CUFI Action Fund
US 501(c)(4) lobbying arm of Christians United for Israel
| CUFI Action Fund
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| Logo | 
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| Type | 501(c)(4) social welfare organisation (US) |
| Founded | July 2015 (public launch) |
| Founder(s) | Christians United for Israel |
| Registration ID | EIN 46-1868892 (US Internal Revenue Service) |
| Headquarters | 2000 Duke Street, Suite 300, Alexandria, Virginia 22314, United States |
| Location | Washington, DC area |
| Area served | United States |
| Services | Lobbying of Congress and state legislatures on Israel, Iran, antisemitism and Holocaust education |
| Registration | United States |
| Key people | Sandra Hagee Parker (chairwoman); Gary Bauer (Washington director emeritus) |
| Website | cufiactionfund.org |
The CUFI Action Fund (Christians United for Israel Action Fund) is the lobbying and policy arm of Christians United for Israel (CUFI), the US Christian Zionist organisation founded by John Hagee. It describes itself as a "nonprofit 501(c)(4), nonpartisan organization" that is "dedicated to ensuring our elected officials hear the perspective of the millions of Christian Zionists across the country".[1] CUFI launched it at its July 2015 Washington summit, with Gary Bauer in charge, to lobby Congress against the Iran nuclear deal.[2]
The Action Fund is chaired by Sandra Hagee Parker.[3] It runs advertising campaigns aimed at named members of Congress, lobbies for military aid to Israel and for sanctions on Iran, and campaigns in state legislatures for anti-BDS laws and for adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism.[4][5]
Origins
The Christian Post reported in July 2015 that Christians United for Israel had announced at its Washington summit a new 501(c)(4) "political lobbying entity called CUFI Action Fund", to be headed by former Family Research Council president Gary Bauer. The paper corrected its original headline, which had called the body a super PAC: "It is a 501(c)(4), not a 527, or Super PAC." Bauer told the paper that "over the next 60 days, our focus will be the ill-conceived and stunningly bad proposed nuclear agreement with Iran", with lobbyists on Capitol Hill "every day". He said the Action Fund aimed to build "local and state officers in every Congressional district" and to register "at least a million new pro-U.S.-Israel alliance voters" for 2016.[2]
The organisation's federal tax number predates the public launch. ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer lists a return for the year ending December 2013, and a 2014 return reporting no revenue and expenses of $3,488.[6]
Leadership and staff
The Action Fund's website describes Sandra Hagee Parker as its chairwoman. It says she has testified to the US House Judiciary Committee on antisemitism, previously practised corporate and non-profit law in San Antonio, Texas, and was appointed by Texas governor Greg Abbott to the Texas Holocaust, Genocide and Antisemitism Advisory Commission, where she is vice-chair.[3] On its Form 990 returns she is listed as executive director.[6]
The same page lists two senior staff with backgrounds in the Israel lobby and the Israeli diplomatic service:
- Ari Morgenstern, Senior Director of Policy and Communications, who previously worked as a press officer at the Israeli Embassy in Washington.[3]
- Boris Zilberman, Senior Director of Public Policy and Strategy, formerly deputy director of congressional relations at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and, before that, manager of defence programmes in the policy and government affairs department of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) for five years.[3]
Gary Bauer is described as the Action Fund's "Washington Director Emeritus". The page also notes that he sits on the board of the Emergency Committee for Israel and that he received the Zionist Organization of America's Defender of Israel Award in 2010.[3]
| Name | Role in returns | Years listed | Reported compensation | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandra Parker | Director (2014); executive director (2016–2024) | 2014–2024 | $0 | [6] |
| Brian Feld | Director | 2014–2024 | $0 | [6] |
| Nathan Ketterling | Director | 2014–2024 | $0 | [6] |
| Esther Dunsil | Secretary/treasurer | 2016–2024 | $5,000–$15,385 a year (shown as related-organisation pay in 2021 and 2022) | [6] |
Finances
The Action Fund files Form 990 as a 501(c)(4). ProPublica notes that it "is not listed in the IRS's most recent list of tax exempt organizations", although returns continue to be filed under its tax number. The following figures are taken from ProPublica's extracts of the returns:[6]
| Year | Total revenue | Total expenses | Net assets at year end |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 0 | 3,488 | 41,448 |
| 2015 | 654,007 | 445,837 | 249,618 |
| 2016 | 507,656 | 493,310 | 263,964 |
| 2017 | 1,803,901 | 818,410 | 1,249,455 |
| 2018 | 1,356,298 | 1,318,005 | 1,287,748 |
| 2019 | 57,441 | 965,409 | 379,780 |
| 2020 | 753,487 | 409,081 | 724,186 |
| 2021 | 1,685,746 | 673,056 | 1,736,876 |
| 2022 | 204,821 | 523,654 | 1,418,043 |
| 2023 | 1,121,170 | 567,791 | 1,971,422 |
| 2024 | 88,970 | 716,010 | 1,344,382 |
Contributions made up nearly all income in most years. In 2024, though, $59,199 of the $88,970 total came from investment income. Salaries and wages other than executive pay were $418,901 that year.[6]
Lobbying disclosures
The Action Fund registers its own in-house lobbying under the Lobbying Disclosure Act. Senate Files, which compiles its quarterly LD-2 reports, records a total of $2.1 million across 23 reports. The yearly totals it gives are:[7]
| Year | Amount (US$) |
|---|---|
| 2021 | 240,000 |
| 2022 | 240,000 |
| 2023 | 240,000 |
| 2024 | 400,000 |
| 2025 | 679,000 |
| 2026 (to date) | 340,000 |
According to the same compilation, the issues it reported most often were foreign relations (22 reports), defence (17) and budget and appropriations (16).[7]
Campaigns
Advertising against members of Congress
The Action Fund's website lists the following advertising campaigns:[4]
- August 2018: a "statewide, six-figure TV and digital ad campaign" urging North Dakotans to press Senator Heidi Heitkamp to support the Iran Hostage Act.
- November 2018: "Kentucky Stands With Israel, Why Doesn't Senator Rand Paul?", aimed at Senator Rand Paul.
- December 2020: "Radical Raphael Warnock is no friend to Israel", during the Georgia Senate run-off contested by Raphael Warnock.
The Kentucky campaign targeted Paul's hold on the US–Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act, which would have written into law the ten-year US–Israel memorandum of understanding on military aid. CUFI said the Action Fund had launched a two-week, $100,000 digital and cable advertising buy across Kentucky and placed full-page advertisements in the state's three largest newspapers. Parker said Paul's "misguided and inconsistent foreign policy positions need to be made known to the people of Kentucky".[8] Jewish Insider reported that Paul was expected to answer with an amendment limiting security assistance to Israel. In a statement it published, Paul criticised groups "that claim they are pro-Israel" for blocking his efforts to cut aid to Pakistan and the Palestinian Authority.[9]
Federal legislation
The Action Fund's "Recent Successes" page claims a role in a long list of measures. They include $14.3 billion of emergency aid for Israel in the legislation that carried the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act, annual appropriations of $3.3 billion in military assistance to Israel plus $500 million for missile defence, the Taylor Force Act, and the Never Again Education Act. The page also lists Trump administration decisions it supported: the move of the US embassy to Jerusalem, the end of US funding for UNRWA, withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement and the "maximum pressure" campaign, and recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights.[10] The same page records that Turkey was removed from the F-35 programme and sanctioned under CAATSA, and it lists provisions on Israel in the National Defense Authorization Acts for 2021 to 2024.[10]
Its current legislative agenda lists:[11]
- the Eastern Mediterranean Gateway Act (H.R. 3307), which backs the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor and the Greece–Israel–Cyprus "3+1" dialogue;
- the Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act of 2025 (H.R. 1422 / S. 556), presented as protecting "Israel's military gains from Operation Rising Lion";
- the DETERRENT Act (H.R. 1048 / S. 1296), which would require universities to report gifts from "countries or entities of concern" at any amount;
- the US–Israel Futures Act (H.R. 7540 / S. 3855), which would authorise $150 million a year from 2027 to 2029 for US–Israel defence technology co-operation.
State campaigns
The Action Fund says its state work centres on anti-BDS laws, Holocaust education and "combatting antisemitism". It claims that "with the Action Fund's support, 37 states have enacted measures" barring state contracts with, or investment in, entities that boycott Israel. It also says 36 states have "embraced" the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and that it backs state security-grant programmes for religious institutions.[5]
Iran and the 2026 elections
On 28 February 2026, when CUFI issued a statement backing the joint US–Israeli military operation against Iran, Parker said: "There are only two sides in the conflict with the regime in Tehran, you're either with the Mullahs or the people".[12] After the November 2026 mid-term elections, the Action Fund's "Action Update" accused Vice President JD Vance of having "seized the opportunity to blame…. Jews" for Republican losses.[13]
See also
- Christians United for Israel
- John Hagee
- Gary Bauer
- Foundation for Defense of Democracies
- American Israel Public Affairs Committee
External links
Notes
- ↑ CUFI Action Fund, CUFI Action Fund (home page), accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Samuel Smith, America's Largest Pro-Israel Group Launches New Lobbying Effort Led by Gary Bauer, Urges Congress To Vote Against 'Stunningly Bad' Iran Nuke Deal (Interview), The Christian Post, 23 July 2015, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 CUFI Action Fund, Our Team, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 CUFI Action Fund, Advertisements, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 CUFI Action Fund, State Initiatives, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 ProPublica, Christians United For Israel Action Fund, Nonprofit Explorer (Form 990 data, EIN 46-1868892), accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Senate Files, Christians United for Israel Action Fund (compilation of US Senate LD-2 lobbying reports), accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ Christians United for Israel, CUFI Launches Sweeping Campaign in Kentucky Backing U.S.-Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act, press release, 27 November 2018, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ Max Neuberger, Rand Paul's rationale for holding back aid to Israel, Jewish Insider, 28 November 2018, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 CUFI Action Fund, Recent Successes, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ CUFI Action Fund, Legislative Agenda, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ Christians United for Israel, CUFI Leaders Express Support for Joint US-Israeli Operation, press release, 28 February 2026, accessed 9 November 2026.
- ↑ Samantha Olvera, The Action Update: VP Vance is Wrong, CUFI Action Fund, 6 November 2026, accessed 9 November 2026.