The Alberta Nonprofit Survey: Road to Recovery
The COVID-19 pandemic has altered our communities across the province, in ways we couldn’t have imagined before. What does a post-pandemic reality look like and what does it mean for the future of nonprofits and charities in Alberta? In this blog post, we discuss how the data collected through the Alberta Nonprofit Survey (ANS) will help to ensure that the Alberta nonprofit and charitable sector has a voice in a recovery plan.
City Council Approves Financial Relief Packages for Calgary Nonprofits
On May 11, City Council approved two financial relief packages for Calgary nonprofits. Community associations and social recreation groups who are struggling to meet fixed daily expenses will be allocated $6 million to support their immediate financial needs. In this blog post, CCVO covers the details of the financial relief packages and discusses what more is needed from the government during these unprecedented times.
Alberta Nonprofit Survey 2020: We want to hear from you!
CCVO’s annual Alberta Nonprofit Survey (ANS) launched on April 27! The ANS is here to support your organization by amplifying your voice in advocating for the nonprofit sector. This year, we celebrate 10 years of conducting the Alberta Nonprofit Survey in gathering meaningful data about nonprofits across the province. The survey is an opportunity for your organization to share the impact that COVID-19 has had on your nonprofit or charitable organization and help tell the story of the Alberta nonprofit sector.
City Council Approves 2020 Adjustments to City Budget
City Council approved the 2020 adjustments to the City Budget on Friday, November 29. The decision was made to approve the municipal tax rate increase scenario of 1.5%. Although this is lower than the pre-approved 3.03% tax scenario, the 1.5% increase helped the city maintain a number of services that may have otherwise been cut. This CCVO Blog post looks at the highlights of the 2020 adjustments to the budget.
Board Governance in a Not-for-Profit
The Not-for-Profit team at Catalyst is passionate about ensuring the organizations they work with are set up for success, so they can spend their time really focusing on the impact they set out to create in the world. In this guest blog, Paige Shaw from the Catalyst Group discusses Board governance and how to ensure that your Board is comprised of passionate and capable individuals who believe in your mission and want to see your organization grow and succeed.
Federal Election 2019 and the Nonprofit Sector
On October 21st, 2019, Canadians will head to the polls and vote in the country’s 43rd federal election. All parties have released their platforms and have had their say on the public stage during the federal leaders debates. After examination of the platforms of four of the major political parties (Liberal Party of Canada, the Conservative Party of Canada, the New Democratic Party of Canada, and the Green Party of Canada), very little is mentioned about the nonprofit sector as a whole. This blog post provides a brief summary of the party platforms in relation to the nonprofit sector as well as further resources to help nonprofits make informed decisions in this upcoming election.
Federal Election #nonprofitsvote Campaign Launches Today!
It’s back! CCVO has launched #nonprofitsvote for the federal election coming up on October 21. We received positive feedback on the inaugural #nonprofitsvote campaign from the recent Alberta provincial election, and you all had so much fun participating, that we’ve decided to do it all again for the federal election!
#nonprofitsvote: Tips on Voter Engagement
With the federal election set for October 21, and the campaign period officially underway, nonprofits have an important role to play in voter engagement. As trusted sources of information, nonprofits hold unique positions in communities, and can help inform and empower the people that they serve to exercise their right to vote. This blog post serves as a guide on tips to increase voter engagement.
Government of Alberta’s Public Inquiry into Environmental Groups
Last month, Premier Jason Kenney announced that the government will launch a public inquiry into the foreign funding sources of environmental groups who are critical of Alberta’s energy sector policies. Before that, Premier Kenney promised to establish an ‘Energy War Room’ to respond to campaigns directed at Alberta's oil and gas sector. Here is what we know and how we think it might impact the nonprofit sector, particularly organizations that hold charitable status designation through the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
Alberta Government Fiscal Update
The Alberta government provided a fiscal update yesterday, the first one from this government since assuming office a little more than four months ago. The update was given by Finance Minister, Travis Toews. Nonprofits, as many others, were likely looking to the update to provide some clarity and certainty after the many funding challenges that we’ve been hearing from nonprofits in the last few months, some of which have been reported in media.
A Charity’s Guide to the Canada Revenue Agency
In order to become a registered charity, you must apply for such status with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), which can be a time consuming process. This may be an important step to securing funding as only registered charities can issue receipts that make the donations eligible for a tax credit on an individual donor’s personal income tax return. This blog post serves as a nonprofit guide to navigating the CRA, covering tax reporting, rules to follow, and audits.
Provincial Spending Update
If your nonprofit has been following the news or social media, you’ve likely seen some rumours of looming provincial cuts starting to swirl. The new provincial government is expected to release a budget in late October and speculation as to what it will hold has already begun. We have heard in traditional media, on social media, and directly from some organizations, that they are experiencing a “funding freeze”, ranging across sectors and issues, and is likely related to the fact that there is only an interim supply budget currently in place. This blog post provides an update on provincial spending in the midst of the UCP’s transition period and prior to their budget being finalized in October.
CCVO responds to upcoming City of Calgary Budget Cuts
On Monday July 22, Calgary City Council will meet to review Administration’s proposal on cutting $60 million in the City’s operational spending. The City has been asked to make these cuts to make way for property tax relief for business owners in Calgary. In this blog post, CCVO responds to these budget cuts in the context of the nonprofit community, and discusses our recommendations to the City of Calgary.
Alberta Legislative Round Up: 13 Bills Passed by the New Government
The first sitting of the new government began on May 22 with a Speech from the Throne and just concluded on July 4 with 13 bills passed relating to 55 of the UCP platform commitments. The House will not sit again until October when a budget is expected to be tabled. To give nonprofits an easy reference to all the legislation, this blog post provides a brief summary of each bill.
Bridging the Nonprofit Digital Divide with Sector Data
Part of the purpose of CCVO’s annual Alberta Nonprofit Survey (ANS) is to understand the adaptive capacity of the nonprofit sector. This includes the capacity for nonprofits to be technology savvy to meet the challenges of a fast-paced information age. We need this local data to tell the story of nonprofits in Alberta. This story helps inform government policies and can help give the push to self-organize around issues that matter to the nonprofit sector. Read more about how this year’s Alberta Nonprofit Survey will contribute to building an accurate picture of the sector.