The Muscular Dystrophy Association, the National Wildlife Federation, Mercy Corps, the New York Botanical Garden, American Youth Hostels, and the San Francisco Symphony were among the nonprofits the federal government said on Monday received loans of $5 million to $10 million through the Paycheck Protection Program.
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, which supports the Guggenheim in New York and other museums, also got a loan in the range of $5 million to $10 million, according to the data.
The data released by the federal government does not provide precise amounts of individual loans; rather, recipients are grouped into a range of dollar amounts.
Many news organizations have found that the data has inaccuracies so it is hard to say exactly how many nonprofits received loans. The Treasury Department data shows that of the organizations that got at least $150,000, some 42,000 were nonprofits. a category that included a wide range of groups, not just charities. We’ve posted the nonprofits listed that received $150,000 or more and hope readers will help us provide an accurate view by sending us details about anything the federal government reported in error.
Nonprofits are eligible for PPP loans that can be largely forgiven if they keep their staffs on the payroll during the health and economic crisis facing the nation.
Organizations receiving loans of $2 million to $5 million, according to the data, included Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the National Urban League, the Nonprofit Finance Fund, the Children’s Defense Fund.
Antony Bugg-Levine, chief executive of the Nonprofit Finance Fund, said in an email that his organization received a $2.1 million loan. “The PPP program has proven to be a lifeline for many of the 100 nonprofits we lend to around the country and thousands of nonprofits we advise,” he said. He added, “Unfortunately, organizations and companies led by and serving people of color are not getting their fair share of this support, a dangerous trajectory that could deepen inequities.”
Errors in the Data
One of the wealthiest organizations listed as a recipient was the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, which had $8.9 billion in assets, according to its most recent financial statement. The Treasury Department said the foundation received a loan of $2 million to $5 million.
However, the community foundation released a statement saying it didn’t receive a loan. Instead, it helped Raising a Reader, a supporting organization, apply for a loan. (It received $259,756.)
The bank that processed the loan initially determined that the community foundation was eligible for more than $2 million, said Chau Vuong, a spokeswoman for the foundation. The amount was subsequently revised to reflect the smaller budget of Raising a Reader, Vuong said.
Private Schools Among Beneficiaries
The data also shows that scores of elementary schools, including elite institutions like Sidwell Friends in Washington, D.C., and the Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School in New York, received loans of $5 million to $10 million. Sidwell, which often educates the children of sitting U.S. Presidents, drew considerable attention over its PPP loan. It shunned pressure to return the money.
Other nonprofit recipients of $2 million or more listed in the federal data include the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland and the Archdiocese of New York.
Several think tanks and advocacy groups are on the list, including Citizens Against Government Waste, Citizens United, the Center for Immigration Studies, and the Ayn Rand Institute, which the federal government said received loans of $350,000 to $1 million. The National Immigration Law Center received a loan of $1 million to $2 million.
The Chronicle welcomes your feedback on the data; please contact surveys@philanthropy.com.
(The Chronicle of Higher Education, the organization that publishes the Chronicle of Philanthropy, has received a loan under the Paycheck Protection Program.)
