National Council of Nonprofit Associations

The National Council of Nonprofits has been hard at work advancing two policy priorities to aid nonprofits. The proposals will create a stronger nonprofit sector during this economic downturn and after we emerge from it.

Nonprofit Capacity Building Initiative

The National Council of Nonprofits is moving the number one priority of the nonprofit sector into action. That priority of "organizational effectiveness" is at the heart of the Nonprofit Capacity Building Initiative (NCBI). NCBI is designed to fund capacity building for small and midsize nonprofits by securing federal grants and matching funds for organizations that have a proven ability to deliver high-quality training and technical assistance to nonprofits. Building on expressed congressional interest and supported by the July 2007 GAO report, it would authorize $25 million in grant funding each year for 3 years to serve 501(c)(3) nonprofits with annual operating budgets of less than $5 million. Organizational effectiveness topics of leadership development, organizational development, compliance with legal and reporting requirements, and technology would be covered.

Charitable Volunteer Mileage Deduction

America’s volunteers play a vital role in delivering services to their communities through nonprofits. But a painful quirk in federal tax law, along with high gas prices, created  - and over time will continue to create - a barrier that is preventing many volunteers from helping the needy in their communities and causing nonprofits from coast to coast to lose volunteers. In 2008 the National Council and hundreds of other nonprofits urged Congress to take action on this vital issue

You can also learn more about the background of this issue and the real nonprofits affected.