Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Nonprofit Finance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Yolo Community Foundation tells Woodland council nonprofits face rising expenses, falling reserves
Summary
Yolo Community Foundation presented its 2025 State of the Sector report to the council: 68 nonprofits responded; major findings included increased expenses outpacing revenue, declining reserves, staffing stabilization, and volunteer recruitment challenges.
The Yolo Community Foundation presented its 2025 State of the Sector report to the Woodland City Council on May 13, summarizing financial and operational trends across local nonprofits and urging attention to long-term sustainability.
Jessica Hubbard, executive director of the Yolo Community Foundation, and Carolina Valverde, program manager, told the council the foundation surveyed nonprofit professionals across Yolo County and received 68 completed responses. Hubbard said the foundation’s work “is to inspire and support giving and provide philanthropic leadership in our diverse community of Yolo County.”
Nut graf: The report identified three cross-cutting themes—expenses outpacing revenue, weakened reserves, and sustainability for staff and volunteers—that the foundation said could limit nonprofits’ ability to meet community needs without additional support or structural changes.
Key findings presented by Valverde included: 53% of responding organizations reported expenses increased by at least 10% over the prior year, while 37% reported revenue increases of 10% or more. The foundation found 51.5% of organizations now report having less than six months of reserves, up from 29% the prior year. Valverde also said 47% of nonprofits expressed some or significant concern about reductions in federal funding.
On staffing, the presenters reported stabilization in salaries for many organizations: a majority provided some salary increases and 30% said they could provide salaries that keep pace with inflation. When asked how they would spend additional funds, most nonprofits said they would hire more program staff to respond to increased community demand.
Presenters emphasized volunteer recruitment as a continuing challenge. Valverde said nonprofits are experimenting with varied shifts and clearer role descriptions to make volunteering more accessible, and that time constraints and unclear expectations are major barriers to board and volunteer diversification.
Council members praised the foundation’s work. Council Member Garcia Cadena and Council Member Vega thanked the presenters for the report and noted the importance of nonprofit capacity in Woodland. No formal action was taken; council members were given the report for consideration as part of the city’s broader community-engagement and budget planning work.
The foundation said more detailed materials and the full report are available on its website and via a QR code included in the presentation materials.
