Facing complaints, S.F. pauses employee charity drive that included major anti-LGBTQ groups – San Francisco Chronicle

Every year, city employees can designate payroll deductions to give to one of a number of charity federations, specific nonprofits under those federations or organizations of their choice. The federations represent multiple nonprofits.

Employees have donated roughly $44,000 in general gifts to the charity federation under scrutiny, and more in specific donations to its member nonprofits. These members now include a range of groups that tend to be admired by liberals, such as Planned Parenthood, as well as conservative organizations such as Samaritan’s Purse, led by Franklin Graham, son of Christian evangelist Billy Graham.

Because some city employees donated directly to the charity federation — which then disburses money to its members — it’s not clear whether any funds ended up with conservative groups criticized for anti-LGBTQ stances. But employees raised concerns about the possibility that unwitting employees supported those causes in emails to city officials this week.

“I am outraged that City resources are being used to encourage and facilitate employees to donate to anti-LGBTQ organizations,” wrote one city worker, who wished to remain anonymous.

The city took down the charity website Wednesday. On Thursday, the city administrator’s office was consulting with the city attorney on next steps and potential changes to the annual Heart of the City fundraising campaign this year or in future years. The website will be down until those steps are made clear, officials said.

Sophie Hayward, spokesperson for the city administrator’s office, said in a statement that the city paused the program to evaluate it with the city attorney and Board of Supervisors, which approves the agreements with charity federations.

“The intent of the city’s combined charity program has always been to support efforts by city employees to donate their own funds to local organizations that work to improve our community,” the statement read. “We will find a path that amplifies the engagement of our city workers on such pressing issues as ending hunger, protecting the environment, and providing services to our most vulnerable neighbors.”

The charity campaign poses a quandary for San Francisco, which prides itself on being a pioneer for LGBTQ rights and has legislation on the books that bans city-funded travel to states with discriminatory laws and that prohibits contracting with agencies that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

The annual fundraising drive seems to fall under a legal gray area that lacks vetting of the scores of nonprofits under charity federations with whom the city creates agreements. I t’s not clear what changes to the charity drive the city is considering, such as whether a revised program would allow for individual donations to conservative groups, but get rid of umbrella gifts. The city may have to take into account protecting free political expression.

The charity federations apply to be a part of the Heart of the City charity drive, and the city administrator reviews applications and recommends which ones should participate to the Board of Supervisors, who approve the agreements. Under this year’s agreements, federations take an administrative fee between 10% and 14% out of each donation.

The city bases eligibility on a law last updated in 1997 that only addresses the size and finances of the charity federation and mentions nothing about discrimination. And because the agreements aren’t city contracts, where San Francisco is directly spending money, they don’t fall under the city’s nondiscrimination law in contracting.

The charity federation mentioned by name in employee complaints is the CHC: Creating Healthier Communities federation. The federation acknowledged a request for comment Thursday, but could not immediately respond.

The majority of the federation’s more than 1,000 nonprofit partners listed on its website are local chapters of associations such as the American Cancer Society, Make a Wish Foundation or NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

The federation’s tax forms, submitted as part of its application to the city, show contributions to organizations with wide-ranging religious, political and social views. Some of its members specifically support the LGTBQ community, such as Rainbow Health Minnesota, and others do not.

The concern raised by multiple employees in emails to city officials, one of which The Chronicle reviewed, is that the group’s 1,000-plus members include at least 26 explicitly Christian organizations promoting causes ranging from international development to evangelism, according to a Chronicle review of the website. They include Focus on the Family and Samaritan’s Purse.

Samaritan’s Purse came under scrutiny in 2020, when it set up a coronavirus field hospital in New York City. Local politicians criticized Graham’s “bigoted” views and the nonprofit’s policy that requires employees to be Christians who oppose same-sex marriage. In response, Graham defended his perspective as a different one than theirs and his commitment to serving patients.

City records show one employee made a $775 donation to Samaritan’s Purse directly through the charity federation last year. Other city employees made donations to conservative groups, including $4,620 to World Vision in 2019, through other federations. The Christian relief organization requires abstinence from single staffers and reversed its decision to hire employees in same-sex marriages two days after making the announcement in 2014, after intense backlash.

Focus on the Family is also known for its conservative Christian views that homosexuality is a sin. A brief search of the Colorado organization’s website for “gay” brings up interviews titled “Leaving Homosexuality to Follow Christ” and a forum about whether you can be “Born Gay.”

Paul Batura, a spokesperson for Focus on the Family, wrote in a statement to the Chronicle that, for 45 years, “donations to Focus on the Family have been helping couples with their marriages, parents raise their children, as well as save hundreds of thousands of innocent lives” — perhaps referring to the organization’s anti-abortion views.

“These are the very relevant issues at the ‘heart of the city’ and in small towns in America,” the statement read. “Contributions to our ministry and other like-minded organizations are making a positive difference — and we’re grateful for those whose giving makes this assistance possible.”

The Chronicle reached out to Samaritan’s Purse for comment, but the group did not reply by deadline.

San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Nora Mishanec contributed to this report.

Mallory Moench (she/her) is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@mallorymoench