Non-Profits Await Final Budget

Leaders from both parties say Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell could sign a budget into law as soon as tonight.
But for many nonprofit agencies that have been going without funds for months now, that may be too little too late.
In the hundred days since Pennsylvania’s budget was due, the plight of nonprofit agencies that rely on government funding has gotten a lot of attention.
A signed budget will come soon, and Governor Rendell has vowed to rush money to the groups within weeks.
Joe Ostrander, a spokesman for the Community Action Association of Pennsylvania, says that will begin a long struggle for operations that had to scale back services and lay off staff.
He says paying off interest on loans will be the main challenge.

"And to rebuild their communities and rebuild their agencies. Some will be able to do that with time, but unfortunately I really do believe that some of our member agencies are going to have a difficult time rebuilding portions of their agencies."

Ostrander says a recent talk with one nonprofit operator illustrates the major problem groups will have paying off interest in the coming months.

"He said that every week he owes 2,000 dollars worth of interest for the loans he’s tried to take out for the money he’s been owed. So take that times the number of weeks we’ve gone by, you can see how much money he owes to creditors, to a bank, just because he hasn’t gotten the money he rightfully deserves."

The Senate is expected to pass an appropriations bill and send it to Governor Rendell’s desk this morning.
That leaves fiscal code legislation and a measure legalizing table games as the only unfinished pieces of the budget package.