‘Tis the season at the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits when we are in the thick of budget planning in preparation for our next fiscal year, which starts July 1. As you might expect, the last few months have involved various stages of analyzing data, synthesizing our monthly and quarterly reports, assessing future needs and going through all the steps to ensure we are conservative, efficient and realistic… and that we are good stewards of the resources entrusted to us by our donors, members and other stakeholders. Business owners, does this all sound familiar? That’s because nonprofits run like businesses, too. Like corporate boards, nonprofit boards have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure our organizations are financially solvent and meet our obligations. We file tax returns. Our leadership and staff are responsible for producing value for our stakeholders and generating income to deliver our services, pay our bills and make payroll. As the third-largest non-government employer in the state of Oklahoma, the nonprofit sector’s economic impact is far-reaching. Businesspeople, nonprofit leaders and even individuals are all facing a number of unknowns when it comes to balancing budgets and planning for the future, from inflation and the rising cost of living and doing business, to changes in the tax environment, to keeping up with regulations, to fear of recession and more. None of our sectors is insulated from these challenges, and we all feel it together. Many nonprofits like the Center generate earned income through the purveyance of goods and services. Part of the nonprofit model is, of course, also to seek support via donations which can come from individuals, foundations and other diverse sources. For many nonprofits – but not all – work is supported by federal grants for which they have gone through a rigorous application process. Many who receive federal funding do so because they are contributing a critical service or supporting local infrastructure, such as providing meals to children experiencing food insecurity or operating the ambulance service in a rural area, among myriad other examples. You may be aware that, in connection with a series of presidential executive orders, the Office of Management and Budget issued guidance earlier this spring that would impose a broad, sweeping funding freeze for nonprofit work. In partnership with other organizations, the National Council of Nonprofits – of which the Center is a member – filed an injunction to pause the funding freeze which has thus far held in court. However, this chain of events has had a chilling effect on nonprofits, many of whom report having received delays in promised payments, notification that their grants will not be renewed and other challenges to planned income. We are all watching closely as this story unfolds, but, as any businessperson can relate, the vast unknowns associated with these policies in flux can lead to major challenges in planning every aspect of nonprofit work, from delivering critical services to stakeholders, to staffing, to keeping the lights on and more. If you support a cause or nonprofit in your community, now is a great time to get involved. Whether or not you or your organization are in a position to give, learning more about the shifting environment and finding ways to offer your time and expertise can be invaluable to a nonprofit.