When Mayor Randall Woodfin unveiled the city's proposed 2019 fiscal year budget, non-profit groups, including those designed to help the homeless and promote economic development, found out no money was coming their way.

But they could still get all or part their annual funding under a new process, city officials say.

REV Birmingham received perhaps the biggest hit in the proposed budget. The non-profit economic development organization was allocated $725,000 from the city for, at least, the last two fiscal years.

David Fleming, REV's executive director, said he wasn't completely surprised the non-profit wasn't in the city's budget. The city's funding represents about 32 percent of REV's total budget.

"We knew as soon as Mayor Woodfin got elected that there would be a different way of doing things," he said.

Besides REV Birmingham, other agencies like the Birmingham Urban League and Birmingham Business Alliance that provides economic development were excluded from the proposed 2019 budget.

This doesn't necessarily mean, though, that these agencies will get nothing, according to the mayor's office.

"Last year as in previous years, the general fund allocated nearly $2 million to external agencies and entities to perform economic development or engage in activity that promoted an economic service," said Rick Journey, director of communications for the mayor's office. "Many of these agencies deliver valuable services to the city and our residents, but the process is neither sustainable nor a responsible stewardship of taxpayer money."

This year, Woodfin has proposed launching a request for proposals (RFP) process to allocate funds to external organizations that perform services related to economic development. "This process promotes transparency and accountability," he said.

Few details of this process have been released yet.

"We look forward to sharing the details of this plan with the City Council as the budget process continues," Journey said.

Fleming said he hasn't been told much about how the process will work.

"We are not getting the message there is no role for REV anymore," he said. "We are still waiting for how that is going to play out."

REV Birmingham partners with the city to provide revitalization efforts downtown and in various neighborhoods; services to help grow small businesses; and spurring development in target communities.

"We know what we are and what we are trying to do," Fleming said. "We look forward to being a part of the city and its growth."

The Birmingham Business Alliance promotes economic growth in the Birmingham-Hoover metro area by marketing the area to businesses and industry. For the last two fiscal years, the group has received $137,975.

Brian Hilson, president and chief executive officer of the BBA, said the city's new budgeting process is a more logical way to determine how it invests in its community partners.

"The Birmingham Business Alliance works closely with the city's leadership in economic development and looks forward to continuing that in the future as we highlight our performance in economic development, as well as our work in talent attraction, international trade, image enhancement, and innovation and technology for the city of Birmingham and how that drives growth in the region, he said."

William Barnes, president of the Birmingham Urban League, is asking the city to fund the organization at the 2017 level of $181,249. In 2018, the non-profit was funded at $100,000.

During a city council budget hearing on Monday, Barnes said the Urban League takes a "unique approach" and invests in people. He said the organization works with 1,200 to 1,500 families each year to provide financial literacy, job placement and job training, workforce development and education.

"We do it, and we feel like we do it well," Barnes said.

Some organizations who received money from Community Development Block Grants, which are funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, in 2018 weren't budgeted this year.

"There are various reasons why funding for some external agencies changed in this budget proposal, but remember we are still in the middle of the budget process and are committed to working closely with the city council to finalize this process," Journey said.

Bridge Ministries, which provides services to the homeless and to keep people from becoming homeless, was cut from the department's budget. The non-profit received $74,747 in 2018 with the vast majority of that earmarked for emergency shelters.

Mary Lynn Bates, vice president of Bridge Ministries, said the group served more than 300 people last year and provided referrals to other agencies.

During Monday's budget hearing, Bates said the city's funding makes up 50 percent of the non-profit's budget.

"You will lose a great resource here if Bridge doesn't continue to get funding," Bates said.

Among the services that Bridge Ministries provides includes helping those who are in danger of losing their homes due to a medical emergency and helping residents in bad leases and with dealing with slumlords.

The ministry gets referrals from homeless shelters, Children's of Alabama, the Veterans Administration among others, Bates said.