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Saving Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's Charitable Investments - Act Now, Call-In Day: Oct. 22 |
| Written by Chuck Bean, on October 16, 2008 |
We are all concerned about the risk of a loss of charitable investments from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. A sudden potential drop off of funding would impact not only current grantees of Fannie and Freddie, but due to the scale of their funding, a cut-off would have a tsunami-like ripple effect throughout our region’s nonprofit community. Now is the time for you and your board members to act!
On October 22, I urge you to contact your congressional representatives (here is their contact information) and ask them to contact the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the Conservator now overseeing Fannie & Freddie. Further, I urge your board members, friends, and allies to make these calls or send emails. Call, email or visit in the next few days – but especially on October 22. Below are talking points and contact information.
The Roundtable is part of a coalition* with several other umbrella groups in this effort – each group is asking their members to make these calls. The impact that hundreds of calls will have on our delegation’s understanding of the importance of Fannie and Freddie to our community could be the thing that makes the difference!
October 22 – Call In Day
To the Virginia, Maryland and District Congressional Delegations
Topic:
Maintaining the Giving Levels of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae in our Region
Messages:
- Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are vital philanthropic leaders in our region.
- In 2007, they invested $47 million in nonprofits in this region.
- In these economic times, families need the supports that they receive from the nonprofit community.
- With local government shortfalls and business declines, no one else could make up the difference if there was a drop off in giving from Fannie and Freddie.
- We need Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to continue to support the breadth of nonprofits meeting the multiple needs of the community.
- We need the giving level to remain high in these difficult times for the people of our region.
Ask:
I ask that Congressman/Senator __________________ contact Mr. James Lockhart, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the Conservator for these two enterprises and urge him to protect the Freddie Mac Foundation and the corporate giving programs of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae at their current funding levels and for programming that meets the multiple needs of the region.
Report back:
Please send me a brief note about the contacts you make and other networks that you can mobilize in this effort.
*The coalition of membership-umbrella organizations includes the Board of Trade, the Center for Nonprofit Advancement, the Council of Governments, Leadership Greater Washington, the United Way of the National Capital Area, and the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers.
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