Fitzpatrick joins 140+ lawmakers, national groups in urging pandemic relief for nonprofits

America’s nonprofits must receive federal support in the next emergency stimulus relief package, wrote U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and more than 140 of his colleagues in an April 29 letter sent to leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives that drew support from numerous national nonprofit organizations.

During the current pandemic, cities and states are relying on charitable nonprofits, including food banks, shelters, domestic violence services, houses of worship, early care and education centers, and after-school facilities to feed, house and care for Americans whose lives have been disrupted by sickness, business closures and job losses, according to the lawmakers’ letter.

“We will continue to rely on the experience, expertise and ingenuity of the sector during future recovery efforts,” wrote Rep. Fitzpatrick and a bipartisan group of colleagues that included U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA). “As we work to build on the CARES Act in the next relief package, we cannot overlook the needs of these community-based institutions and must ensure that charitable nonprofits are fully supported in their service on the front lines of responding to the COVID-19 crisis.”

Specifically, the next relief bill should include expanded access for nonprofits in disaster relief programs, including the Paycheck Protection Program; increased unemployment insurance reimbursements for self-insured nonprofits struggling to pay furloughed employees; and strengthened tax incentives to increase donations to nonprofits, according to their letter.

“We appreciate your attention to this request and believe that the inclusion of these provisions will directly help charitable nonprofits respond to the fallout from this pandemic and will continue to serve our communities in the aftermath,” wrote the members.

Joining the members of Congress in the call to action were numerous organizations, which included the American Council of the Blind, the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, Americans for the Arts, the Boys and Girls Club of America, Catholic Charities USA, ChildFund International, Food for the Hungry, Girl Scouts of the USA, Habitat for Humanity International, Lutheran Services in America, March of Dimes, Mental Health America, the National Indian Child Welfare Association, National MS Society, The Nature Conservancy, UNICEF USA, and YMCA of the USA, among many others.