Non-United Way Funds Reported Growing
Despite opposition from the United Way campaign, growth of “alternative funds” for charity has exploded in the last decade, a report said Saturday.
The report, by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, said that 79 alternative funds not affiliated with United Way, which represent about 2,000 charities, raised more than $54 million in 1985, a 100% increase over four years.
United Way raises about $2.3 billion annually. Its near-monopoly on workplace solicitation and its policies on what groups may benefit from United Way campaigns have long been a target of criticism from the committee.
About 30 state governments and 100 local governments, as well as about 400 businesses, now allow funds other than United Way to solicit contributions at the workplace or use payroll deductions for gifts to their causes.
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