Membership Dues: FAQs about Dues Adjustment for 2025
What was the impetus for adjusting PNY’s dues schedule for 2025?
There were two driving factors for adjusting Philanthropy New York’s dues schedule. First, we have not changed our membership dues levels since 2012, and adjustments were necessary to ensure we can continue resourcing PNY’s programming, community-building, and advocacy efforts effectively. A decade ago, members invested in a successful growth strategy for PNY, which has built our capacity to partner more deeply with members to advance positive social change. The new dues schedule creates a collective revenue structure to sustain this work together and aims to have 70 - 75% of budgeted expenses covered by membership contributions.
Second, we recognized that the previous dues structure was regressive and did not fully align with our core value of equity. The new schedule is designed to establish a more equitable financial contribution model.
How were the new dues rates determined?
Philanthropy New York’s staff, board, and Committee on Members crafted a dues schedule that aligns with our values of equity and community and maintains a relatively simple and streamlined approach for a wide and diverse community of organizations. In determining the new schedule, we held four objectives:
- Decrease the regressive nature of the current dues schedule.
- Define a minimum financial contribution to the community.
- Adjust the levels to reflect current grantmaking ranges in our community and reduce variability within levels.
- Create a more equitable approach for grantmaking public charities that fundraise the majority of their grants budget.
How does PNY’s membership dues structure compare to similar organizations?
At Philanthropy New York, membership revenue covers more of our budget than many of our peer regional and national philanthropic organizations. This is an intentional, values-based decision. Institutional membership support from a wide base of members - as opposed to a fee-for-service model or individual memberships - ensures that PNY’s vibrant learning and practice community is accessible to all staff and that we are creating equitable pathways for leadership in our sector.
Many other models exist in our sector and reflect the programmatic structure of each respective organization and how that funder community has chosen to resource their collaborative work. For example, we have peer organizations that do more of their work through large conferences and derive revenue through registration fees and sponsorships and peers who have a small group of foundations provide significant core support for the whole community. Understanding how our peers are making decisions in alignment with their programmatic models and community composition provided helpful data for PNY’s staff, board and Committee on Members so that we were learning from our peers and making a decision that made sense for PNY’s context.
How does this impact PNY’s work?
The updated dues schedule is more than just a financial adjustment—it’s a strategic move to strengthen and sustain our community's ability to drive meaningful change in the philanthropic sector. Along with the resources that members contribute to specific programs, right-sizing our dues structure makes it possible for PNY to create dynamic, responsive spaces for learning and growth.
What can members expect from PNY?
This dues adjustment positions Philanthropy New York to advance our anti-racist commitments both internally and in our programmatic offerings. For example, we will continue to invest in technical skills around facilitation, racial equity analysis, and program design. We will continue to offer impactful programming that supports all staff within foundations to evolve their practices in service to equity and lead from where they sit in the organization. And, we will continue to organize funders to use their power effectively to have a positive impact on the nonprofit ecosystem in New York. In alignment with their fiduciary responsibility, PNY’s Board will review the organization’s financial structure regularly to determine the best path for resourcing our collective work.