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Economic Benefits of Michigan's Nonprofit Sector 2009

Executive Summary

Michigan’s nonprofit sector generates significant economic benefits for state residents. It is both geographically diverse, with organizations in every county of the state, and operationally diverse (click here to see maps of these regions). Michigan’s nonprofits can be found in every subsector of the service economy, including a strong presence in health care, human services, education, and the arts.

This report documents that Michigan’s nonprofit organizations:

• Number over 47,000—an increase of 14 percent since 2001 (41,000) and 25 percent since 1997—with nearly 10,000 new organizations since 1997
• Employ directly more than 440,000 people (an increase of 40 percent from 315,000 in 2001), or ten percent of the Michigan workforce
• Pay their employees more than $4 billion per quarter
• Generate an additional 161,000 jobs as a result of spending by the organizations
• Hold assets of over $179 billion, up 71 percent from $105 billion in 2003
• Receive more than $133 billion in annual revenue, an increase of 85 percent from $72 billion in 2003
• Generate more than $108 billion each year in overall economic activity, through direct expenditures of more than $60 billion, which creates indirect and induced economic effects of an additional $48 billion

In addition, nonprofit expenditures provide vital economic support to the state’s economy, and nonprofits directly employ at least one in every ten Michigan workers. While the nonprofit sector is not traditionally thought of as an economic powerhouse, its billions of dollars in expenditures—and the fact that demand for many nonprofit services increases during times of economic stress—show that a healthy and vibrant nonprofit sector is critical to Michigan’s future.

Download the full report (PDF, 605kb) or the 6-pg brief (PDF, 597kb)

View or Download Detailed Regional Tables

Watch the Webinar explaining the Economic Benefits study and how the data was compiled (due to size, this webinar may take a few minutes to load)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND METHODOLOGIES

Public Sector Consultants compiled the most recent data available on nonprofit organizations in Michigan. Sources for the data were

• the Internal Revenue Service—the Business Master File for Exempt Organizations for 1997, 2001, 2006 2007, and 2008 (obtained through the National Center for Charitable Statistics), which list 47,229 nonprofit organizations in Michigan;
• the National Center for Charitable Statistics—the 1997, 2001, and 2006 Core Files, which report the assets of tax-exempt organizations with gross receipts over $25,000;
• the Michigan Office for Labor Market Information—official source of the state employment figures;
• the U.S. Census Bureau—population figures; and
• individual annual reports for the 15 largest private foundations .

To establish the full impact of nonprofit organizations on the overall state economy, PSC used IMPLAN, an economic model of the state economy. In this model, an organization’s purchases from vendors in other sectors are multiplied, along with the earnings of its employees, based on assumptions about the goods and services that they purchase from sources beyond their employer. (See the full report for more information about the data sources, as well as notes regarding several shortcomings in the data.)

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About the Sponsor

The Council of Michigan Foundations (CMF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership association of nearly 400 grantmaking organizations working together to strengthen, promote and increase philanthropy in Michigan.
www.michiganfoundations.org
(616) 842-7080

Michigan Nonprofit Association (MNA) increases the capacity of Michigan’s nonprofits to serve, strengthen and transform communities. MNA is affiliated with Michigan Campus Compact, Highway T and Volunteer Centers of Michigan.
www.mnaonline.org
(517) 492-2400

The Johnson Center at Grand Valley State
University improves communities by the application of knowledge, which unleashes the power of nonprofits, foundations, and individuals.
www.gvsu.edu/jcp
(616) 331-7585