Chatham County revamps non-profit funding

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Chatham County approved changes last month to the way the county considers and appropriates funds to non-profit organizations, adding specific outcome requirements and measures of progress which were developed through an assessment identifying additional community needs that go beyond services that are supplied by the county.

Previously, the process was similar to a grant approval process where a non-profit would request funding for a specific program or capital improvement. However, the county has moved toward a request for proposal process where each non-profit’s request for program funding must fit into a matrix of desired outcomes. While the process to change the non-profit funding process has been going on for three years, the process picked up steam following the enactment of the county’s Comprehensive Plan.

In order for the county to fully implement the comprehensive plan, collective impact teams were created to address different aspects of the plan. Each team has staff members from different departments that come together to create recommendations for the board of commissioners to consider. For the change to the non-profit policy, the human services collective impact team met regularly to offer its recommendations on the new policy. The team includes members of department of human services, the health department, among others.

According to Chatham County Budget Director Lisa West, who introduced the changes to the commissioners, there were two major changes in the new policy. First, the human services collective met to define outcome strategies and services that will address the board’s goal to seek to provide social services that impact those that live in poverty that would stabilize families and individuals in the community. The services are those that the group felt were gaps in services that the county provides.

These outcomes include safe, affordable and stable housing, individuals and families having opportunities for social connectedness, equitable access to services that enhance quality of life, low and moderate income adults can move towards self- sufficiency and financial stability, improved outcomes for children/youth living in poverty, improved access to health care, preventive care and follow up care, and easy and affordable access to nutritious food/meals for food insecure residents.

These outcomes were then accompanied by examples of services that may work toward these goals such as mentoring, educational programs, mental health and substance abuse services, free or low cost prescription programs, free or affordable meals or groceries, and summer feeding programs for children. The committees outcomes matrix also included examples of desired measures to measure the progress of each of these programs.

The second change is how organizations apply for funding. Organizations will now submit proposals for the health services collective impact team to review. The group will discuss each proposal and score them based on the new outcome criteria. After the team’s review, it will make recommendations to the board of commissioners as it proceeds through the budget process.

The board voted unanimously to approve the work that the health services collective impact team produced specific to the outcomes, services, and scoring. The board also voted unanimously to approve the changes in the non-profit policy. Commissioners were also asked to consider appropriating $233,000 for the non-profits during the 2019-2020 budget process, which would keep non-profit funding at the same level it has been since 2006.

Chatham County, Board of Commissioners, Non-Profit funding