Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Sep 2011.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
76 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
12 people listed on the 990; $1.5M paid to officers and key staff.
Kristin Strohm’s $388K as President & is at the 94th percentile of top reported officer pay among 145 $1–10M social science nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kristin Strohm | $388,038 | $320,000 | $275,315 | $288,750 | $234,167 |
| Cinamon Watson | $322,858 | $261,055 | — | — | — |
| Katie Ratlief | $217,500 | $215,800 | — | — | — |
| Christopher G Brown | — | — | $201,619 | $180,375 | $165,500 |
| Christopher Brown | $201,375 | $193,875 | — | — | — |
| Kelly Caufield | $197,048 | $199,143 | — | — | — |
| Creigh Senich | — | $150,436 | — | — | — |
| Glenn Farley | $147,000 | — | $121,364 | — | — |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
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Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Researches and promotes common-sense solutions for Colorado's economic challenges.
Questions for Common Sense Institute
Your first name shows with your question. Common Sense Institute answers here, for everyone.
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Education and research program consists of developing independent reports, including dynamic econometric fiscal analysis, on policies, initiatives, and proposed laws.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2024 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY24 | End FY24 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $388K | $169K |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $193K | $238K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $7K | $195K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $837K | $897K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $178K | $217K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $659K | $681K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $404K | $290K | $81K | $32K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $2.1M | $1.5M | $417K | $167K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $41K | $29K | $9K | $3K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $53K | $37K | $11K | $4K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $173K | $123K | $37K | $14K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $5K | $5K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $45K | $45K | ||
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $100K | $100K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $77K | $46K | $7K | $24K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $68K | $42K | $26K | |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $90K | $84K | $6K | |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $137K | $118K | $12K | $6K |
| TravelLn 17 | $52K | $46K | $5K | |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $14K | $12K | $2K | |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $16K | $12K | $3K | $1K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $10K | $10K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $613K | $612K | $1K | |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $19K | $2K | $17K | |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $4.0M | $3.1M | $694K | $252K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 Latest ViewingFiled with the IRS Nov 5, 2025 | $4.0M | $4.0M | $13K | $681K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Oct 20, 2024 | $3.9M | $3.5M | $435K | $659K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS Nov 15, 2023 | $2.1M | $2.1M | −$11K | $211K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021Filed with the IRS Nov 10, 2022 | $1.5M | $1.3M | $124K | $218K | 990 PDF |
| FY2020Filed with the IRS Nov 4, 2021 | $953K | $939K | $13K | $94K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $4,013,468 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 6 of 6 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $4,013,468 across 7 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $4,000,269 across 18 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $897,351 assets, 14 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $680,646 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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