Nonprofit Survey Takeaways on Executive Order Impacts

Over 200 New Mexico nonprofits responded to a survey conducted by Anchorum Health Foundation, Santa Fe Community Foundation, and Thornburg Foundation, focusing on the impacts and sentiments involving the immediate and anticipated effects of the Trump administration's federal funding freeze. The survey contains responses from nonprofit grantees across New Mexico in the following sectors: Education, Environmental, Good Governance, Healthcare, Housing, Youth & Family, Community Building, Arts, and others.

Below is a summary of key findings from the aggregated results of 207 respondents. Download a sharable PDF of the results here.

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Key Takeaways

Federal Funding Reliance

• 66% of organizations rely on federal funds, with 22% highly reliant (50%+ of their budget).
• The Environmental sector is most impacted (37% reporting high reliance), followed by Youth & Family and Education (averaging 30% reliance).
  

Communication Challenges

• Only 25% of respondents have received communication from federal contacts about paused grants.
• Confusing & conflicting directives: Federal officers provided inconsistent directives—some urged work continuation, while others recommended halting activities (e.g., USDA's shifting instructions).
• Delayed reimbursements (via portals like Grant Solutions) have caused operational confusion and cash flow strain.   
  

Anticipated Impacts

• Top vulnerable areas: Immigration, followed by Housing & Food Security, and Education.
  

Sector-specific concerns  

• Environmental (Land & Ag, Water, Conservation): Halted critical water projects and worsening food insecurity with Tribal nations and low-income families.
• Community Building: Loss of services for the homeless, veterans, low-income families, and mentally ill.
• Education: Threatened grants for school meal programs, STEM initiatives, and equity-focused efforts.
• Housing: Reduced rental aid, evictions, service closures, and staff losses.
• Youth & Family: Threats to SNAP, Medicaid, and Head Start. Fears of deportation are high.
• Healthcare: Cuts to Medicaid, Title V, Meals on Wheels, and domestic violence prevention. Urgent flexible funding is needed to sustain services.
• Good Governance: Heightened vulnerability as reallocations widen service gaps, inconsistent agency responses erode transparency and confidentiality protections.  
  

Critical Needs

• Unrestricted grants and legal support are the most urgent needs.
• Additional needs include temporary loans, peer support networks, and advocacy resources.

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The Grant Plant NM is helping us identify deeper trends within the responses in combination with their research of federal grants to non-profits in New Mexico. Thanks to the Thornburg Foundation for funding this next step. The data will be kept anonymous and confidential. We look forward to sharing the results of TGP's study with you soon!