Optimism Yet Again: Financial Hope Grows Despite the Prolonged Pandemic

This survey conducted by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) entitled “Optimism Yet Again” gathered responses from 661 churches and 932 nonprofits, for a total of 1,593 responses. It was fielded between Aug. 26 to Sept.11, 2020 and served as a follow-up to an earlier survey they conducted in May 2021. Compared to their May survey results, findings indicated that optimism had increased among nonprofits but decreased slightly among churches. The majority of churches anticipated maintaining or increasing their staffing levels over the next three months, but nearly a third of churches noted that they planned to use some cash reserves in Fall 2020. The survey also demonstrated status quo or increased giving levels, with 61% of churches saying that donations were the same or higher in July 2020 as July 2019.