Home > Get Active > Ways to Support the ACLU of New Jersey > United Way and Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) Gifts

The American Civil Liberties Union has rejoined the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC). The CFC is the employee giving campaign administered in federal workplaces. The ACLU withdrew from the CFC in 2003 when the program began requiring that participating charities check their employees and expenditures against several government watch lists for "terrorist activities" and that organizations certify that they do not contribute funds to organizations on those lists.

As a result of this change in policy, several other workplace-giving programs followed suit by placing similar requirements on charity participation, including the United Way. The ACLU lost more than $1 million dollars nationwide as a result of its withdrawal from workplace-giving programs that forced participants to certify that they did not support "terrorist activities."

The ACLU rejoined the CFC and local United Way campaigns after the ACLU and 12 other national nonprofit organizations successfully challenged the Office of Personnel Management's CFC requirements. "This is a major victory for nonprofit organizations that refused to be subjected to vague government requirements forcing us to become law enforcement officers for the federal government," said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero.

The good news is, the ACLU can once again receive funds via Combined Federal Campaign, United Way and other workplace giving campaigns. Just specify the ACLU Foundation of New Jersey on the donor designation at your workplace.

Visit here for more information about the case and the groups that challenged the policy