, we have been connecting closely with grantee partners to understand how they are impacted by funding cuts and what they need to move forward and continue to carry out their work.

Understanding the urgency of this moment and the significant impact funding losses are having on many nonprofit partners, Maine Cancer Foundation ramped up some of our funding allocations to address growing needs among our partners and the communities they serve. Most recently, we increased our investment in cancer prevention programming for this calendar year from a planned $500,000 allocation to over $700,000. This was a significant shift in gears for us, but being able to react in this way has afforded some partners breathing room and has allowed important efforts to continue amidst the current landscape.

As one of our core values, we also continue to focus intently on health equity, promoting fair and just access to reduce cancer-related health disparities for all Maine people. Cancer takes an especially heavy toll on certain communities, yet many of the recent reductions in federal funding are falling hardest on those very same groups. This focus will remain at the forefront for Maine Cancer Foundation and is a throughline for our programmatic efforts across the state.

In addition, we have been connecting with other philanthropic leaders in Maine and nationwide to understand how we can best support our grantee partners and our own organization during this time. Now is the time for listening, connection and action, and we are proud to be among incredible nonprofit partners supporting cancer prevention, screening, and access to care throughout our state.

 

Reducing or delaying non-urgent expenses

Gretchen Johnson Executive director, the Center for Grieving Children

Gretchen Johnson

Executive director, the Center for Grieving Children

While federal funding cuts have not affected us directly, we are feeling the impact as resources are stretched and needs grow. When previously funded organizations face closures or reduced capacity, community giving is spread more thinly across many urgent needs. At the same time, businesses and individuals are budgeting more cautiously to buffer against economic volatility.

Like many organizations, we are also navigating higher costs for the essentials that support our staff and facilities. In response, we have adjusted our strategy for the year ahead: reducing or delaying non-urgent expenses, refining our fundraising plan to emphasize diverse and stable revenue streams, and setting conservative goals that position us to surpass expectations. By remaining as lean and nimble as possible, we aim to reinvest in our mission as the year goes on. This is a challenging time for all nonprofits, whether directly or indirectly touched by federal cuts. We remain committed to adapting with resilience so we can continue providing vital services to our community.”

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