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Reform for Illinois FY2021 filing

Tax-deductible

Evanston, IL501(c)(3)Since 2001Civil Rights & Advocacy EIN 36-4423884Revenue $269K in FY2021

On file with the IRSreformforillinois.org1918 Orrington Ave, 60201-2910 · Evanston, ILTax-exempt since Apr 2003Publicly supported charity — 170(b)(1)(A)(vi)

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Conducts research on government trends, advocates reforms and hosts educational events to promote public participation in government, addresses the role of money in politics, and encourges integrity, accountability, and transparency in government.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
82¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$235K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

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FY2021 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
3 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $31K a year · 14% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 3 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
82%
of spending
Looks good: 82% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$235K
to officers and key staff · 132% of spending
Concern: pay to officers and key staff is 132% of spending; over 30%.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
29 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 29.1 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
6
named funders · $202K
Looks good: 6 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$163K
38% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 38% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
12
of 12 voting members
Looks good: 12 of 12 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$269K
Spent
$178K
To programs
82%
Net assets
$267K
By yearFY2021–FY2025
Revenue
$269K
FY2021
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2021$269K
FY2022$132K
FY2023$168K
FY2024$242K
FY2025$321K
Expenses
$178K
FY2021
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2021$178K
FY2022$186K
FY2023$195K
FY2024$195K
FY2025$225K
Net assets
$267K
FY2021
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2021$267K
FY2022$213K
FY2023$187K
FY2024$233K
FY2025$329K

From the FY2021 Form 990 (year ending June 2021) · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Apr 2003.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

82 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 82% · $146K Management & general 4% · $8K Fundraising 13% · $24K

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

28 people listed on the 990; $235K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2020); the FY2021 filing did not itemize Part VII
Alisa Kaplan
Executive Director
$80,838Pt VII · Sec A
Alisa Kaplan
Executive Director
$80,838Pt VII · Sec A
Isaac Wink
Policy Analyst
$36,667Pt VII · Sec A
Isaac Wink
Policy Analyst
$36,667Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Alisa Kaplan’s $89K as Executive Director is at the 66th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1031 $100K–1M civil rights & advocacy 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021
Alisa Kaplan$89,000$89,000$89,000$82,500$80,838
Isaac Wink————$36,667

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.

See Reform for Illinois executive salaries →

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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 government trends, advocates reforms, and educates the public to promote participation and integrity.

Questions for Reform for Illinois

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Provided by the organization

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2 programs · $292K · in their own filed words · FY2020
01

Our core program focuses on providing free educational events for voters, advocating campaign finance reform, transparency and ethics in government, and providing tools for voter engagement.

$146Kprogram expense
02

Our core program focuses on providing free educational events for voters, advocating campaign finance reform, transparency and ethics in government, and providing tools for voter engagement.

$146Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
Square One FoundationFY2024$82K
Proteus Fund INCFY2024$50K
Proteus Action LeagueFY2024$50K
The Chicago Community TrustFY2024$10K
The Howard S Dubin Family FoundationFY2024$9K
The Doug and Betsey Schwab and Family Foundation INCFY2024$1K
Total grants receivedfrom 6 funders$202K
See all 6 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2021 990, line by line.

Download 990
from philanthropy.org
1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$269K
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$269K
Money outPt IX
$178K
Ln 25
Programscol B$146K
Managementcol C$8K
Fundraisingcol D$24K
Owns and owesPt X
$267K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$430K
Total assetsLn 16$430K
LiabilitiesLn 26$163K
PeoplePt VI, VII
28
listed · VII A
PaidVII A4
Voting boardVI 1a12
IndependentVI 1b12
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$269K
Government grantsLn 1e$37K
Total revenueLn 12$269K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$430K
Total assetsLn 16$430K
LiabilitiesLn 26$163K
Net assetsLn 32$267K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 52
Fiscal year endsHeaderJune
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $321K$225K$96K$329K 990 PDF
FY2024 $242K$195K$47K$233K 990 PDF
FY2023 $168K$195K−$27K$187K 990 PDF
FY2022 $132K$186K−$54K$213K 990 PDF
FY2021 Viewing $269K$178K$92K$267K 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2021 990 (1 part)
Part VI · Governance 12 of 12 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body12
VI-1b Independent voting members12
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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