Fund for the City of New York (FCNY) is a nonprofit which provides grants and loans to government agencies and other nonprofits to improve the quality of life for residents of New York City. The FCNY was initially established to support local government agencies in providing welfare and other basic city services, but soon branched into supporting private efforts. ¹

The fund was established in 1968 by the Ford Foundation, one of the largest nonprofits in the United States and a major contributor to left-of-center causes. ²

Activities

Loans

The Fund for the City of New York provides $20 million in bridge loans to 400 government agencies and nonprofits annually to help overcome temporary cash shortfalls. ³ Ninety percent of loans are made without interest or fees,¹ with a default rate of 0.05%. ³

Center on Government Performance

In 1995, the FCNY established the Center on Government Performance to report on the efficiency of New York City’s public-services departments. For instance, the Center’s Street Smoothness report uses laser measuring tools to give “smoothness scores” and “jolt scores” to many of New York City’s streets. ⁴ The Center is co-financed by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a major grantmaking foundation which supports various left-of-center causes. ⁵

Grants

The FCNY gives out millions of dollars in grants each year, primarily to arts, youth programs, and schools. Its largest grant in 2018 was for $1,180,000 to the Columbia University Medical Center. Also in 2018, the FCNY gave $15,000 to the Urban Justice Center, a legal fund supporting left-progressive social policy. ⁶

The FCNY, along with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Charles H. Revson Foundation, funds the Gotham Gazette, a media outlet operated by Citizens Union, a left-of-center government watchdog primarily focused on voting access and campaign speech regulation. ⁷

Leadership

Mary McCormick

President Mary McCormick has worked for New York City’s mayors in varying roles over the past twenty years. She was appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a liberal Republican-turned-Independent who later ran for President as a Democrat, to chair his Transition Committee on Social Services in 2001 and the New York City Charter Revision Commission in 2006. Mayor Ed Koch (D) had previously appointed McCormick to the New York City Youth Board and the Commission on Four-Year-Old Education. ⁸

McCormick presently serves on the boards of the White House Project, a nonprofit that advocates for increased female leadership in major companies; the National Center for State Courts, a research nonprofit which advocates for improving judicial administration; the Robin Hood Foundation, a left-leaning anti-poverty foundation; and the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, a nonprofit with a similar function to the FCNY. ⁸

Maggie Boepple

Board chair Maggie Boepple worked in numerous New York City government roles. Boepple served as the director of government relations for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), and the director of government relations and a legislative representative for the New York City government. She also served as a senior advisor to the Commissioner of Transport for Greater London. ⁹

Robert Abrams

Board member Robert Abrams is a partner at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP and a former Democratic politician. From 1979 to 1993, Abrams served as the attorney general of the state of New York, and from 1966 to 1969, he was a member of the New York State Assembly. ⁹

1. “Fund for the City of New York’s Mary McCormick on helping city programs and nonprofits thrive.” City & State New York. June 27, 2017. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.cityandstateny.com/articles/policy/nonprofits/mary-mccormick-fund-for-the-city-of-new-york-interview.html.
2. FCNY. “About.” [FCNY] Fund for the City of New York. Accessed August 10, 2020. https://www.fcny.org/fcny/about/.
3. “Cash Flor Loans.” Fund for the City of New York. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.fcny.org/fcny/core/cfl/#cashflow.
4. “How Smooth are New York City’s Streets?” Fund for the City of New York. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.fcny.org/fcny/cgp/streetsmoothness/.
5. “Center on Government Performance.” Fund for the City of New York. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.fcny.org/fcny/cgp/.
6. “Fund for the City of New York Form 990.” ProPublica. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/132612524/10_2019_prefixes_13-16%2F132612524_201809_990_2019101816762217
7. “About.” Gotham Gazette. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.gothamgazette.com/index.php/about/.
8. “Mary McCormick Bio.” Fund for the City of New York. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.fcny.org/fcny/about/staff/mccormick/.
9. “Board of Directors.” Fund for the City of New York. Accessed August 5, 2020. https://www.fcny.org/fcny/about/board/.