Local nonprofits are looking at an uncertain future as they scramble to understand the impact of the January federal funding freeze imposed by the Trump administration on their programs.
“Everything we do has some federal funding,” said Rodrigo Sierra, executive director of the Patagonia-based Borderlands Restoration Network (BRN). “Nobody has answers as to what is happening. It’s so murky. It’s making it very hard for us.”
Although numbers are in flux, BRN Finance Director Alexandria Hawkins said that as of late February, about half of the nonprofit’s federal funding had been frozen.
BRN has contracts to do work for several federal agencies, including BLM, the Forest Service and the National Park Service.
“These contracts are for watershed restoration, hands-on restoration of public and private lands in southern Arizona, and the native plant program,” Sierra said. “These are already awarded contracts, with timelines. We are still obligated to do the work, but there’s no funds.”
BRN has an annual program budget of approximately $2 million, with 72% coming from federal funding. BRN is dependent on federal funding to cover 55% of its operating budget of $3 million. Much of the funding for BRN’s seed collecting, seed propagation, seed production and plant production programs comes from the federal government, Sierra said.
No employees have been dismissed at this point, although BRN has paused the hiring of three additional full-time and two seasonal employees.
“Our first line of action is to reduce our expenses,” Sierra said. “Our first priority is to protect our staff and keep them employed as long as we can.”
BRN’s popular annual Borderlands Earth Care Youth (BECY) program, which has graduated nearly 200 students in the last few years, has been canceled for 2025. BECY provides paid summer internships for local youth ages 16-24 to work on restoration projects and learn about environmental challenges and solutions in southern Arizona. This year’s BRN was planning to introduce a BECY program in Cochise County. Two seasonal facilitators and one program coordinator were set to be hired.
BRN has 25 full-time employees. “We are the second biggest employer in Patagonia,” Sierra said. “Our overhead costs are fairly cheap. Most of what comes into the organization goes into paychecks, which have a direct impact on the community.
“This is creating too much stress and distrust. I know sometimes change is needed, but they need to be smarter. I’m waiting for a miracle to happen. I’ll be checking my email.”
Tucson Bird Alliance (formerly Tucson Audubon) has a federal grant-funded forestry program that is working with the Paton Center, Nature Conservancy and private property owners to mitigate the danger of wildfire in Patagonia. Program manager Jay Snowdon said this project is not at present in danger of being canceled, as the federal funds are being administered by the state, which has committed to fund the work even if the funds are frozen by the Trump administration. “[The state is] willing to take that risk,” he said.
One local project that has seen its funding held back, according to Paton Center Director Tom Brown, is restoration work on abandoned mine sites near Mount Wrightson. Tucson Bird Alliance was contracted by the government to tear out invasive species and replant the sites with native plants. This work has been completed, he said, but the funding to reimburse the nonprofit organization has been frozen.
Tucson Bird Alliance holds several federal contracts that are now in limbo. In a recent social media post, the organization wrote “We have lost access to more than $1.4 million in habitat restoration funding and have very little confidence that we will see it return. Being frozen out of these funds means we must pivot to close this funding gap through other efforts, and it means we have not been paid for work already performed in good faith under a written agreement with the federal government.”
In January the National Endowment for the Arts canceled the Challenge America grant program that served rural and underserved communities. The cancellation of this grant is of concern to Cassina Farley, director of the nonprofit Patagonia Creative Arts Association.
“We have gotten NEA grants in the past,” Farley said. “We try to stay away from federal grants and concentrate on local funding, but when you see federal grant opportunities being taken away from rural and underserved communities, the writing’s on the wall. It’s bound to trickle down to the state and local level.
“The loss of the Challenge America grant to rural communities means one less option for funding. You don’t get a lot of general operating grant opportunities for a rural arts program,” she said.
“When you’re a nonprofit and you’re helping people, you’re helping children, you’re helping the environment, and now you’re a target for elimination, it’s saying that what you’re doing doesn’t matter.”
The Senior Citizens of Patagonia lunch and transportation programs have not been affected by the federal funding freeze. The senior lunches offered at the Patagonia Senior Center are funded by a Community Development Block grant, while the transportation program for the elderly and disabled is funded by a grant from the Federal Transportation Administration. These programs are overseen by Southeastern Arizona Governments Organization (SEAGO).
SEAGO Executive Director Chris Bertrees does not anticipate a disruption to these programs.
“We’ve got no direction from the federal government that the program is in any danger of being cut at this time,” he said. “We are doing our best to reassure our clients.”
The Community Foundation of Southern Arizona (CFSA) provides funding for several local and regional nonprofits.
“The not knowing is creating a lot of uncertainty,” CFSA Executive Director Jenny Flynn said. “A lot of revenue comes directly or indirectly from the federal funds. We’re hearing from Human Services that housing, food and support for families in poverty are all in danger of losing funding.
“A lot of donors and fundholders want to be helpful,” Flynn said. “But no amount of money can take the place of federal investment in our community, money that comes from our tax dollars.
“We have to be realistic: philanthropy cannot match what is being lost. The federal funding bucket is much larger.”
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