With the Stroke of a Pen:
The Devastating Impacts of Executive Orders on Community & Economic Development Nonprofits
December 2025
Timantha Goff, Managing Editor and Writer
Jad Edlebi, GIS Data Engineer
Key Takeaways
1
Nonprofit-driven economic development projects are being halted as a consequence of executive orders targeting the sector. Survey respondents report not only difficulties in planning future programming but disruption to projects that were already underway.
2
Uncertainty and fear are disrupting day-to-day operations at nonprofit organizations as the direct impact of executive orders is compounded by a retreating philanthropic sector.
3
Immigrants, refugees and minority entrepreneurs are being hit hardest by the combined direct and indirect effects of executive orders aimed at undermining nonprofit community and economic development work.
Introduction
The community and economic development (CED) nonprofit sector has played a pivotal role in the struggle for civil and human rights across a variety of CED policy areas in this country for decades. The vast majority of the monumental advances American society has made have had some sort of connection to passionate leaders, advocates, policy experts, attorneys, researchers and community activists directly working in, or in partnerships with, nonprofits. Additionally, CED nonprofit organizations operating at the national, state and hyperlocal levels have been a vital resource for meeting the material needs of Americans across a variety of socioeconomic and political spectrums.
However, the Trump Administration’s recent efforts to undermine the reach, efficacy and overall existence of these organizations have led to questions and concerns about the fate of these important institutions. The weaponization of executive orders has been an especially lethal tool for causing the maximum amount of difficulties for CED nonprofit organizations while circumventing accountability for the harm being done to the people CED nonprofits serve. CED nonprofits across the country are facing an existential crisis that has never been seen before in the sector’s history.
This qualitative research brief will highlight the effects on CED nonprofits of the myriad of executive orders (EOs) President Trump has issued that have unfairly placed our nation’s CED nonprofits in the crosshairs of the Administration’s frighteningly retrograde agenda. The brief also provides next steps for all of our nation’s most influential stakeholders in combatting this all-out assault on the CED nonprofit sector.
Methodology
Participants
The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) is a member organization with a variety of entities working on behalf of economic justice programs and initiatives, in particular community-based nonprofit organizations. Speaking with some of the nonprofit members of NCRC seemed to be the most logical choice as the convenience sample group for this study.
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Outside of ensuring that all of the participants were actual CED nonprofit organizations and that they were current members of NCRC, there wasn’t any other concrete selection criteria. We sought to include the most diverse range of backgrounds possible to provide the most nuanced perspective on the impacts of the Trump Administration’s executive orders. Survey respondents were informed that their responses would be shared anonymously.
Data Collection
The survey administration and response collection process took place in May and June 2025. For the month of May, the survey was administered via weekly NCRC member-only newsletters with a deadline of the end of that month for their completion. Towards the end of May, the survey was disseminated via NCRC’s social media channels.
For the month of June, the remainder of the 40 survey responses were collected via 1-on-1 phone calls made to nonprofit NCRC member organizations based on a list compiled by NCRC’s Membership team.
The survey was subsequently closed for submissions at the end of this second survey administration period. All gathered responses were again vetted to ensure that all survey respondents were in fact NCRC members and classified as nonprofit organizations.
Analysis Approach
To effectively compare recurring themes across the survey responses given, this study uses a thematic analysis framework to identify key findings. We used the free, open-source qualitative analysis software Taguette to analyze responses given for the following four core survey questions:
- Which Trump Administration executive orders (EOs) have caused a disruption in the services your organization/company/institution provides to community members and other stakeholders? (It’s okay if you don’t know the exact name but please try to provide as much detail as possible)
- What short term impacts have these executive orders had on your clients/community members/stakeholders?
- What have been the effects of the Trump Administration’s executive orders on the operational, financial and/or programmatic health of your organization/company/institution?
- Do you have any other thoughts you’d like to share?
The responses to the first survey question were coded via noteworthy terms and phrases around initiatives, agencies and programming targets that could then be linked to the appropriate executive order. The overlapping themes that are explored and interpreted in the Key Findings and Further Discussion sections below were directly informed by the qualitative coding of words, phrases and sentences from across all four core survey questions.
The survey responses were combed through a total of three times to ensure that any and every perspective given was accounted for in the final qualitative analysis. In order to maintain confidentiality, access to the responses was restricted to the investigator and survey collector, and responses were discarded once the analysis was complete.
Key Findings
Below is a comprehensive treemap detailing the executive orders that were mentioned by survey respondents as having caused their organizations and the communities they served the most issues, along with some of their own perspectives on the damage each executive order has wrought via their provisions:
The size of each respective EO block is representative of the overall number of mentions it received throughout all of the survey question responses. Lastly, while the EO that appears the most (EO-RFPR) was technically not an official executive order, it was a monumental executive action done via memo that had a massive presence in the survey responses and thus was incorporated into the treemap.
Below are the major recurring themes pulled from the survey responses that were collected in order of the number of mentions each received. One of the main takeaways from the survey responses was the intersecting and overarching impacts of various executive orders mentioned that compounded into multiple issues for the work and lives of CED nonprofit organizational staff and the communities that they serve.
Additionally, the majority of survey respondents have either experienced some sort of direct impact from the federal grant funding cuts, pauses and disruptions imposed by the executive orders or reported collateral fallout from the executive orders.
Service disruption and program cancellation
Survey respondents frequently reported having to halt new programs or planned projects or eliminating some programs altogether as executive actions led to federal funding commitments being rescinded. This has effectively led to fewer clients being able to take advantage of the services these nonprofits have been providing to communities in need for years:
“This loss has stalled critical projects that would have provided housing stability and economic opportunity in historically excluded neighborhoods.”
Several of the CED nonprofits surveyed have had to become more nimble when it comes to how their new programming will look given the new budget constraints. One respondent said that they have “had to stop everything to develop risk and contingency plans” due to the executive orders effectively ending their programming by withdrawing its funding.
The mental and emotional toll of the EOs
Fear, anxiety, helplessness and uncertainty stemming from the onset of the executive orders appeared in the majority of survey responses. In particular, the mental and emotional stress that comes with not being able to properly plan for the financial and operational future of their organizations was top of mind for multiple respondents as well:
“Our biggest disruption is uncertainty… Right now we are a financially viable organization but are largely funded by government contracts and grants. It is difficult to make decisions when we are not sure what the next couple years will look like.”
“We just want to know where we stand so we can plan for the future again.”
These detrimental effects have caused a variety of adverse effects for clients and community members. However, several survey respondents that are in leadership roles at their organizations conveyed concern about the overall wellbeing for members of their staff given the uncertainty of their own livelihoods being at stake as well:
“One of the greatest impacts has been on the mental health of our entire team. No one should have to live with this fear.”
Effects on immigrant and refugee populations
The federal funding cuts have had major implications for CED nonprofit organizations providing services to members of the immigrant community. Multiple respondents reported their programs are going underutilized as clients stop participating:
“Some delayed or withdrew from applying for loans, attending workshops or seeking technical assistance out of fear of exposure, legal repercussions or the possibility of jeopardizing their residency status.”
Undocumented clients are deciding to forgo important services and opportunities in order to keep themselves and their families safe from possible apprehension efforts from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. Multiple survey respondents said that the looming threat of undergoing deportation proceedings is making their clients wary of taking the chance of public exposure by accessing nonprofits’ services:
“Many of the undocumented residents we have historically served are going without critical resources as they are in fear of ICE detainment at food banks, local shelters and other spaces offering needed resources and services.”
“Many of the workers for the rehab project are no longer coming to the job in fear of ICE therefore causing even more delays.”
Reductions in staff and hiring freezes
The federal funding cuts have led many CED nonprofits to make difficult decisions on how best to stay afloat financially, leading many to cut vital staff positions. This will inevitably lead to even less services and programming being rendered to the most vulnerable communities:
“This was a 50% cut to our grant funding and resulted in us having to lay off some longstanding members of our team.”
“We’ve had to lay off staff… Therefore, we are even more overworked.”
It has also had a ripple effect on CED nonprofit organizations that have been providing financial support to smaller community-based initiatives. One survey respondent said that “Our members are being impacted financially. Many are laying off staff.”
Client financial instability
The financial struggles facing clients of the CED nonprofits surveyed showed up often across multiple survey responses. This further illustrates the complexity of the effects of the EOs in foreseen and unforeseen ways for the communities CED nonprofits serve:
“By increasing tariffs on lumber and steel and virtually all building materials, the cost to build affordable housing for rent is going up so the price to build will also rise making safe, affordable housing increasingly more difficult.”
“Cost of living increases [are] raising the number of families with expenses higher than [their] income. [The] fear of job loss is slowly turning [in]to reality for many with the expectation that unemployment will increase.”
Several survey respondents mentioned concerns that clients would have to look for alternative ways to make ends meet given federal social safety net cuts that could lead them into an insurmountable debt cycle:
“Many individuals became more susceptible to predatory lenders, leading to financial setbacks.”
Funding changes at the philanthropic level
Philanthropic institutions, one of the largest financial backers of the CED nonprofit sector, have had to make hard decisions around how they will operate in a federal environment newly hostile towards any social justice-oriented work. Unfortunately, nonprofits have been left confused and worried about where this leaves them in the long run while the philanthropic sector figures out next steps for itself:
“The combination of shrinking federal dollars and tighter geographic preferences in philanthropy is putting additional strain on community-based nonprofits like ours that serve broader areas.”
“What's also troubling is that the foundations and corporations don't seem to be stepping up like [with] the response in the early COVID days. It feels like most are taking a pause, doing strategic planning, assessing needs and largely just sitting on the sidelines.”
The debilitating uncertainty of the federal executive orders has caused continued confusion and hesitation for philanthropic organizations as much as the nonprofits they provide funding:
“One of our most reliable funders has shifted to supporting only nonprofits in its home region and many others are overwhelmed with requests.”
“[The] philanthropic community seem[ing] to be at a standstill trying to figure out how to counter [the] dramatic assault on community investment.”
Effects on BIPOC entrepreneurs and developers
Several of the survey respondents mentioned executive orders that directly targeted small business development and community development funding programs for historically underrepresented groups as a point of contention:
“There were significant proposed cuts and regulatory changes to federal programs supporting small businesses, particularly those benefiting women, minorities, and low-income individuals:”
“The uncertainty surrounding small business and community development funding also disrupted planning for some of our strategic partners. [It] made it more difficult for our stakeholders to confidently allocate resources to minority and low-income entrepreneurs during this period.”
Black and minority developers who already had to deal with a lack of funding opportunities before the federal funding crisis are now at risk of not seeing their equitable housing projects come to fruition for communities most in need of affordable housing:
“These funds were critical to enabling Black and minority developers to access capital for housing construction in underinvested communities.”
Closing of operations/unsure operational future
The federal funding cuts created by the executive orders have left several CED nonprofit organizations surveyed questioning whether they can continue to operate given the lack of funding options available to replace the grant funding that was lost and no way to guarantee they can bounce back from the current funding cuts:
“These abrupt interruptions to funding and programming have compromised our current operations and our ability to support the economic vitality of our region.”
“I am extremely concerned that [the] organization will have to close their doors or stay open and be impotent.”
A few of the CED nonprofits surveyed said that they will have to close their doors since the federal funding that was rescinded was crucial for the operational sustainability and the financial health of the organization:
“This affects our operational and financial status going forward. We will probably have to shut our doors in less than 12 months.”
Effects on rural communities
Several survey respondents worried that rural communities that have already received the short end of the stick when it comes to community and economic development opportunities will now be at risk of having none whatsoever:
“Economic development in rural and urban areas are at risk.”
“I fear for our rural members.”
A few CED nonprofits that provide services to rural communities have had to scale back or end the programming altogether:
“We no longer provide resident services to low income families across the state, particularly in rural areas.”
Further Discussion
Areas for additional research opportunities
Outside of a few academic studies highlighting some of the impacts of federal attacks on refugee resettlement programs during President Trump’s first term, there currently aren’t any studies around the impacts of the executive orders signed during this current term. The Administration’s more targeted attacks on specific nonprofit organizations and the ripple effects this will have in future years for underserved communities is a topic that is worthy of future research.
There are several additional possibilities for future areas of research when it comes to properly tracking the impacts of the federal executive orders on CED nonprofits and affected nonprofit organizations writ large. Researchers should consider examining the long-term operational and financial outcomes for impacted CED nonprofits, the long-term adverse effects on the larger service areas and client communities where impacted CED nonprofits provide programming and services, whether meaningful funding adjustments were made by the philanthropic and private sectors as well as state/local government entities and the resulting trends on EO-impacted CED nonprofits.
The need for independent tracking of EO outcomes
The institutions that would normally be expected to track these sorts of outcomes (i.e. federal agencies, watchdog journalism publications, think tanks at colleges and universities, etc.) are all facing their own existential crises due to the direct legal, legislative, judicial and executive challenges of this current administration. Therefore, the need for independently funded, open-source mechanisms for nonprofit organizations, the various stakeholders advocating on their behalf and the general public to track the concrete outcomes of these EOs for accountability reasons is paramount.
However, there are multiple public interest law firms with online executive order trackers, with the National Council of Nonprofits creating the most comprehensive overview of the executive orders affecting nonprofit organizations along with several helpful resources for nonprofits on how to navigate these uncertain times and stay afloat. Ensuring the accuracy of the internal data and mechanisms for tracking all financial, operational and programmatic outcomes will become even more important, not only in proving the importance of the work but in procuring additional funding and better supporting policy and advocacy efforts.
Additionally, academic institutions that are in a better position financially to challenge these disruptive federal actions would be best positioned to track these outcomes. This data tracking work is vital in holding executive and federal legislative players accountable for the inevitable fallout of these executive orders on CED nonprofit organizations and impacted communities as well. Lastly, finding funding sources that are either nonpartisan in nature or that have a firm commitment to the ethical ethos of the work of our nation’s CED nonprofits would provide the best permanent funding streams for this accountability work.
Next Steps
Given the volatile and unpredictable nature of the federal executive orders in conjunction with other ongoing legal, legislative and regulatory challenges to CED nonprofit organizations, it is imperative that all stakeholders work in a collaborative and strategic manner to ensure our nation’s nonprofits are properly supported through this difficult period.
Policymakers at the state, county and municipal levels should be focusing on creating legal and legislative safeguards against the attacks on CED nonprofits at a statewide level. Additionally, providing more funding to nonprofits operating in their respective jurisdictions that are providing vital services would be extremely beneficial.
The philanthropic sector (especially those operating at the national level) needs to find ways to support the work of CED nonprofits at a higher capacity regardless of geographic determinations or possible fears of attacks themselves. The social and economic capital that the philanthropic sector possesses needs to be utilized to its maximum potential, not reduced to a point where CED nonprofit organizations are left vulnerable to the whims of a chaotic federal administration.
Industry leaders across all sectors should bolster workforce development opportunities in historically underrepresented communities along with strengthening public-private-nonprofit partnerships to further the reach of CED nonprofits’ work given the budgetary constraints many nonprofits are facing.
CED nonprofit organizations should still vigorously advocate at all governmental levels for continued funding in addition to the policy and advocacy efforts they are still able to take part in despite the new restrictions. Detailed below is some additional advocacy guidance that could help CED nonprofits make some positive gains in the hostile federal environment:
Cultivate unlikely partnerships
This current political climate calls for the creation of alliances with historically unlikely allies, including previously adversarial entities who also share similar pain points with where things are going in this country at a federal level. Superficial disagreements and coalition rifts are a dangerous distraction from the arduous road ahead, and mending them is of the utmost importance.
Focus on state & local advocacy efforts
Honing in on possible legal and legislative wins at the state, county and municipal levels will be necessary to continue the momentum for CED nonprofits during such difficult times. Placing additional emphasis on community organizing efforts across socioeconomic and political lines could help bolster the reach of state and local advocacy efforts, given the far-reaching impacts of these EOs across communities.
Strengthen narrative strategies
Actors in this space need to form a cross-sector and multi-stakeholder narrative strategy to undergird their ongoing advocacy efforts. There are copious amounts of disinformation about community and economic development in the public sphere, which must be combatted collaboratively. Alignment on a coalition-wide policy and advocacy communications strategy with clear, actionable and nuanced approaches to audience outreach is paramount as well.
Conclusion
The executive orders being wielded against organizational agents of societal change in the most destructive ways could have long-lasting impacts on the economic stability of communities across this country. The coordinated chaos is damaging organizations of all sizes and across a wide array of programmatic focus areas. As one survey respondent poignantly stated, “We are not all the same, but we each hold a vital place in the larger system—like bearings in a wheel. If one is missing or forced out of alignment, the entire mechanism begins to fail. And right now, our country is struggling under the weight of that imbalance.”
Given this, it will require a more bold and strategic response unlike anything the CED nonprofit sector and its stakeholders have ever been asked to undertake before. It is not the time for muted, purely pragmatic approaches to a system that no longer values those previously shared moral and ethical underpinnings of governance.
The literal lives and livelihoods of entire communities in this country are at stake. We must act with urgency and resilience to form a true buffer against the relentless federal attacks on justice, equity, freedom and economic mobility. We must all send a very clear message that CED nonprofit organizations attempting to provide communities with the tools and resources to realize their full potential and lead fulfilling lives should be commended and supported, not punished and disempowered.
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