One Back

In his article OPM Chief Defends Charity Campaign, (OPM= Office of Personnel Management) Stephen Barr with the Washington Post is reporting that the agency has relaxed it’s requirement that participating charities spend no more than 25% of their revenue on administrative overhead and fundraising efforts.  This is meeting a great deal of criticism from both political parties, most notably Sen Charles Grassley, a Republican from Iowa.  In effect, critics argue that potential donors will be much more wary of contributing to charities via the campaign.  As someone who contributed via the CFC for many years, I would have to agree.  Every fall the CFC drive kicks off with a great deal of fanfare.  Military and civil service organizations keep a tally on progress goals and many donors give freely with great pride.  And they should!  There are many wonderful organizations that participate in the CFC… but there are also countless others who are looking for a free handout.  When the CFC drive begins, campaign representatives within organizations provide a CFC guidebook or brochure that lists thousands of non-profit entities.  Unless a donor knows who they want to give money to, it’s incredibly difficult to choose- even though the guide book breaks down the percent of money each organization spends on administrative overhead costs.  Sometimes potential donors simply don’t bother… it’s too much to go through.  Other times, they simply give money to the CFC to large groups like the United Way.  I’m a firm believer that non-profit entities eligible for CFC donations should be held to minimum accountability standards in terms of how much they spend on administrative overhead costs.  It would seem 25% is a generous guideline, and would ensure donated money goes to those charitable organizations that use the money most wisely and effectively.  As reported for 2005, CFC contributions by military personnel and federal employees totaled over $268.5 million dollars!   For that amount of money, there should be some minimum standards in place to ensure transparency and effective use of charitable resources.

Filed under: Donations