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This presentation will focus on the potential impact of federal healthcare policy changes on coverage and access to care in New Jersey. We will discuss changes under consideration by the current Presidential administration and the 119th Congress, including adjustments to program financing, eligibility, and other policy requirements, with potential broad implications for state Medicaid and Marketplace programs. Heather Howard, will provide an overview of the potential federal policy changes, vehicles for advancing and anticipated timing of such changes, and implications for New Jersey funders and nonprofits.
Heather Howard is a Professor of the Practice at Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs, where she co-directs the Global Health Program and is a faculty affiliate of the Center for Health & Wellbeing. She is also director of the State Health and Value Strategies program, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded program focused on assisting states with transforming their health care systems to be affordable, equitable and innovative. She served as New Jersey’s Commissioner of Health and Senior Services from 2008-2010. She also has significant federal experience, having worked as Senator Jon Corzine's Chief of Staff, as Associate Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council and Senior Policy Advisor for First Lady Hillary Clinton, as an Honors Attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division Health Care Task Force, and for the U.S. Representative Nita Lowey (D-NY). She received her B.A. from Duke University and her J.D. from NYU School of Law.
Cost: Free for CNJG Members; $75 for Non Member Grantmakers
This program is only open to staff and trustees from grantmaking organizations.
Programs in this Series:
March 13: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Immigration
March 20: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Health
March 27: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Environment
April 3: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Education
April 10: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Housing
April 17: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Media & Journalism
April 24: Making Sense of Federal Policy: Understanding What it Means for NJ: Arts
Webinar Video
Op-Ed: The Affordable Care Act at 15 years old — successful, but facing challenges - Heather Howard, Rachel Morrow - March 24, 2025
The United States Department of Labor, State of New Jersey, and City of Newark announced a $5 million grant to help provide jobs and support to hundreds of Newark residents returning home from prison over the next two years.
The grant includes $2 million in matching funds from the Bodman–Achelis Foundations, Joan Ganz Cooney, the Charles Edison Fund/Edison Innovation Foundation, the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers, the F.M. Kirby Foundation, the Manhattan Institute, the Nicholson Foundation, and the Victoria Foundation.
“The City can’t do this alone. It takes strategic alliances with federal and state officials, community and faith-based organizations, and the leveraging arm of the philanthropic institutions,” said Mayor Cory Booker. “We established the office of the philanthropic liaison, underwritten by the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers, to help create stronger connections with funders. The matching grants from the private sector show that these efforts are working.”
“The foundation community is delighted to partner with strong government leadership and the city’s philanthropic liaison in addressing the challenges faced by the growing numbers of men and women re-entering society,” said William H. Byrnes, Jr., program officer with the F.M. Kirby Foundation and trustee of the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers.
Over the past three years, the United States Department of Labor has been the lead agency for implementing the federal government’s Prisoner Reentry Initiative. “This grant will enable Newark to build on the success of the President’s Prisoner Reentry Initiative and provide over 1,200 ex-offenders with basic job skills and other assistance to help them succeed in developing new career paths,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor, Eliane L. Chao.
The combined $5 million award will enable the City to strengthen and expand services via a network of partners working through a one-stop center, Opportunity Reconnect, at Essex County College.
The goal of the grant is keep people working, help employers find workers, and keep families safe by successfully integrating ex-prisoners back into their communities through a comprehensive system of services including case management, mentoring, skills assessment, and referrals to health care providers.
State and local agencies will be coordinated to strengthen the city’s network and avoid duplication of efforts.
“We’ve managed to make funders more aware of the barriers that prevent ex-prisoners from being successful," said Jeremy Johnson, Newark’s philanthropic liaison. "Grantmakers have become increasingly involved as a result.”
On March 8, 2017, the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers' Board of Trustees approved that CNJG would take an official position opposing the repeal of the Johnson Amendment by signing on to the Community Letter in Support of Nonpartisanship.” This effort is being led by several national philanthropy and nonprofit serving organizations, including the National Council of Nonprofits and the Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers. Nonpartisanship is a cornerstone principle that has strengthened the public’s trust of the charitable and philanthropic community. Yet the longstanding legal protection (known as the Johnson Amendment) that keeps 501(c)(3) organizations away from the partisan politics of supporting or opposing candidates for office is under imminent threat. One bill outright repealing the 1954 legislation has been proposed, while 2 other proposed bills weaken the legislation.
If the Johnson Amendment were repealed, 501(c)(3) organizations could become entities that are given tax-deductible donations for the purpose of participating in the electoral process, and donors would be completely shielded from disclosure—hindering transparency. Because donors could deduct any contributions, as well as shield their donations from disclosure, it would create an incentive for people to switch from giving money to PACs and super PACs (which are required to identify their donors) to 501(c)(3)s. Furthermore, foundation CEOs, staffs and boards could find themselves feeling pressured to not only endorse political candidates at local, state and federal levels but to support them financially, draining resources that would otherwise be going to charitable purposes.
The Community Letter in Support of Nonpartisanship, signed by nearly 4,500 organizations from every state and every segment of the charitable and foundation communities, makes a strong statement in support of nonpartisanship and urges those who have vowed to repeal or weaken this vital protection to leave existing law in place for nonprofit organizations and the people they serve. On April 5, 2017 the letter was sent to Speaker Paul Ryan, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Leader Nancy Pelosi, Leader Charles Schumer, Chairman Kevin Brady, Chairman Orrin Hatch, Ranking Member Richard Neal, and Ranking Member Ron Wyden, released to the Press, and delivered electronically by the national coalition leaders to all U.S. Senators and Representatives. The Council also discussed this issue with our NJ Representatives and Senators during our recent Foundations on the Hill visits.
70 years after Brown vs. The Board of Education, segregation and resource inequities continue in New Jersey schools. Discussion will center on the lawsuit brought by 9 families with a coalition of civil rights, faith, and social justice groups. Meet Dr. Charles Payne, Director, The Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies Rutgers; Dr. Jesselly De La Cruz of Latino Action Network Foundation; Vivian Fraser of Urban League of Essex County; Jared Hunter with Salvation and Social Justice; and Brandon McKoy of The Fund for New Jersey.
New Jersey boasts one of the top education systems in the U.S. but our public schools are also among the nation’s top 6 or 7 most segregated. We see substantial differences in resources afforded across our 620 districts aligned with home rule. This results in significant harm in outcomes for students in segregated districts, including the 63% of all Black and Latino students who attend schools segregated by race and poverty.
Panelists: Dr. Jeselly De La Cruz, Executive Director at Latino Action Network Foundation; Vivian Cox Fraser, CEO of Urban League of Essex County; Dr. Charles Payne, Director, The Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies, Rutgers University; Jared Hunter, Organizing Director with Salvation and Social Justice; Brandon McKoy, President, The Fund for New Jersey
Cost: Free for CNJG Members, $50 for Non Member Grantmakers.
Webinar Video
Cornwall Research Finding Summary: The Latinx Experience in NJ Schools: A Preliminary Overview
Dr. De La Cruz referenced article from Chalkbeat: New Jersey school segregation case: A look at key points, what’s next in Latino Action Network vs. NJ
New Jersey Organizations and Resources
- American Red Cross – Chapters covering the State of New Jersey
- State of New Jersey Catholic Charities - Diocese of Camden - Diocese of Trenton
- Community Emergency Response Teams provides opportunity for citizen volunteers to be involved in emergency management activities.
- Community Food Bank of New Jersey
- Goodwill NY NJ
- Jersey Cares recruits and engages volunteers in efforts that address community-identified needs.
- NJ 2-1-1 helps people find solutions to personal needs by informing them of resources in their community.
- NJ Department of Human Services: Disasters & Emergencies - Help & Information
- Pass It Along, an affiliate of the Hands on Network, recruits and engages volunteers.
- The Salvation Army - New Jersey Division
- Volunteer Center of Bergen County, Inc.
- Volunteer Lawyer’s for Justice - Provides legal support to New Jersey residents.
- United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey
Nationwide Organizations and Resources
- American Institute for Conservation—Collections Emergency Response Team (AIC-CERT)
Offers free emergency response assistance to cultural organizations with collections. AIC-CERT is supported and managed by the Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation (FAIC) and consists of a force of 107 “rapid responders” trained to assess damage and initiate salvage of cultural collections after a disaster has occurred. - American Red Cross - Disaster Recovery Guides
- BBB Wise Giving Alliance
The BBB Wise Giving Alliance helps donors make informed giving decisions and advances high standards of conduct among organizations that solicit contributions from the public. - Center for Disaster Philanthropy
The when, where, and how of informed disaster giving - Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI)
Provides individuals, groups, embassies and corporations with information and guidance in support of appropriate international disaster relief efforts. - CERF+ Artists’ Relief Exchange along with its partners in the National Coalition for Arts Preparedness and Emergency Response are committed to providing and connected people to emergency relief.
- FEMA
Information from the Federal Emergency Management Agency - FEMA Geo Portal
This portal provides geospatial data and analytics in support of emergency management - FEMA - National Disaster Recovery Framework
This guide provides a flexible structure that enables disaster recovery managers to operate in a unified and collaborative manner to provide effective recovery support to disaster-impacted jurisdictions. - Guide to Navigating FEMA and SBA Disaster Aid for Cultural Institutions
- The Tsunami Learning Project: Lessons for Grantmakers in Natural Disaster Response
This guide, published by Grantmakers Without Borders, offers new tools for grantmakers when responding to natural disasters. - IRS Disaster Relief Resources for Charities and Contributors
In the aftermath of a disaster or in other emergency hardship situations, individuals, employers and corporations often are interested in providing assistance to victims through a charitable organization. The IRS provides a number of resources to help those involved in providing disaster relief through charities. - Disaster Relief, Providing Assistance Through Charitable Organizations
IRS Publication 3833 describes how members of the public can use charitable organizations to provide assistance to victims of disasters or other emergency hardship situations. - Emergency Drying Procedures for Water Damaged Collections
A guide from the Library of Congress - Preparation & Response for Cultural Institutions
A guide from the National Trust for Historical Preservation. - Small Business Administration
Learn about and apply for SBA Disaster Loans for business of all sizes – private and nonprofit
This weekly conference call series welcomed New Jersey-based grantmakers along with national funders and provided an opportunity for grantmakers to hear from a wide range of experts in the field of disaster philanthropy. This series started on September 9, 2013 and concluded on November 4, 2013. The written summaries of each recording are listed below.
CNJG's 2018 Annual Meeting & Holiday Luncheon pre-meeting workshop with Michelle Greanias from PEAK Grantmaking focused on how foundation CEO’s, program officers, staff, and trustees could engage internally to put values-based grantmaking into practice.
Walk the Talk Video