They complained of a leadership void and mismanagement of funds, noting that 40 percent of the nonprofit's full-time staff had left.

"Utah Issues needs surgery immediately or it will simply cave in. The financial situation alone can close our doors within 6 months," reads an October letter signed by all six remaining staffers and circulated to board members. "We cannot allow 32 years of hard-won leadership and credibility on statewide poverty issues to implode."

Board members say they dismissed the complaint, considering it based on personality conflicts and resistance to budget-tightening and restructuring ordered by new executive director Leticia Medina.

But the exodus continues. Only one staffer remains, excluding contract employees, Medina and an accountant. That leaves Utah Issues, a trusted voice for the poor, undergunned heading into the legislative session.

The flight of employees could also lead to a flight of capital as research grants go unattended and private donors lose confidence in the organization.

Concerned about the brain drain, West Jordan Republican Rep. Steve Mascaro said, "There are not a whole lot of people out there advocating for low-income Utahns. I could always depend on Utah Issues for accurate and balanced information. They were professional and honest."

Board Chairman Alan Ainsworth emphatically denies that Utah Issues is in danger. He acknowledges fundraising has slowed and says an accountant was hired to fix budget problems, including a $30,000 Internal Revenue Service fine last spring for unpaid payroll taxes.

Utah Issues was founded in 1973 with the mission of developing public policies for combatting poverty, employing experts in housing, welfare, health, wage and tax reform. In recent years, the staff had tripled and budget doubled to just under $1 million in grants and donations - a rate of growth that was unsustainable, says Ainsworth.

"We will be able to rebuild and move forward, albeit on a smaller scale," said Ainsworth, who heads up a free health clinic for the homeless in Salt Lake City. "It's difficult to raise money for an agency that doesn't provide direct services."

Previous director Bill Crim resigned in 2004 to work at United Way. He was replaced by Medina, formerly Utah's Hispanic affairs director, in November 2004.

At the time, the U.S Congress was debating deep cuts to community block grants, a key source of funding for Utah Issues. The cuts ended up being much smaller than feared.

But anticipating a worse-case scenario, Medina proposed curtailing benefits, such as eliminating paid child care and asking employees to help pay their health insurance premiums - a move that angered employees, says Ainsworth.

"While nice, we felt those benefits were out of line with what most nonprofits offer," said Ainsworth. "Leticia was professionalizing the organization and it didn't sit well with some of the staffers; things like requiring a dress code and expecting people to show up on time."

Former employees, most of whom have landed jobs in Utah's close-knit nonprofit community, declined to say much about their reasons for moving on, but dispute Ainsworth's portrait of affairs.

"The loss of 80-90 percent of the brain trust, the years of expertise on the issues . . . well, this sort of speaks for itself," said Judi Hilman, who was blamed for the October complaint letter and fired from her post as health policy analyst.

Hilman and Sarah Wilhem, once the only staffer with a doctorate, are now employed by Voices for Utah Children, where they will continue to press for health care, Medicaid, tax and wage reforms - some of the biggest debates before the Legislature. Another heavy-hitter, housing expert Heather Tritten has moved to the Utah Community Action Partnership Association.

Medina isn't threatened by a loss of control over key debates. She has contracted with veteran lobbyist Steve Erickson to represent Utah Issues and says, "Utah Issues is an anchor agency. As people springboard from here they strengthen the advocacy community."

Medina wouldn't describe what changes she has in mind for Utah Issues. Nor would she say how many job vacancies she plans to fill.

That's part of the problem, says Tritten. "There was never any assurance that there was a plan."

Ainsworth promised Medina's vision will be known soon enough: "She hasn't had a chance to dig into advocacy work because she has been so busy cleaning up."