Calling All Federal Employees!

Kasey Krifka, The Climate Trust
September 11, 2015

For the third year running, The Climate Trust has been accepted into the Pacific Northwest Combined Federal Campaign! Civil servants and members of our Armed Services are able to share a portion of their income through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC), providing the funding charities need to fulfill their mission.

CFC is made up of over 2,400 national and international charities, and over 400 local charities in the Pacific Northwest. There are 26 categories of charities, which include the arts, education, environmental, medical research, youth development, religion, and housing. Donations can be made through payroll deduction, or as a one-time donation. CFC provides an opportunity to do more by providing financial support to the charities that are most important to you; whether it’s $5 or $100 per pay period.

The fall 2015 Combined Federal Campaign is the second time that federal employees nationwide can designate to any national, international, or local organization qualified for the CFC using Universal Giving. Previously, the campaign regulations restricted giving only to local charities serving people in the location of their permanent duty station. This means if you have a favorite CFC-approved charity in your hometown or another location beyond where you have lived or worked, employees can now give to those organizations in addition to the normal local charity listing.

“In it’s first year, this was a tremendous success,” explained Anthony DeCristofaro, the head of DoD’s voluntary campaign office. Nationally, according to a report issued by the U. S. Office of Personnel Management, designations to local charities increased from 36 percent to 42 percent of overall CFC pledges. These gifts totaled more than $80 million, an increase of $5 million over local pledges in 2013.

The print version of the CFC Charity List will continue to be designed as it has in the past. It will contain the national and international charity information provided by the OPM and the unique local charity section. The “Universal Giving List,” can only be accessed electronically. This will be the single nationwide list of all approved local charities.

If you’ve already donated to this year’s CFC, thank you for helping to change the world. If you’ve not yet given, it’s not too late to support The Climate Trust through the Combined Federal Campaign. You can give online at www.cfcnca.org or using a paper pledge form; designate #86226. Whether you donate via payroll deduction, credit or debit card, cash, or check, please know you have our deepest appreciation for your generosity.

The CFC is of tremendous value to our organization, and we greatly appreciate the support from our friends in the federal government. The Climate Trust has reduced 2.6 million metric tons of greenhouse gas—equivalent to the emissions from 547,368 cars! Contributions from our supporters have enabled us to develop 24 active projects in eight diverse sectors, expected to equal 5.4 million tons of emission reductions in years to come. We consider our CFC contributors partners in building a cleaner future, and we hope you’ll consider supporting The Climate Trust through the 2015 CFC drive.