Federal Employees Can Now Be Solicited by an Atheist Organization

I’ll just quote Wikipedia for a moment:

The Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) is a program allowing certain charitable organizations to solicit contributions from employees of the Federal Government of the United States.

The mission of the CFC is to promote and support philanthropy through a program that is employee focused, cost-efficient, and effective in providing all federal employees the opportunity to improve the quality of life for all.

It’s a painstakingly long and arduous process to get your organization listed as a CFC charity.

However, we now have the first explicitly non-theistic organization on the list:

The Freedom From Religion Foundation was accepted as a CFC charity for 2008!

32519

Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. (Freedom from Religion Inc) (608)256-8900 www.ffrf.org EIN#391302520 Help our national association of freethinkers (atheists and agnostics), founded in 1978, to promote and defend the constitutional principle of separation between church and state. 7.3% R,B,Z

A quick explanation (DOC) of the numbers:

32519 = the five-digit CFC code
391302520 = the employer identification number
7.3% = FFRF’s administrative and fundraising expense rate (AFR)
R = FFRF is a “Civil Rights, Social Action, Advocacy” organization
B = FFRF is an “Educational Institutions & Related Activities” organization
Z = FFRF is an “Other” organization

You can see them on the official list here (DOC). Here’s further information on the CFC 2008 inductees.

For many years, there were only religious groups on the list (in addition to altogether secular charities).

Finally, there is an alternative for federal employees.

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TXatheist

I remember donation drives in the military so I would speculate this includes servicemen/women since they are federal employees.
Betsy

Wahoo! My husband is Air Force and we get the stuff for the CFC every year. There are TONS of religious organizations on the list which was really starting to irk us. I am so happy FFRF is going to be listed!!
justin jm

I’m glad to hear this news. I just hope no religious groups challenge their CFC status. Could that even be done?
Jim

I’m a contractor and I get email about the CFC all the time. How does it work, though? If you donate to it, do you donate to all of them, or can you specify? I’m already a member of the FFRF, but I’d gladly contribute more through other channels just to raise the numbers.
David D.G.

For many years, there were only religious groups on the list (in addition to altogether secular charities).

Well, that means that there were NOT “only” religious groups on the list, doesn’t it? “Altogether secular” means that they are “non-theist” charities as well (though not necessarily “explicitly” so).

There’s no need to try to spin this anyway. It’s a huge step forward, and I’m glad it has been accomplished.

~David D.G.
Richard Wade

I’m excited. The FFRF, of which I’m a member, will be sure to get a lot of hefty contributions from employees of certain parts of the Federal government, including the Department of Justice, the FBI, the CIA, the Department of Defense and of course the White House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives. Roll up your sleeves, the money’s gonna come pouring in.

Question: If a federal employee wants to donate to a specific organization through the CFC, is it confidential or does his employer learn about it?