Using Data to Advocate for Los Angeles Nonprofits

NFF has long been deeply involved in research and advocacy efforts on behalf of Los Angeles nonprofits. Late government payments and contracts that fail to cover full costs create cash flow issues and financial instability for organizations. They also make it difficult to pay staff a livable wage in this high-cost county. Here’s a look at our two most recent research and advocacy projects in LA:

• The California State Legislature Joint Committee on Nonprofits Hearing is an annual event to help inform CA legislators about the critical role nonprofits play in communities across the state. In August 2025, NFF spoke on a panel entitled “Equity in Contracting: Reforms to Support Accessing and Managing State Resources,” where we discussed improving the nonprofit funding system and how contracting reforms at the state level can support stronger, more equitable financial results for nonprofits and communities
• NFF’s Consulting team has worked with LA homeless service providers to explore how they can contract to provide housing-related community supports through California’s Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) Initiative, a five-year systems transformation project led by the CA Department of Health Care Services to better meet the whole person health needs of Medi-Cal consumers. In 2024, NFF published, “The Promise, Pitfalls, and Potential of CalAIM,” as part of an initial two-year initiative conducted in partnership with the California Community Foundation, with seed funding from Cedars-Sinai and additional support from Health Net.
• The Los Angeles Opportunity Youth Collaborative (OYC) – convened by the Alliance for Children’s Rights and UNITE-LA – partnered with NFF to research and report on the full costs of youth workforce development programs and identify key recommendations for the future of these programs. We conducted an in-depth analysis of youth workforce development organizations to identify how much additional funding would be required to offer existing programming with sustainable staffing, fair compensation, and working conditions that meet best practice standards. In addition, providers shared recommendations for how existing funding and compliance practices could be improved in the future, and staff shared in their own words the implications of the current poor funding situation.

• NFF published the “Resetting LA City to Meet Urgent Community Needs” report in partnership with the Committee for Greater LA (CGLA) and HR&A Advisors. It shared the financial and operational situation for nonprofits in the city of LA, how government contracting was affecting them, and how it could be improved. NFF partnered with CGLA and the Center for Nonprofit Management to advocate for implementation of the recommendations, including through meetings with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and with Southern California Grantmakers. As a result of these efforts, several LA City departments are moving away from a reimbursement payment structure to paying all or some of the costs upfront.