Nonprofits sustain tens of thousands of Alaska jobs and $9.4 billion in revenue, sector warns amid federal funding shifts

Lori Wolf, president and CEO of the 4 Acre Group, told a legislative lunch-and-learn that Alaska’s nonprofit sector directly employs just over 35,000 people and—when indirect and induced jobs are included—supports almost 55,000 jobs statewide.

"Every Alaskan is a nonprofit beneficiary because nonprofits are woven into the fabric of our communities," Wolf said, summarizing the report’s central finding. She said the sector’s activity translated to $3.8 billion in total income through direct and secondary effects and that nonprofits generated $9.4 billion in revenue in 2023, a 19% increase from 2020.

The presentation, based on the 4 Acre Group’s seventh triennial economic study and recent sector surveys, emphasized the mixed revenue model nonprofits rely on: roughly half from earned income (fees, contracts and mission-related revenue) and more than 45% from government contracts, grants and philanthropy. Wolf warned that philanthropy is a leveraging tool but “cannot make up the difference for a loss of government funding.”

Wolf described recent federal actions as creating a period of acute uncertainty for organizations that depend on public funding. She cited an example in which the elimination of $1.3 billion in SAMHSA funding was announced and then reversed 27 hours later, saying that rapid reversals produce “high stress, and economic uncertainty” for service providers and can have ‘‘life or death consequences.’’

The speaker said much federal funding for services in Alaska flows through state channels, which makes state processes and transparency important for nonprofits that rely on those funds. She recommended practical fixes such as clearer identification of funding sources and aligning state and federal audit thresholds—an approach she described as a "simple win" that could save administrative costs without legislation.

During a brief question-and-answer period, Representative Prox said competition for a limited pool of state funds is a chronic problem and suggested incentives for resource development along with voluntary contributions through mechanisms like the Permanent Fund dividend process and the Pick.Click.Give program to broaden public participation in funding decisions. "Resource economy is the only thing that's making money, and that's really spelled oil," Prox said.

Wolf said 4 Acre has created a landing page and a reporting tool to collect real-time consequences reported by nonprofits and that a toolkit is available to generate regional snapshots of nonprofit presence, employment and wages. She urged legislators to include nonprofits in budget and policy conversations so the sector can continue to partner with government to deliver services, particularly in rural areas where nonprofits can account for a large share of employment.

The event closed after brief discussion of practical collaboration points and distribution of handouts and regional data to legislative offices. Wolf encouraged attendees to review the full report and toolkit for more detailed regional figures and follow-up materials.