May 21, 1998 | Read Time: 3 minutes
The federal government’s charity drive brought in $197.1-million last year, an increase of $3.5-million over 1996. The gain marked the second time in a row that giving to the Combined Federal Campaign has risen.
The increase will be welcome news to the thousands of charities that depend on the drive, which had seen its totals drop from a peak of $204.3-million in 1991 to $189.3-million in 1995.
The government drive, which is run in many cities by local United Ways, suffered a blow in 1992 after William Aramony, long-time United Way of America president, was accused of mismanagement.
The campaign’s fund-raising totals continued to drop for the next few years, probably because of cutbacks in the federal work force, government shutdowns, and jitters that more layoffs might be in store. In addition, many older workers who had been faithful donors had been replaced by younger employees who were more reluctant to give, say charity leaders.
The drop in donations was a blow not only to United Ways, but also to non-United Way federations, sometimes called alternative funds, which often count on the Combined Federal Campaign for a large share of their revenue.
But a stronger economy and more stable government work force are starting to revitalize the campaign. The fact that donations have now risen two years in a row is a particularly hopeful sign, says Mike Howland, chair of the national Combined Federal Campaign committee, which advises the Office of Personnel Management on ways to improve the campaign.
“Certainly 1995 was a low point when the government shut down in the middle of the Combined Federal Campaign,” says Mr. Howland, who is also executive director of the Christian Service Organizations, an Annandale, Va., group that participates in the federal drive. “When results went up in 1996, my first thought was, Well, it just couldn’t have gotten any worse than in 1995. But it was extremely gratifying to see the campaign take another jump this year.”
The federal drive is a six-week campaign that takes place between September 1 and December 15 in government offices across the country. Workers can give either through payroll deductions or through one-time donations.
Payroll deductions have grown increasingly popular since 1964, with 77 per cent of workers choosing that method in 1997. That pleases charity leaders, since those gifts tend to be larger than one-time cash donations. From 1992 to 1997, the average annual gift through payroll deductions jumped from $108.40 to $151.20.
But the federal drive still has its share of problems. Despite the increase in the size of the average payroll deduction, the number of government workers who contribute to the campaign has been dropping. Fewer than two in five federal employees gave in 1997 — a number that has dropped fairly steadily since 1964, when four out of five made a donation.
Officials are hoping to encourage more people to give by educating younger workers about the charity drive and publicizing throughout the year how donations to the federal campaign can make a difference.
The Combined Federal Campaign committee is also trying to persuade White House and Cabinet officials to do more to promote giving, particularly in campaigns outside of Washington.
Other possible plans are soliciting retired workers and including the charity drive in Employee Express, a computerized system that offers information on fringe benefits to federal workers.
“We need to put money into educating federal employees,” says Kalman Stein, president of Earth Share in Washington, “and we need to acknowledge them. They are still collectively the greatest workplace campaign in the world.”
