October 31, 2008
Charities and Foundations Offer Guidance to Employees Who Want to Aid Political Candidates
By Suzanne Perry and Grant Williams
Some charities and foundations have policies to guide employees who want to support candidates for public office, whether by giving money or volunteering.
The American Red Cross, for example, has adopted ethics guidelines saying that “Red Crossers as private citizens may choose to take an active interest in politics and campaigns. As individual citizens, you can associate with and campaign for political candidates.” But, the guideline say, “you must act only in the capacity of a private citizen and not as a representative of the Red Cross in these political activities.”
The Red Cross and other charities, as well as foundations, seek to make clear to workers that federal law strictly prohibits the organizations themselves from participating in political campaigns. Employees are urged to take care not to get the groups in trouble.
“Of course, as a private citizen, you have First Amendment and other constitutional rights that you may choose to exercise, and the foundation values and encourages civic participation as part of a healthy democracy,” the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, in Chicago, tells employees in its Code of Conduct.
MacArthur employees, though, must “take care not to have your activities viewed as activities of the foundation,” the code specifies, adding that “you be sensitive to the possibility that your employment by the foundation may be misused by groups or individuals.”
If employees become involved in a political campaign or activity such as signing a petition, the code says, “you should take care to ensure that the foundation’s name is not associated with the activity or statement.”
Under federal law, however, employees must identify themselves when contributing money to candidates for federal office. The law requires public disclosure of the names, employers, and occupations of campaign donors.
Election-Year Guidance
In a statement of policy sent to staff members in September to guide them during election season, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, in Princeton, N.J., encouraged employees to be “active, engaged citizens.” But it also warned them not to use foundation resources in any way for political-campaign activity.
The foundation gave examples of what it meant, including:
- “You must not use foundation resources — including telephones, copiers, computers, laptops, or e-mail — to assist a candidate.”
- “You must not engage in campaign activity on our premises.”
- “You must not work for a campaign during hours when you are compensated by the foundation, unless it is personal or vacation time.”
- “If you receive partisan messages in your foundation’s e-mail, follow three rules: Do not forward the message; delete the message; and advise the sender not to send additional messages to your foundation’s e-mail address. Here is a message you can use: ‘As a tax-exempt charitable organization, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is prohibited from engaging in political campaign activity. That rule applies to me when I am using foundation equipment, including my foundation e-mail address and computers. For that reason, please do not send partisan or campaign-related messages to my foundation e-mail address.’”
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