Nonprofit employment in decline statewide

By Jennifer Patterson

While not for profit organizations have increased across the country, the number of nonprofits in New York State has fallen, according to a report released last week by the state comptroller's office.

The report also said New York's nonprofit sector has struggled to recover from pandemic-related staffing shortages.

About one in five New York nonprofit jobs was lost during the pandemic – and just 7.4 percent of those jobs were regained by 2022. This lag, in part, was attributed to delayed contracts and payments from state agencies that make use of nonprofit services.

“Nonprofits play an important role in our state and local economies and are an essential part of the fabric of the communities they serve, but their numbers are shrinking,” New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a statement. “Many nonprofits rely on government funding to support their services, and contract delays and slow payments have contributed to some of the challenges they face.”

New York ranked among the highest nationally for its number of nonprofit organizations and employees, but both numbers fell between 2017 and 2022, when the state lost 173 nonprofits and saw an employment decline of 4.1 percent in that sector, according to the report.

The nonprofit sector nationally saw a drop as well, but New York has been the slowest state to recover.

Nonprofit organizations provide a range of services to the state, including food assistance, mental health resources, homeless shelters and services, animal welfare and more.

DiNapoli said that during the pandemic, many nonprofits continued to provide these services even after their payments from the state were delayed.

More than half of the state’s contracts with nonprofits were executed late in 2023, according to the comptroller’s office, which delayed funding. In some cases, that led to layoffs and closures.

The comptroller called on state leaders to ensure agencies process contracts and payments within set timeframes to prevent further stress in the nonprofit sector, which plays a critical role statewide.

For information, go to https://www.osc.ny.gov.