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Stimulus cash for weatherization unspent: Officials blame delay on federal rules governing how much to pay workers
Aug 10, 2009; Associated Press | This isn’t unexpected news.  The Obama Administration is being criticized by nonprofits for an extremely slow pace in getting weatherization out the door—to largely nonprofit weatherization groups.  Nonprofit users have decried “one roadblock after another” regarding the federal government’s implementation of popular part of the stimulus package.  Among the major intended recipients of weatherization funds are nonprofit community action actions that describe a federal stop-and-start-and-stop pattern regarding guidance about whether Davis-Bacon wage rates apply, what those rates might be, whether local prevailing wage rates could be used while the federal government thinks about issuing Davis-Bacon rates, and so on.  In a few places, nonprofits went ahead and hired weatherization staff ahead of the stimulus money so that they could get to work as soon as the dollars started to flow.  Those nonprofits are paying those staff from other non-stimulus accounts and consequently are finding themselves facing tough times.  This is yet one more example of how nonprofits often find themselves self-financing government programs, using existing funds to pay for services that should be paid for by government contracts, but the governments can’t get the money out the door.  Will the federal government reimburse these weatherization nonprofits that have floated their own funds to pay for the costs they’ve incurred?  In this case, there’s absolutely no indication.  In the interim, families don’t get the weatherization assistance they deserve.  —Rick Cohen

Why The Sky Is Not Falling for Associations
Aug 6, 2009; Association Inc |  Kevin Holland details the reasons why nonprofit associations are not just weathering the depression, but growing steadily.  Among his analysis of the factors resulting in their success is our willingness to pay for specialized knowledge.  Is your organization a member of a state or other association?  How do you value your membership?  —James David Morgan

Marketing the Concept of Games for Health
Aug 13, 2009; Pioneering Ideas| The trend toward incorporating play in organizing strategies is evinced by the fifth Games for Health Conference, which took place in June.  Here, Nedra Weinreich contributes to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Pioneering Ideas blog with advice on how to make use of this visionary tactic, and how to ensure your staff and supporters are on the same page before venturing into burgeoning, but experimental territory. —James David Morgan

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