Catalyst Weekly Policy Briefing Issue IX: DEIA, Health, and Beyond

Hello again.

Thank you for your continued interest in our Weekly Policy Briefing. You’ve shared it with colleagues, forwarded it to friends, and made it our fastest-growing newsletter. Starting this week, we will shift to delivering this newsletter every other week.

Here’s a look at what happened this week. (Catch up on our previous installments of this briefing here.)

THE FACTS

Philanthropy and DEI: new guidance

• The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Department of Justice provided a framework to better (though not fully) understand the meaning of “illegal DEIA,” which was referenced in the January 21 executive order titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.”
• DEIA activities will be weighed for compliance with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. This may have consequences for:
  • Targeted hiring practices, employee resource groups with participation criteria, mentorship, training, and other programs focused on protected characteristics.
  • Training on DEIA could also be considered a discriminatory practice.
• This change does not mean you must stop the work you are doing to provide targeted support to employees and community members. However, it does mean you should develop clear documentation, if you do not already have it, about the parameters of eligibility and how you make decisions. Have questions on how to do this, or how others are approaching this? Please indicate your interest in Catalyst holding an “open office hours” session with expert legal counsel on this topic here.
• To better understand the implications of these executive orders, you can join the United Philanthropy Forum on Wednesday, April 2, at 10:00 am for a virtual briefing in partnership with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights on the impacts of these executive actions for philanthropic organizations.

Health

• The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Thursday an additional 10,000 full-time employees will be eliminated, resulting in an overall workforce reduction of 20,000 (one-quarter). Additionally, roughly half of the divisions will be consolidated, going from 28 to 15.
  • HHS divisions include the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
  • Those being folded into a new Administration for Healthy America include oversight of community health centers and mental health.
• HHS stated on Wednesday that it would cut about $11.4 billion in grants that were made during the COVID-19 response to state and community health departments. Some states have reported already receiving letters from the CDC and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration on these cuts.
• San Diego is consistently identified as a top three life sciences market in the United States, according to research by the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation. Funding from the NIH plays a significant role in the innovation industry, which (alongside defense and tourism) ranks as one of the largest employers and economic drivers in the region.
• In addition to reductions in funding and staff, health resources for LGBTQ people, especially transgender individuals, continue to be purged or disavowed from federal resources, even when courts require they be provided.

Journalism and News

• Congressional Republicans accused PBS and NPR of institutional bias in a fiery hearing.
• The Associated Press (AP) continues to seek a judicial intervention to restore its access to the White House press pool. They were removed in February after the news outlet did not follow the executive order that renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
• The director of Voice of America sued Trump administration officials over the government’s attempt to shut it down.
• To best support news outlets at this time, consider supporting local nonprofit news outlets like Daylight San Diego, inewsource, KPBS, Times of San Diego, Voice of San Diego, and others. Find ethnic media outlets that tell the stories of Native people, communities of color, and immigrants in Imperial Valley and San Diego County via the Ethnic Media Services database.

Other news

• Student loan administration will move from the Department of Education to Small Business Administration. Everyone with student loan debt – 44 million borrowers – will now need to learn new procedures, which have yet to be announced. This includes 8 billion students whose loans had been forgiven by the previous administration but who may now have to repay that full amount. In California alone there were 3.7 million individuals with student loans, accounting for $141 billion of debt as of September 2024, according to the Department of Education.
• US Citizenship and Immigration Services, under DHS, announced that green card applications by refugee and asylee applicants, including those currently in the United States and approved for asylum, would not be reviewed, pending “additional screening” of applicants. It was not stated what additional due diligence would be required. The president also signed an order that would require proof of U.S. citizenship to vote in federal elections.
• Refugee resettlement agencies, the San Diego Rapid Response Network, and an Imperial Valley coalition are working to support people who arrived in the country but now have no federal support. If you are interested in learning more about the work happening in our region, contact me.
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TAKEAWAYS

• While no one grantmaker can replace federal funds dollar-for-dollar or support the needs of the entire region, we can coordinate a robust response. Funders are invited to reach out to us to get connected to discussions on a coordinated response. Have one-on-one conversations with your grantees to understand what they need. While some may need funds, others may need a partner to speak with their board of directors, and a third might need something else.
  • Have one-on-one conversations with your grantees to understand what they need. While some may need funds, others may need a partner to speak with their board of directors, and a third might need something else.
• Fund coalition work and advocacy. If you need a refresher on funding advocacy (hint: you can fund most things), the Bolder Advocacy library offers numerous resources.

RESOURCES

• Join the United Philanthropy Forum on Wednesday, April 2, at 10:00 am, for a virtual briefing in partnership with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights to discuss the implications of the administration’s executive actions targeting DEIA initiatives for philanthropic organizations.
• Connect with Grantmakers in Health, a national funder organization deeply connected to philanthropic impacts and response.
  • Read this statement issued by GIH President Cara James issued in late February.
  • Attend the GIH conference in June to discuss the critical needs and services of health and healthcare.
• Consider adding your name to the sign-on letter for this new public commitment authored by Trust Based Philanthropy, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, and National Center for Family Philanthropy, which invites funders to work together to move in solidarity with nonprofits, mobilize money in trust-based ways, and nurture possibility and innovation.

Talk to you next week,

Megan Thomas
President & CEO
Catalyst of San Diego & Imperial Counties