Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Jan 1988.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
84 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
18 people listed on the 990; $1.7M paid to officers and key staff.
Joseph G Lehman’s $468K as President is at the 74th percentile of top reported officer pay among 232 $10–100M public & societal benefit 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joseph G Lehman | $467,801 | $457,411 | — | — | — |
| Mr Joseph G Lehman | — | — | $437,836 | $438,719 | $439,871 |
| James L Walker | $367,801 | $412,961 | $436,336 | $414,719 | $303,371 |
| Michael Reitz | $193,217 | $198,847 | — | — | — |
| Michael J Reitz | — | — | $188,004 | $182,886 | $174,871 |
| Patrick J Wright | $150,134 | $148,520 | $139,903 | $126,791 | $143,571 |
| Lindsay K Killen | — | — | $149,047 | $129,963 | $128,297 |
| Steven J Virgadamo | — | — | — | $131,808 | — |
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
Research and analyze Michigan public policy to improve quality of life through free-market principles.
Questions for Mackinac Center
Your first name shows with your question. Mackinac Center answers here, for everyone.
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Conduct scholarly research and analysis of the state of michigan public policy issues to improve the quality of life for all michigan citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited government and respect for private property.
Conduct scholarly research and analysis of public policy issues related to state labor policies, and communicate the results of that research and analysis to citizens, in order to improve the quality of life for all citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited government and respect for private property.
Conduct scholarly research and analysis of state of michigan public policy issues related to the state's educational systems, and communicate the results of that research and analysis to michigan citizens, in order to improve the quality of life for all michigan citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited…
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 | $6.9M | $7.1M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $3.3M | $3.5M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $1.2M | $1.1M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $15.7M | $14.5M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $749K | $648K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $14.9M | $13.8M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $110K | $110K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $984K | $374K | $167K | $444K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $3.9M | $3.3M | $179K | $377K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $142K | $108K | $22K | $12K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $412K | $313K | $64K | $35K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $316K | $240K | $49K | $27K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $4K | $125 | $4K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $52K | $52K | ||
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $52K | $52K | ||
| Professional fundraising feesLn 11e | $55K | $55K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $2.1M | $2.0M | $12K | $114K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $2.1M | $2.1M | $3K | $867 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $224K | $170K | $19K | $35K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $356K | $356K | ||
| OccupancyLn 16 | $116K | $88K | $10K | $18K |
| TravelLn 17 | $159K | $14K | $144K | |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $728K | $696K | $23K | $8K |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $120K | $91K | $10K | $19K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $64K | $48K | $5K | $10K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $871K | $723K | $56K | $91K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $58K | $44K | $5K | $9K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $12.9M | $10.8M | $695K | $1.4M |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 Latest Viewing | $11.4M | $12.9M | −$1.5M | $13.8M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $11.0M | $12.6M | −$1.6M | $14.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $11.5M | $11.5M | −$32K | $16.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $15.6M | $10.1M | $5.4M | $16.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $7.0M | $9.4M | −$2.4M | $10.9M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $11,410,796 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 10 of 11 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $11,410,796 across 7 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $12,916,116 across 21 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $14,450,504 assets, 15 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $13,802,341 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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