By tracking regional and national trends, the National Council of Nonprofits identifies how policies and practices at all levels of government – local, state, and federal – are increasing demands on community-based nonprofits and reducing the resources that those organizations need to meet their missions. We are known for the Special Reports and unique tools we produce that inform charitable nonprofit staff and board members, as well as policymakers, about public policy challenges and opportunities. When necessary, we mobilize our network to resist efforts by federal, state and local governments that are harmful to the work of charitable nonprofits.

Our Public Policy Agenda identifies the issues of prime importance to our network. We are committed to protecting nonprofits through proper tax policies, budget and spending priorities, fundamental fairness for nonprofits as employers, improvement in government-nonprofit contracting relationships and systems, nonprofit advocacy and protection of nonprofit nonpartisanship, and public accountability and nonprofit independence. In all our work, we strive to inform policymakers, journalists, the public, and indeed other nonprofits, about the vital role that charitable nonprofits play in benefiting the communities they serve.

Our bi-weekly policy newsletter, Nonprofit Advocacy Matters, is our primary communications vehicle for alerting nonprofits and the public to important news and developing trends. We continually provide current and relevant articles and analysis on nonprofit news at the federal, state, and local levels.

A Unique Focus: State and Local Public Policy

The primary focus of our network is on state and local, rather than federal, policy. But with changing social and political climates, we are increasingly viewing how federal policy decisions affect state and local policy. With the help of our State Associations, we actively monitor what is happening in state capitals across the country to identify developments state by state, connecting the dots so that charitable nonprofits can see trends across governments, share information, craft solutions, and mobilize for action. 

Federal and State Makeup of Laws Passed in 2017: