Common Good Vermont tells commerce committee nonprofits face workforce, funding and safety strains

MONTPELIER, Vt. — Tanya, a policy-and-strategic-initiatives staffer with Common Good Vermont, told the Vermont House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development on Jan. 31 that the state's nonprofit sector is navigating "uncertain times" amid funding changes and rising costs.

Common Good Vermont, a statewide program affiliated with United Way Northwest, told the committee that more than 6,400 nonprofits operate in Vermont and that nonprofits now employ about one in five Vermonters, up from roughly one in seven in prior reports. Tanya said the sector is the state's second-largest industry after state government and pays roughly $3 billion in wages.

Committee members were briefed on three main areas the group identified for legislative attention: workforce supports; grant and contract reform for organizations that deliver state services; and help for nonprofits confronting growing security costs.

"Nonprofits are really navigating uncertain times right now," Tanya said, summarizing the sector's challenges. She described…