Many Small and Mid-Sized Foundations Plan to Cut Grantmaking This Year, Survey Finds

Conducted in February, the survey found that 49 percent of respondents ranked the federal deficit as the issue most responsible for their cautious outlook, with China's large holdings of U.S. debt, government bailout programs, and the fallout from the AIG situation receiving less attention. Meanwhile, 14 percent of respondents cited portfolio liquidity as a pressing concern — a smaller percentage than one might expect, in part because small foundations either dealt with their liquidity problems last year or have less exposure to illiquid assets than larger foundations, said Graystone Consulting director Henry Kaplan.