Impact of WNY nonprofits climbs to $2B

Buffalo Business First offered the following article about the economic impact of the region's nonprofits:

With combined revenues of more than $1.9 billion, Western New York 233 largest nonprofit entities have a huge impact on the region.

Those with the biggest impact, however, are the top 5 percent, including a dozen organizations with revenues of $25 million or more and thousands of employees, according to this year’s Million Dollar Nonprofits list.

The list, part of an annual research project by Business First, is compiled using federal tax forms from each agency’s 2007 fiscal year to identify the organizations with at least a million dollars in revenues. The list includes human service providers, cultural groups, nursing homes, health-related agencies, economic development organizations and social service groups.

The top four Million Dollar Nonprofits are all providers of services to individuals with disabilities and together have revenues topping $284 million: People Inc. of Amherst, with $102.7 million; The Resource Center of Jamestown, with $82 million; Aspire of WNY Inc. of Amherst, $63 million; and Heritage Centers in Buffalo, $36.4 million.

The top 12 also includes: Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, $34.5 million; CUBRC Inc., $33.4 million; Hospice Buffalo Inc. $33.4 million; Catholic Charities of Buffalo, $30.9 million; Chautauqua Institution, $27.8 million; McCauley Seton Home Care, $26 million; Rental Assistance Corp. of Buffalo, $25.6 million; and Community Action Organization of Erie County, $25.4 million.

More than a quarter of the agencies featured, or 27 percent, have revenues over $10 million, while the greatest percentage, 46 percent, fall into the $1 million to $5 million category.

All data on the 233 Million Dollar Nonprofits, as well as a list of the region’s 25 largest private foundations and a listing of 2010 nonprofit charitable events and fundraiser, can be found in the All About Nonprofits special publication in the Nov. 6 edition of Business First.

Subscribers will find the publication included with their weekly paper, while others can purchase copies on newsstands for $5.95 or by calling Karen Schiffmacher at 716-541-1631.