Database to Track Spending on Human Needs Aimed at Preserving Aid

Last spring many Illinois human-service charities were facing the prospect of slashing, or even closing, their programs after the General Assembly adopted what was dubbed a “doomsday” 2010 state budget. The final budget tempered some of the proposed cuts, but the deep uncertainty about the stability of state revenue prompted two leading philanthropic organizations to start an effort to “follow the money.”

United Way of Metropolitan Chicago and the Chicago Community Trust, a community foundation, are working to build a database that will track both government and private spending on programs to meet human needs in Illinois. The goal: to allow nonprofit groups, lawmakers, and grant makers to see how the economic downturn has affected giving to specific areas and regions.

The groups are working with help from the state, the city of Chicago, and Deloitte, the consulting firm — which has stationed three people at United Way offices for 10 weeks on a pro bono basis.

Terry Mazany, president of the Chicago Community Trust, says the data will help grant makers see areas where they may want to step in.

State budget cuts, he says, are “not spread like peanut butter” — that is, they hurt some areas more than others. State law guarantees a certain level of services in some areas. But others have faced deep cuts this year — for example, a program that helped older people get access to government benefits like food stamps and Medicaid was eliminated, and the budget for a program that helps them get emergency grants for things like rent or medication was cut by 50 percent.

“The more we understand the pattern of the impact of state budget cuts, the better we are able to align our grant making to deliver essential services,” Mr. Mazany says.