The state wants to know how county governments are doling out funds to nonprofits.
Gov. Martin O?Malley?s Grants Office will be requesting the data from the state?s 24 counties to give governments a road map on how much ? and to whom ? money should be given.
“Each county is sort of on [its] own, and our idea is to put it all together,” said Eric Brenner, director of the grants office. “This probably should have been done before.”
The effort comes in part from Anne Arundel County seeking outside feedback on its grant funding.
The County Council and County Executive John Leopold cut grant funding from $5 million to $2.5 million to trim county expenses, which was met with heavy criticism.
“The focus is to increase the amount of nonprofit funding through their own private fundraising ability … with less reliance on the taxpayer,” Leopold said. “I think it?s healthy to have a spotlight on taxpayer-funded programs, and it?s always good to know what others are doing.”
Brenner hopes to have the data ready by the end of the summer for the counties for their next budget.
“This stuff is all over the map, and it?s part of the reason why there is some value looking into what practices are being used,” said Michael Sanderson, legislative director for the Maryland Associations of Counties.
The grants office also will provide training to teach nonprofits how to find and secure other funding sources, Brenner said.
“We?re already dealing with a limited budget and limited rates for service, so any technical assistance we could get would be beneficial,” said Vicki Callahan, executive director of Opportunity Builders Inc., a nonprofit that provides work resources for adults with disabilities.
Who gets funding depends on the type of service, officials said. Some nonprofits provide services for the government.
Many nonprofits provide services for people who are at or below the poverty line and funding levels can affect a great number of people, Brenner said.
Joe Surkiewicz, spokesman for the county?s Legal Aid Bureau, said his nonprofit?s county funding was cut in half, which will affect a critical program.
The group now will seek even greater donations from private lawyers.
“It?s a real shame,” Surkiewicz said. “That money goes to help contested custody cases. It?s disappointing they decided to cut our funding.”
