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About the CFC What is the "CFC?" The Combined Federal Campaign is the federal government's
on-the-job fund-raising drive. It is like a "United Way"
drive for federal employees and the military, though it includes
a much broader range of charities than do most United Way campaigns.
How does it work? The Campaign takes place every fall, usually from
mid-September through early November. Employees receive a pledge
card and "catalog" that lists all eligible charities.
Employees decide which charities should receive their gifts. They
do so by using a 4-digit code number (we provide that number for
every charity in this website). They can only choose charities that
have been accepted into the Campaign. Write-ins are not allowed.
No other charity benefits from an employee's gift. Employees can give by having a little deducted
from each paycheck, or by making an immediate gift of cash or check.
Each eligible charity can choose to become part
of a federation (there are more than 20 national federations), or
it can be "unaffiliated." Federations help their members
stay eligible, promote themselves and collect donations. They charge
a fee that varies according to the federation. How does a charity become eligible?
Charities must apply every year, during the winter.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) determines the eligibility
of national and international charities. The eligibility of local
and statewide charities is determined by a "Local Federal Coordinating
Committee," which includes federal employees and federal employee
union representatives. How much is given? The CFC collected $241.6 million in 2001, the most
ever. About 1.46 million people made gifts through the "CFC"
in 2001. They gave an average of $241.60. The average gift has more
than tripled since 1986 (when it was $54.03). About three of every four CFC donors choose to
give by having their donation deducted from each paycheck. Those
who do so give more than three times as much ($198.74 vs. $61.86
in 2001). How has the campaign changed? Prior to the 1950s, fund raising in the federal
workplace was "an uncontrolled free-for-all," according
to the official history of the Combined Federal Campaign. People
were asked to give to various causes throughout the year. Not much
money was raised. This began to change in the mid-1950s, when restrictions
were placed on who could solicit and when they could do it. By 1958,
only the Red Cross and three groups of charities (United Ways, health
agencies and international agencies) were allowed to run separate
fund-raising campaigns at certain times of the year. The first "combined" campaign was begun
in 1964 as an experiment in six cities. The four separate campaigns
were combined into one -- the "Combined Federal Campaign."
It did very well. By 1971, all campaigns had become "combined."
In addition, payroll deduction was introduced. Giving went up dramatically,
from $12.9 million in 1964 to $82.8 million in 1979. How did employees get more choice of charities
to support? During the 1970s, employees still could only choose
to support a small and slowly growing number of charities (23 in
1969; 33 in 1979). It was extremely difficult for a new charity
to qualify to receive employee gifts. Some charities challenged the rules governing eligibility
in court, in Congress and in the media. They were successful, with
the rules being slowly changed during the 1980s so that more and
more charities could participate. Most significantly, charities
that tried to change laws as a way to help people were allowed to
do so. (The IRS restricts how much all charities can spend on lobbying
and forbids charities from engaging in partisan politics, such as
endorsing candidates.) Employees apparently liked these changes, with
the number of people making CFC gifts rising from 2.2 million in
1980 to 2.7 million in 1988. These changes had a dramatic impact on some charities.
The Alzheimer's Disease Association of Greater Washington, for example,
received $140,000 in gifts during its first year of eligibility.
This allowed it to hire full-time staff for the first time and greatly
expand its services. There was an attempt by some in Congress to restrict eligibility
in 1995, but it was not successful. Should you give through the CFC? We at Charitable Choices are not part of the CFC, but we still think it is an excellent way to support charities. Here's why:
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