The Federal Reserve on Friday, July 17, opened its Main Street Lending Program to nonprofits, allowing education, health, social service and other groups with as few as 10 employees to tap central bank funding.
The announcement extends the Fed’s pandemic safety net to a new sector of the economy, one that may face unique financial struggles given the likely dip in charitable donations during the COVID-19 health crisis.
Along with lowering the employee threshold from the initial proposal in mid-June, the Fed will allow nonprofits to get more of their revenue from donations as opposed to service fees, and to operate on slimmer margins. The Federal Reserve is still developing the final loan documents.