Reporting on the Nonprofit Sector

Welcome to CAN's nonprofit media center! We're glad you've chosen to report on events, trends and developments in the nonprofit sector. CAN welcomes your calls, questions and requests for interviews and will do everything we can to connect you with the right resources for your story.

And we'd like to ask a favor in return. As you write about nonprofit organizations, you have the power to reinforce -- or debunk -- some misconceptions and misguided stereotypes about them. We'd like to ask that you keep the following things in mind when you write and file your story:

The word "nonprofit" does not mean we can't make a profit. It actually comes from the fact that we don't distribute profits to shareholders like for-profit businesses do. Nonprofits can make a profit, but they must return it to the organization or the community to further their charitable mission.
Nonprofits are "owned" by the community. They are not owned by the board, the executive director or donors. As tax-exempt organizations, nonprofits are owned by the entire community.
Nonprofits are allowed to lobby. Many people mistakenly believe that nonprofits are prohibited from lobbying. While it is true that they are not allowed to campaign for candidates for office, nonprofits are actually allowed to lobby and advocate for causes in the halls of power. Charitable 501(c)(3) nonprofits must not spend a significant portion of their annual income on lobbying, but they are definitely allowed to engage in the practice.
Despite high-profile stories, most nonprofit executives are not paid exorbitantly. Most make much less than their counterparts in the business community. For example, according to the 2005 Compensaion & Benefits Survey of Southern & Central California Nonprofit Organizations (Center for Nonprofit Management, 2005), the average nonprofit executive salary in southern and central California is $103,793, and the median is $91,998. However, the figure varies widely depending on the organization's budget and staff size, field of service and geographic location. For more information, click here.
It is not a given that nonprofits should be more "businesslike." In fact, some of us in the nonprofit community are bemused by the suggestion that we should act more like a sector that has produced financial scandals on the order of Enron, WorldCom, ImClone and the like. A simple Google search of the term "financial scandal" turns up far more stories on the business sector than on nonprofit organizations. At the same time, we acknowledge the nonprofit sector's need for better and more ubiquitous training in ethics and accountability, financial management and fraud prevention. CAN is at the forefront of these efforts with its National Nonprofit Financial Reporting Initiative and trainings in related areas.
Nonprofits generate their income in a number of ways. Contributions from individuals, corporations and foundations actually constitute a fairly small percentage of nonprofit income (about 10%). Government contracts, while shrinking, comprise a much larger percentage (about 36%). At 54%, earned income (fees for service, for example) make up the largest proportion of nonprofit revenues. Click here for a snapshot of financial data across the California nonprofit sector. Click here for a breakdown of assets, income and expenses by sub-sector.
Nonprofits contribute significantly to the economy. The California nonprofit sector holds $107.7 billion in assets (as of 1998) and employ 5% of the workforce in California (about 750,000 employees), and its work is leveraged by millions of volunteers each year. Click here for a snapshot of financial data across the California nonprofit sector.

If you have further questions about CAN, the California nonprofit sector or nonprofits in general, please click here. If you can't find an answer to your question on our website, please feel free to request an interview with one of our staff or volunteers. We'd be happy to provide you with more information and references for your story.