FAQs

What is the CMC?

The Combined Municipal Campaign is an annual workplace fundraising drive where employees can participate in department fundraisers and pledge to donate to local and national nonprofit organizations throughout the year. October is the designated month of CMC and there are several ways for city employees to give to the charitable organizations of their choice — through payroll deduction (available in January 2023), participation in fundraisers or cash/check donations.

Thousands of people have been helped by many of the organizations represented in the campaign. The CMC allows employees to demonstrate their strong sense of community by supporting environmental, health and social welfare issues that concern the residents of Houston.

What’s new this year?

• • Donations will be made through the Bright Funds online platform.
  • Donations can be made by bank draft, credit card, PayPal and payroll (payroll will be available in January 2023).
  • You have complete control over your donations. The platform will be available all year long to make changes, start or stop donations.
  • You will have access to donate to more than 1 million non-profit agencies and schools.
  • You can create your own fund with nonprofits you choose to share with colleagues as well as outside friends and family members.
  • A volunteer component that lets you discover and sign up for to volunteer, easily organize team volunteer events, and track your personal volunteer hours.
  • The administrative fee for CMC donations is being reduced from 4% to 2.5%. You will now have the option to increase your donation cover the fee. Fees for bank draft, credit/debit card, and PayPal will include an additional 2.5% payment processor.

What is Bright Funds?

Bright Funds is a charitable giving platform that helps individuals and companies support the causes they are passionate about. In addition to providing a donation platform for individual donors, Bright Funds partners with companies to power their workplace giving programs.

Why are we using Bright Funds?

Bright Funds lets you easily and effectively manage your charitable giving. Simply select your favorite causes and nonprofits and begin investing in the world as you want it to be. Bright Funds gives employees access to more nonprofit organizations – 1.8 million and charities receive money monthly instead of quarterly.

How will my current payroll deductions be affected?

Current payroll deductions will continue through the end of the calendar year.

Why will payroll sign-up be delayed this year?

Since payroll sign-up in Bright Funds starts the next available pay period after you sign up, we need to allow for the 2022 deductions to be complete so that there will be no overlap of 2022 and 2023 payroll deductions.

How do I search for my agency?

The best way to find your agency is to search using the agency's EIN. View more Pro tips for finding U.S.-based nonprofits in Bright Funds.

Where can I find more information on finding nonprofits, donating, volunteering and more on Bright Funds?

For Bright Funds FAQs, visit https://help.brightfunds.org/en/collections/120423-faqs-for-donors-and-volunteers

 What is the CMC Recognition for?

The CMC Recognition is a way for the CMC to thank the departments who made their goals, or challenges and to thank employees who joined the Above & Beyond by donating 1% or more of their annual salary.

Is my donation with Bright Funds tax deductible?

All donations made through the Bright Funds platform are made directly to Bright Funds Foundation, a U.S. public charity (EIN 46-2109112). As a result, all donors will receive a donation receipt from a U.S. charity. Tax-deductibility will depend upon the laws of the country in which the donor resides.

Donations to nonprofits in the Certified Bright Funds and nonprofits in our database are received and receipted by Bright Funds Foundation, a nonprofit incorporated in the State of California. Bright Funds Foundation has received its determination letter from the International Revenue Service for tax exempt status under section 501(c)(3) and eligibility to receive tax deductible contributions.

Where do I find my donation receipt?

To access your Bright Funds contribution history, please log into your account on your dashboard click “My Donations.” Whenever you make a donation on Bright Funds, you will receive a donation confirmation email that serves as your tax acknowledgement letter as well. In addition, we provide you with a “1-click tax report”: a donation report with all the information you need to file your taxes for a refund.

Does the City do any employee donation matching?

No, since the City is a government agency, it does not participate in matching donations.

FAQs for Nonprofit Agencies

What can I do to get my agency more involved?

With the CMC moving to year-round signup, the CMC team will produce a monthly newsletter highlighting various agencies and the work they do. To be featured in the newsletter, contact CMC Chair, Jennifer.Cobb@houstontx.gov. In addition, during October the CMC will host a fundraising month, including an Annual Online Auction. Your agency can donate items and benefit from the amount raised for those items. You can also sign up for Bright Network and review your Bright Funds profile and make sure your logo and other features are updated.

What is Bright Network?

Bright Network is the Bright Funds portal for nonprofits, where you can access donor reports, update your social media accounts, and sign up for ACH. There is no cost to register for Bright Network.

What is the difference between Bright Funds and Bright Network?

Bright Funds (hello.brightfunds.org) is where donors and companies can make donations or volunteer with thousands of nonprofits around the world.

Bright Network (hello.brightfunds.org/for-nonprofits) is just for U.S.-based nonprofits, where you can pull donor information and add or update your ACH/EFT/direct deposit information.

Please note that while your nonprofit is eligible to receive donations through Bright Funds, your nonprofit may not have an account with for our nonprofit portal, Bright Network. You can visit our article here on how to register your nonprofit to access donor reports, and sign up for ACH/EFT/direct deposit.

Where can I find more information about Bright Funds for nonprofits?

For Bright Funds FAQs for nonprofits, visit. https://help.brightfunds.org/en/collections/120415-faqs-for-u-s-based-nonprofits