Contact: Lisa James Goldsberry (518) 437-4989

ALBANY, N.Y. (April 10, 2003) - Nonprofit agencies in the Capital Region are major contributors to the vitality of the Tech Valley region�s economy and quality of life, according to the most wide-ranging study to date on the subject conducted by the University at Albany�s Center for Women in Government and Civil Society. The new report, A $4 Billion Growth Industry that Cares: The Impact of the Nonprofit Sector on the Capital Region of New York State, provides surprising new information about the sector�s importance in the region, such as: �

• The Capital Region economy is especially dependent on the nonprofit sector; the region ranks second behind only the New York City metropolitan area in total nonprofit revenue. �
• The more than 1,500 nonprofit agencies in the Capital Region have combined revenues of over $4 billion. �
• The total direct and indirect annual impact of nonprofits in the Capital Region is $7.8 billion, or 20 percent of the region�s economic output. �
• Nonprofits in the Capital Region account for nearly 1 in 5 private sector jobs. �
• Nonprofit agencies raise substantial support from non-government sources to finance programs that serve the public. They leverage $5-$10 of private funds for every $1 of government revenue. �
• A substantial number of Capital Region residents rely on nonprofit agencies for health care, education, cultural activities, and other services.

1. Twelve nonprofit agencies alone provided services to more than three-quarters of a million people in the Capital Region and adjacent counties. -
2. For every two employees who work in these agencies, another individual volunteers.

Judith R. Saidel, director of the Center, said �This effort represents an important collaboration between the University at Albany and the community and presents, for the first time, a comprehensive study of the remarkable impact of the nonprofit sector on the Capital Region economy and culture.The analysis helps to more fully explain the interplay between government, the nonprofit agencies supported in part to deliver publicly funded services, and the general community.�

The study was initiated and guided by the Nonprofit Executive Roundtable Planning Group, a consortium of 12 agencies in the region. The Roundtable�s purpose is to conduct analysis and research of value to the nonprofit sector, identify and foster best practices, and strengthen nonprofit programs and operations through partnerships with the University. The program was initiated by a legislative grant.

�There is a serious gap in the understanding of government leaders, the business sector, and the community at large about who the nonprofit sector is, what it does, and what it contributes to society at large, as well as to the economy,� said Alan Krafchin, chief executive officer of the Center for the Disabled and member of the Executive Roundtable. �This study attempts to put a face on who we are and what we do. Hopefully, this information will help all of us make better decisions about the services needed to maintain the quality of life in the Capital Region.�

Copies of the report are available at www.cwig.albany.edu or by contacting Alison Olin at (518) 442-3898.

Established in 1844 and designated a center of the State University of New York in 1962, the University at Albany's broad mission of excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, research and public service engages 17,000 diverse students in eight degree-granting schools and colleges.

For more information about this nationally ranked University, visit https://www.albany.edu.

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