CINCINNATI — As the Trump administration marks its first 100 days in the Oval Office, Cincinnati nonprofits are underscoring the impact of its actions on two fronts: immigration and federal funding.
"It's incredibly uncertain and stressful, I think, and it's been a distraction: everything that's happening in Washington, D.C.," said Danielle Clore, CEO of Kentucky Nonprofit Network.
Clore said nonprofits employ about a tenth of Kentuckians, generating about $27.4 billion annually in expenditures and payroll.
"We are the third-largest private sector employer in the Commonwealth," she said. "The ripple effect is very blatant. It doesn't matter if you receive those (federal) funds or not, you're going to be impacted."
In January, the Trump administration, through its Office of Management and Budget (OMB), issued a memo calling for a funding freeze of trillions of dollars worth of previously allocated federal funding, including grants awarded to U.S. nonprofits.
WATCH: Nonprofits explain how their work in the Tri-State has been impacted in Trump's first 100 days in office
While the memo ordering the freeze has since been rescinded, Clore said uncertainty looms — particularly as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) continues to cost-cut at a breakneck pace.
"When you add this level of uncertainty and, quite frankly, chaos, it's a whole new level," Clore said. "Organizations are really just trying to keep their head above water."
Since January, DOGE, which is tasked with making the government more efficient and slashing federal spending, has laid off thousands of government employees and, according to its government website, cut billions of dollars worth of federal contracts.
As government funding opportunities dwindle, Clore said private donations would need to increase by around 280% to make up for the loss.
"(Nonprofits) will attempt their best to be creative and ensure that folks have the care that they need," Clore said. "But I anticipate it's going to look very different, and our fear is the folks who get left behind."
Cincinnati nonprofit Heartfelt Tidbits has not been impacted by funding cuts, CEO Sheryl Rajbhandari said, but other actions taken by the administration have affected its operations.
"What I'm trying to do is just focus on every day as it is," she said. "I don't believe the situation will get better. I think everyone will be dealing with a much larger issue as time goes on."
Heartfelt Tidbits works to assist immigrants and refugees in settling in Southwest Ohio.
"I always tell people, everything you need to do in your life to get up every day and be successful, that's what we're organizing for them," Rajbhandari said.
The nonprofit provides legal resources, English classes, job opportunities, housing opportunities, community integration support and more for the group. Since January, Rajbhandari said requests for assistance have grown rapidly.
"We aren't seeing those new refugees, but our immigrant clients have tripled in size," she said. "From a burnout phase, I would say now, those 14-hour days are 16 (hours). They're definitely seven days a week."
For its part, the Trump administration says it needs to prioritize deportations because increased enforcement will "protect national sovereignty and security."
"It's quite simple: obey the law, respect the law and don't obstruct federal immigration officials and law enforcement officials when they are simply trying to remove public safety threats from our nation's communities," Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, said on Monday. "The American public (doesn't) want illegal alien criminals in their communities."
Rajbhandari said the way immigrants have been portrayed in recent years is misconstrued.
"The biggest misconception that people have is that (immigrants) are entitled to public benefits," said Rajbhandari. "This (Trump term), the fear was so rapid, even before it began. So, people (were) not wanting to leave their homes and saying, 'Well, we're going to just hide here.'"
