County officials today took steps to throw more public sector support behind nonprofit groups, citing federal guidelines.
Supervisors Hilda Solis and Sheila Kuehl said the county should reimburse nonprofits for the indirect costs of the services they provide to the county.
In 2014, the federal Office of Management and Budget mandated that government agencies that hire nonprofits to deliver services using federal funds must provide that reimbursement.
“L.A. County has not yet taken steps to implement the guidance,” Solis said, even though “nonprofits provide critical services that help many of our neediest residents.”
“By ensuring we are covering the full and reasonable cost for their services, we can help our nonprofit partners better serve their constituents,” she said.
The board will also ask state lawmakers to lead implementation statewide.
Roughly 70 percent of California nonprofits say government funding fails to cover the real cost of services, according to a recent Urban Institute report.
The president and CEO of nonprofit Weingart Foundation said, “This lack of support too often keeps nonprofits from achieving the outcomes that help those in our community who are most in need.”
Kuehl talked about how nonprofits supplement the work of government.
“Government, being starved, has to turn to the nonprofit sector” for help, Kuehl said.
She used an analogy to try to explain the difference between direct costs for services provided and indirect, but related operating costs.
“It doesn’t help to stock the refrigerator if you’re losing the house,” Kuehl said.
