Good Afternoon, Folks-

NYSCAA News ands Updates:

Ø       Thank you to the Downstate Directors including Iris Johnson, Winston Ross (our gracious host), Linda Heyward, Chuck Darden, Rudy LaMarr, Adrian Fassett, Larry Kithcart, Vedeta Hanley, and Maureen Lashlee, and members of their staff and board, as well as Evelyn Harris and Linda Snead from NYSDOS, and Suzanne Lynn from NYC Division of Youth and Community Development for taking the time to meet with Gordon and Hazel and Denise Harlow on Thursday September 21, 2006.  Your openness and willingness to share your issues was greatly appreciated and we will be working to address your concerns.

Ø       APR Release Party.  Join NYSCAA in our Guilderland Offices as we celebrate a significant milestone of the APR project. All are welcome to join us for pizza on Thursday, October 5^th at noon.  Congratulations to Tom Coffinger and Liz Hughes of NYSCAA and Lisa Nieves of NYSDOS for reaching this important milestone.  Please see the attached invitation for more information and RSVP to Liz Hughes at lhughes@nyscaaonline.org if you are able to join us.

Ø       After utilizing the local firm CFO for Hire for the past few months, NYSCAA is ready to fill its fulltime Finance Director position.  Attached is a brief advertisement that is running in the local press here in Albany.  A more fully fleshed out job description will be posted on our website early next week.

Articles of Potential Interest

NYC COMISSION ON ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY REPORT RELEASED.  NYC Mayor Bloomberg and the NYC Commission on Economic Opportunity released the Commission’s recommendations on poverty this week. The recommendations include initiatives to combat poverty among the working poor, young adults and children in NYC.  Please see the following link for more information and a copy of this important report.  http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.9e96a73ffb670207a62fa24601c789a0/

RURAL AMERICA AT A GLANCE, 2006 EDITION

Rural America At A Glance, 2006 Edition highlights the most recent indicators of social and economic conditions in rural areas for use in developing policies and programs to assist rural areas. The brochure provides information on key rural conditions and trends for use by public and private decision makers and others in efforts to enhance the economic opportunities and quality of life for rural people and their communities.

See http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/EIB18/

New Requirements for Some Form 990 Filers

If your organization has unrelated business income or controls a subsidiary, you need to be aware of new requirements that went into effect August 17. This month GuideStar begins a series of articles to help explain and highlight the regulatory changes for the nonprofit sector enacted by Congress as part of the Pension Protection Act of 2006. In this article, we look at new requirements for 501(c)(3) organizations that report unrelated business income and that control for-profit or nonprofit subsidiaries. http://www.guidestar.org/news/features/990_changes.jsp

INCOME VOLATILITY COMPLICATES FOOD ASSISTANCE

Income fluctuations cause low-income families to cycle in and out of eligibility for food assistance programs. Twenty-eight percent of U.S. households with children experienced at least one monthly income change in the late 1990s that put them above or below the eligibility criteria for many programs.

See http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/September06/Features/IncomeVolatility.htm

WIC Food package Revisions Proposed (Foodlinks America):  For the first time in more than 25 years, foods provided to women and children in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC Program) are going to be adjusted.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) wants to change the traditional WIC emphasis on dairy products – including milk, cheese, and eggs – to provide more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Major proposed changes include:

 -          providing a monthly benefit for fruits and vegetables of the client’s choosing;

-          a reduction in the amount of juice for children ages one through five;

-          cutting the amount of milk for children from three cups daily to two;

-          permitting substitution of soy milk and tofu for dairy products; and

-          adding whole grain bread to the package and allowing substitutions such as corn tortillas and brown rice.

 USDA will accept comments on the proposed food package through November 6, 2006.  Comments may be submitted by mail, email, the USDA web site, or through the Federal eRulemaking Portal.  New food packages could be in place as early as late 2007.  “USDA is very committed to moving interim final regulations out quickly,” Henchy told Foodlinks America, “so it could be within a year from the end of the comment period.”

More detail may be found in the 73-page proposed rule published in the August 7, 2006 Federal Register at:  http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/06-6627.pdf.

 IN FIRST HALF OF 2006, WAGES AND SALARIES CAPTURED SMALLEST SHARE OF INCOME ON RECORD: Share of Income Going to Corporate Profits at Highest Level Since 1950

These findings show that wages and salaries have grown more slowly during the current recovery than in all but one other recovery since the end of World War II — even with the recent improvement in the last few years. Corporate profit growth, on the other hand, has been robust and has grown more rapidly in the current recovery than in any other equivalent period since World War II.

http://www.cbpp.org/8-31-06inc.htm
http://www.cbpp.org/8-31-06inc.pdf  7pp.

 The Changing Role of Welfare in the Lives of Low-Income Families with Children. This article from the Urban Institute utilizes data from the National Survey of America’s Families to review outcomes for families in the welfare system regarding family structure, demographic characteristics, barriers to work, income, and well-being. Specifically, authors examine outcomes for families currently on welfare, recently left welfare, and never received welfare. To view or download, please see: http://www.peerta.acf.hhs.gov/policies/program.htm#general.

Recent Data Show Economic Recovery Has Not Benefited Children

U.S. Census Bureau data released last month reveal that in 2005 the child poverty rate remained flat at 18%, despite continued economic growth. NCCP urges policymakers to make a commitment to improving the lives of our nation's youngest citizens. Read NCCP's statement. http://www.nccp.org/rel_15.html

 Funding Opportunities:

 QuestBridge College Match Scholarships offer an opportunity for outstanding low-income students to gain admission and full four-year scholarships to some of the nation's top-ranked colleges. College Match scholarships include the following for all four years of college at fifteen partner colleges and universities:
• Full cost of tuition ($22,000 - $34,000 per year, depending on the college)
• Full cost of room and board ($7,000 - $11,000 per year, depending on the college)

http://www.questbridge.org/

 Upcoming Conferences/Events of Interest

 September 27-October 2

National Head Start Association's Leadership Institute and Board Meeting Arlington, VA

http://www.nhsa.org/training/leadership/index.htm

 October 5-6, 2006

5^th Annual Nonprofit Camp Finance: A Two-day Retreat for Executive Directors, Fiscal Staff, Board Members and Financial Professionals working with Nonprofit Organizations.

Council of Community Services of NY, Inc. New Paltz, NY

http://www.ccsnys.org/cf06/index.html

 Phase I: October 18-19

Phase II: November 15-16

Certified Nonprofit Accounting Professional (CNAP) Certification Program. 

http://www.fmaonline.net/custom/cnap.html

 October 23-26, 2006

NCAF Energy Programs Leveraging Conference

St. Petersburg, FL

http://www.ncaf.org/index.asp?Type=B_EV&SEC={59E1978E-A5D4-4828-A6FD-21B1A21D55B6}&DE={8888F7A1-4141-4285-898B-E31502EFFF19}

 November 1-3, 2006

Being a Successful Executive Director Core Competencies and Strategies the Beginning ED: An Intensive Practical Training for New Executive Directors

Council of Community Services of NYS, Inc

Syracuse, NY

http://www.ccsnys.org/edtraining.htm

 November 7-10^th, 2006

CACDE Annual Community Economic Development Conference

Austin, TX

http://www.ncaf.org/vertical/Sites/{7D343F41-761C-4C17-A26E-0AC108C861C4}/uploads/{366EC372-2DE5-4DE2-AB3F-79640A04F111}.PDF

 December 3-4, 2006

BoardSource Leadership Forum

Chicago, IL

http://www.boardsource.org/Workshops.asp?ID=43

 Thanks and have a great weekend!

Denise

 Denise Harlow
Chief Executive Officer
New York State Community Action Association
2 Charles Blvd.
Guilderland, NY  12084
(518) 690-0491
Fax: (518) 690-0498
www.nyscaaonline.org
 
A Member of the Community Action Partnership-Helping People.  Changing Lives.