All posts created by nancy.wolanski@unitedwayri.org

Consultant and thought-leader Mala Nagarajan returns to the Fund the People podcast to share six practices that nonprofits can use to de-link privilege (or, on the other side of the coin, marginalization) from salaries, and reconstruct compensation in a way that is equitable.

Listen here

Other Episodes

The six compensation practices that Mala discusses are:

Construct salaries with multiple components.

No longer negotiate at the beginning of employment.

Tie the highest salary to the lowest salary.

Consider all salaries as interdependent, and to consider leadership at every level.

Acknowledge that everyone has different capacities. Separate pay from performance.

These practices are drawn from the Compensation Scale Equity Process and Calculator™ developed by Vega Mala Consulting, of which our guest is Cofounder and Principal. We introduce this process and calculator in the episode as well, and discuss how nonprofits and other consultants can utilize it. We also discuss what nonprofits can do right away even if they are unable to work with consultants to address equity in their compensation structure.

To hear Mala’s previous appearance on the show, listen to Season 3 Episode 9, where she discusses what it means for nonprofits to develop a “compensation philosophy.”

Resources:

Vega Mala Consulting About the Compensation Scale Equity Process and Calculator™ Seminar Series: Put Your Money Where Your Values Are The Wages of Peace and Justice Report Employer Philosophy Discussion Guide and Samples How do we Quantify a Thriving Wage? Top Tips to Stop Widening the Wealth Gap Conditions for Readiness Conditions for Readiness Checklist Brave Questions Calculating Pay Equity List of Compensation Resources Mala Nagarajan on Linked-In Guest Bio:

Mala Nagarajan is a nonprofit strategist and social entrepreneur with more than 20 years of management, technology, and organizational development experience spanning the public, nonprofit, and for-profit sectors. She is driven by a vision of strong organizations working collaboratively toward a common social purpose. Mala’s consulting focuses on people/human resources and technology management, and how these systems integrate with organizational activities like programs, communications, financials, and resource development. This includes helping to build capacity in strategic planning and thinking, sustainable infrastructure growth, and data-driven evaluations and assessments.

Updates from National Council of Nonprofits

Federal Funding

At this time, it seems Congress is on the path to avoiding another shutdown.

The current continuing resolution (CR) keeps the federal government open and funded through January 30. By then, Congress must enact full spending bills or another CR, or it risks a government shutdown.

Thankfully, congressional leaders have made progress in their bipartisan negotiations over the past few months. By next week, Congress is hoping to enact 3 more full-year spending bills (Commerce-Science-Justice; Energy-Water; Interior-Environment), if it can overcome some disagreements about earmarks. If that happens, Congress will have enacted 6 of the 12 spending bills that are needed.

In January, congressional leaders will work to see whether they can reach a bipartisan agreement on any of the remaining 6 spending bills. Their goal is to pass a legislative package by January 30 that would include another CR (it is unclear if it will be short-term, or if it will fund programs through the end of the fiscal year) and any of the 6 spending bills for which they are able to reach an agreement.

Democrats are signaling that they do not plan to shut down the federal government over an extension of the Affordable Care Act enhanced premium tax credits.

Healthcare Issues

The House is voting today on legislation to extend for 3 years the Affordable Care Act enhanced premium tax credits. The vote is being held because last month, four Republicans joined Democrats in backing a discharge petition on the legislation, forcing House leadership to bring the bill to the floor for a vote. The bill is expected to pass the House, but it is not expected to advance in the Senate. Supporters hope the bill will put more pressure on Senate leaders to reach a bipartisan compromise on the healthcare tax credits. There's a short window to get something done, and it will be very challenging to find a solution that can garner enough support.

The debate over extending the healthcare tax credits has led some Republicans, including President Trump, to call for enacting another tax reconciliation bill this year to address healthcare and affordability issues. As you recall, Congress can enact a tax reconciliation bill with a simple majority in the Senate, rather than the typical 60 votes, but reconciliation is a cumbersome, daunting process. NCN will monitor for any threats/opportunities if momentum for a reconciliation bill continues.

SNAP

As you know, H.R. 1, the major tax package enacted by Congress this past summer, included several provisions to cut funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). One provision requires states to reduce SNAP payment error rates, or risk losing partial federal SNAP funding. The National Governors Association, National Association of Counties, National Conference of State Legislatures, and the American Public Human Services Association, which represent SNAP administrators, are urging Congress to give states more time to bring their error rates down.

We hear there's some effort to add an extension to any funding package Congress advances this month.

Without an extension, states may lose significant funding for SNAP in the coming years, putting increased pressure on state budgets.

2025 RI Humanities Staff Recommendations to Listen to

● Our Common Nature (podcast) - Rachael Jeffers ● Wild Card with Rachel Martin (podcast) - Rachel Jeffers ● Noble Blood (podcast) - Julia Renaud ● Empire of AI (audiobook) by Karen Hao - Elizabeth Francis ● Dissect/Last Song Standing (podcast) - Scott Raker

The Federation of State Humanities Councils’ new podcast, Humanities =, features interviews with professionals and community members who use the humanities to celebrate local history, bring communities together, foster civic health, and more.

The show highlights the impact and vitality of humanities councils’ work throughout the country. In recent episodes, they’ve featured stories from Vermont Humanities and their outdoor poetry program, Humanities Nebraska and their child literacy program, Mississippi Humanities’ prison book club program, and more.

Listen here

The Templeton Ideas Podcast interviewed Jason Marsh, executive director of the Greater Good Science Center at University of California, Berkeley.

Greater Good is committed to sharing science-based insights with educators, parents, and other professionals to foster meaningful lives and a thriving society. In recent years, Greater Good has received grants from the John Templeton Foundation to engage and promote virtues such as intellectual humility and love.

Listen to the podcast or read the transcript

At their best, holidays fill us with hope, wonder, generosity, love, and joy. But what is joy, really, and can we experience it even when life is turbulent and tough going? To learn more, check out Alene Dawson’s Templeton Ideas essay Unwrapping the Science of Joy.

Dig deeper into the 2025 State of the Nonprofit Sector Survey results with our online, dynamic Survey Analyzer. This Analyzer allows you to see a filtered view of the data from select survey questions.

Choose your own adventure! You can filter the data from our 2,206 national respondents by sector, geography, and budget size to see data that is most relevant to you.

Check out the Analyzer

The Department of Education (Department) has agreed to deliver long-delayed student debt relief for borrowers enrolled in income-driven repayment plans (IDR) and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program under a recent lawsuit, separate from the lawsuit above, and associated joint status report.

The agreement requires the Department to cancel student debt for eligible borrowers, issue refunds for payments made after reaching forgiveness, and process buyback applications for both repayment programs.

This settlement directly affects PSLF participants by continuing to process applications, expanding access for eligible employers, including nonprofits, and improving oversight through six months of mandated reporting on progress made. Notably, the Department must treat the official loan discharge date as the date the borrower first became eligible to ensure that the forgiveness is not treated as taxable income.

H.R. 1, the major tax reconciliation bill enacted into law this summer, introduced new enforcement provisions affecting the employee retention tax credit (ERTC). Earlier this month, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued guidance to address the limitation on credits and refunds for ERTC claimed for the third and fourth quarters of 2021 filed after Jan. 31, 2024. One provision prevents the IRS from allowing or refunding ERTCs after July 4, 2025, for the third and fourth quarters of 2021 if those claims were filed after Jan. 31, 2024, even if the taxpayer otherwise met eligibility requirements.

However, if taxpayers filed after Jan. 31, 2024, but received an ERTC credit or refund before July 4, 2025, the rules do not apply to the claim. If an ERTC claimed on a return is disallowed under the rules, taxpayers will receive Letter 105-C, Claim Disallowed and can appeal to the IRS Independent Office of Appeals. The taxpayer would need to believe the refund claim reporting ERC eligibility was timely filed on or before Jan. 31, 2024, and the IRS improperly disallowed it under section 70605(d) of H.R.1.

What the New Final Rule on Public Service Loan Forgiveness Means for Nonprofits

On August 18, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing revisions to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program. The NPRM was issued in response to a March 2025 Executive Order instructing ED to revise eligibility criteria to exclude organizations with a “substantially illegal purpose” from qualifying as eligible employers under the program. Independent Sector submitted formal comments opposing the proposed rule on the grounds that the statute establishing PSLF clearly defines all 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations as qualifying employers, and that ED lacks statutory authority to narrow that definition.

Despite widespread opposition from nonprofit, labor, and public-sector stakeholders, ED finalized the rule on October 30, 2025, with an effective date of July 1, 2026. The final rule grants ED new authority to exclude certain nonprofit employers it deems to have a “substantial illegal purpose,” raising significant questions about the scope of ED’s discretion, the rule’s legality, and its potential impact on nonprofit employees who rely on PSLF.

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As federal scrutiny intensifies, philanthropists, foundations, charitable intermediaries, nonprofit executives, board members, legal counsel, grantees and donors must be prepared for a new wave of IRS criminal investigations that could reshape the compliance landscape.

Recent developments within IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) signal a new era of scrutiny for nonprofit organizations. With reports of increased enforcement and a growing list of tax-exempt entities under review, nonprofits must act swiftly to assess their compliance posture and mitigate risk.

Join BakerHostetler attorneys for a timely and practical webinar exploring:

IRS-CI’s evolving approach to nonprofit investigations

Legal risks tied to political activity, improper donations and grant-making

How federal prosecutors may use subpoenas, search warrants and donor interviews

The role of corporate compliance programs in mitigating criminal exposure

What nonprofits and their donors should do now to prepare for potential investigations or prosecution

Watch the recording