OPM Review Threatens CFC and Washington-Area Charities

Potential changes to the long-running federal employee charity drive could leave local nonprofits short on funds.

Apr. 18, 2026 at 2:41pm

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A minimalist studio still life photograph featuring a stack of financial documents, a pen, and a calculator arranged on a clean white background, conceptually representing the financial challenges facing local nonprofits.As Washington-area charities face an uncertain future for a crucial federal employee giving program, they must strategize to shore up funding streams.Washington Today

The Office of Personnel Management has paused parts of the Combined Federal Campaign and decommissioned its online portal, leaving Washington-area charities scrambling as they face the possibility of losing millions in donations from federal workers. Nonprofits warn the turbulence could wipe out months of planning and leave food banks, shelters, and small rescue groups short just as demand is climbing.

Why it matters

The CFC has directed roughly $9 billion to charities since the 1960s and still pulls in tens of millions of dollars each year. Many local programs build this funding into their service budgets, so any disruption will be felt immediately by small and mid-sized charities in the D.C. region.

The details

OPM has said the 2025 CFC campaign will go forward while the agency 'evaluates changes to the CFC for 2026 (including whether to continue the program).' The agency told departments it was pausing some contractor work while it studies administrative costs and participation rates. Nonprofits say the CFC's application and giving portal went dark this spring, and the usual 2026 application cycle never opened, leaving groups unable to apply or plan.

  • In 2024, federal workers contributed roughly $68–70 million to about 4,500 charities through the CFC.
  • The CFC online system was decommissioned in early March 2026.

The players

Office of Personnel Management

The federal agency that oversees the Combined Federal Campaign, the long-running payroll-deduction charity drive for federal workers.

Scott Kupor

The director of the Office of Personnel Management who has pointed to overhead and declining donations as reasons to explore a more cost-effective model for workplace giving.

Bread for the City

A local nonprofit that estimates it received about $100,000 from the CFC in 2024.

Homeless Animals Rescue Team

A local nonprofit that said CFC donations made up roughly 20% of its annual budget, about $200,000.

The NonProfit Times

The publication that reported on a coalition of nearly 400 organizations sending an emergency letter urging OPM not to abandon the CFC campaign.

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What’s next

Charities and some members of Congress have pushed back publicly and asked whether legislative fixes or stepped-up oversight will be needed to preserve payroll-deduction giving, a channel advocates say is hard to replace with one-off direct appeals.

The takeaway

The potential disruption to the CFC program threatens to undermine a crucial source of funding for many Washington-area charities, especially smaller organizations that rely heavily on this payroll-deduction giving from federal workers. The outcome of OPM's review will have significant implications for the region's nonprofit community.