Invisible Institute FY2020 filing

Tax-deductible

Chicago, IL501(c)(3)Since 2015Civil Rights & AdvocacyEIN 47-3551981Revenue $1.6M in FY2020

On file with the IRSinvisible.institute6100 S Blackstone Ave, 60637-2912 · Chicago, ILTax-exempt since Feb 2016Publicly supported charity — 170(b)(1)(A)(vi)

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Enhancing the capacity of citizens to hold public institutions accountable through the practice of investigative journalism. The Organization adheres to the central principle that citizens have co-responsibility with the government for maintaining respect for human rights and, when abuses occur, for demanding redress.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
73¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$109K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2020 · 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
5 of 6
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $581K a year · 26% of revenue · last 6 filings
Fine: a surplus in 5 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
73%
of spending
Fine: 73% of spending went to programs; 65% to 75%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$109K
to officers and key staff · 8% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 8% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
4 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 4.0 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $10K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$309K
47% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 47% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
6
of 6 voting members
Looks good: 6 of 6 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$1.6M
Spent
$1.5M
To programs
73%
Net assets
$352K
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$1.6M
FY2020
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$1.6M
FY2021$2.7M
FY2022$2.0M
FY2023$1.4M
FY2024$2.9M
FY2025$3.1M
Expenses
$1.5M
FY2020
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$1.5M
FY2021$1.6M
FY2022$1.6M
FY2023$1.6M
FY2024$1.8M
FY2025$2.0M
Net assets
$352K
FY2020
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$352K
FY2021$1.4M
FY2022$1.8M
FY2023$1.5M
FY2024$2.6M
FY2025$3.7M

From the FY2020 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2020 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 Feb 2016.

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

Where the money goes

73 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 73% · $1.1M Management & general 23% · $329K Fundraising 4% · $65K

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

7 people listed on the 990; $109K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Executive Dir.
$109,449Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Andrew Fan’s $88K as Executive Dir. is at the 17th percentile of top reported officer pay among 797 $1–10M 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 · 3 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Jamie Kalven—————$109,449
Andrew Fan$88,001$84,308$80,000$70,803——
Hilesh Patel———$74,436$36,666—

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

Empowering citizens to demand accountability and human rights from public institutions.

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Provided by the organization

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3 programs · $1.0M · in their own filed words · FY2020
01

Journalism

The Organization is a journalism organization at its core, and utilizes different mediums to employ such tactics that include human rights documentation, investigative reporting, civil rights litigation, the curating of public information, conceptual art projects and the orchestration of difficult public conversations.

$473Kprogram expense
02

Citizens Police Data Project Cpdp

CPDP takes records of police interactions with the public - records that would otherwise be buried in internal databases - and opens them up to make the data useful to the public, thereby creating a permanent record for every police officer. The Organization utilizes its CPDP tool to present the underlying police data.

$363Kprogram expense
03

Youth/Police

This program aims to build conversations with black teens about how their lives are affected by the character of the police presence in their neighborhoods. The program presents how teens describe their interactions with police in their own words, how those encounters make them feel, and how their experiences with the police shape their…

$186Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

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

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$10K
Grants paid · 2 grants · $129K · 2022–2023
Unitemized GrantFY2023$44,477
Ecosystems of CareIL · FY2022$84,930

By the numbers

The FY2020 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$1.6M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.3M
Fees for servicesLn 2g$265K
Other incomeLn 4–11$5K
Money outPt IX
$1.5M
Ln 25
Programscol B$1.1M
Managementcol C$329K
Fundraisingcol D$65K
Owns and owesPt X
$352K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$483K
Total assetsLn 16$661K
LiabilitiesLn 26$309K
PeoplePt VI, VII
7
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a6
IndependentVI 1b6
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.3M
Fees for servicesLn 2g$265K
Investment incomeLn 3$28
Other incomeLn 4–11$5K
Gains on assetsLn 7$0
Total revenueLn 12$1.6M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$256K
SavingsLn 2$227K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$483K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$0
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$16K
Other assetsLn 15$0
Total assetsLn 16$661K
LiabilitiesLn 26$309K
Net assetsLn 32$352K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 515
VolunteersI 65
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY20End FY20
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$257K$483K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$0
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$21K$16K
Total assetsLn 16$476K$661K
LiabilitiesLn 26$252K$309K
Net assetsLn 32$223K$352K
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$0
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$41K$41K
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$0
Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4$0
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$109K$71K$27K$11K
Pay of disqualified personsLn 6$0
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$515K$323K$141K$51K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$0
Other employee benefitsLn 9$0
Payroll taxesLn 10$48K$31K$15K$2K
Management feesLn 11a$0
Legal feesLn 11b$0
Accounting feesLn 11c$46K$46K
Lobbying feesLn 11d$0
Professional fundraising feesLn 11e$0
Investment management feesLn 11f$0
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$633K$573K$59K$908
Advertising and promotionLn 12$9K$8K$240
Office expensesLn 13$11K$3K$8K
Information technologyLn 14$0
RoyaltiesLn 15$0
OccupancyLn 16$9K$168$9K$15
TravelLn 17$9K$9K$451
Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18$0
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$0
InterestLn 20$0
Payments to affiliatesLn 21$0
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$7K$7K
InsuranceLn 23$16K$3K$13K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$6K$2K$4K$171
All other expensesLn 24e$0
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.5M$1.1M$329K$65K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $3.1M$2.0M$1.1M$3.7M 990 PDF
FY2024 $2.9M$1.8M$1.1M$2.6M 990 PDF
FY2023 $1.4M$1.6M−$235K$1.5M 990 PDF
FY2022 $2.0M$1.6M$391K$1.8M 990 PDF
FY2021 $2.7M$1.6M$1.0M$1.4M 990 PDF
FY2020 Viewing $1.6M$1.5M$129K$352K 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
See the full FY2020 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $1,587,113 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $1,646,068$1,317,271
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $157,790$264,645
I-10 Investment income$28
I-11 Other revenue$5,169
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $1,803,858$1,587,113
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paid$40,588
I-14 Benefits paid to members$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $528,541$672,482
I-16a Professional fundraising fees$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $1,223,108$745,284
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $1,751,649$1,458,354
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year $52,209$128,759
Part VI · Governance 6 of 6 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body6
VI-1b Independent voting members6
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
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $1,587,113 across 10 lines filed
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$1,317,271
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$1,317,271
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $264,645$264,645
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $28$28
VIII-5 Royalties$0
VIII-6 Net rental income or loss$0
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assets$0
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising events$0
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Related to mission $5,169$5,169
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $269,814 · Excluded from tax $28$1,587,113
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $1,458,354 across 31 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizations$0
IX-2 Grants to domestic individualsPrograms $40,588$40,588
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipients$0
IX-4 Benefits paid to or for members$0
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $71,142 · Management $27,362 · Fundraising $10,945$109,449
IX-6 Pay of disqualified persons$0
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $322,621 · Management $141,130 · Fundraising $50,960$514,711
IX-8 Pension plan contributions$0
IX-9 Other employee benefits$0
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $31,334 · Management $14,702 · Fundraising $2,286$48,322
IX-11a Management fees$0
IX-11b Legal fees$0
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $45,600$45,600
IX-11d Lobbying fees$0
IX-11e Professional fundraising fees$0
IX-11f Investment management fees$0
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $572,985 · Management $59,171 · Fundraising $908$633,064
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $8,335 · Management $240$8,575
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $2,656 · Management $8,248$10,904
IX-14 Information technology$0
IX-15 Royalties$0
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $168 · Management $8,575 · Fundraising $15$8,758
IX-17 TravelPrograms $8,875 · Management $451$9,326
IX-18 Travel and entertainment for public officials$0
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetings$0
IX-20 Interest$0
IX-21 Payments to affiliates$0
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationManagement $6,911$6,911
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $2,847 · Management $13,318$16,165
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $2,128 · Management $3,682 · Fundraising $171$5,981
IX-24e All other expenses$0
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $1,063,679 · Management $329,390 · Fundraising $65,285$1,458,354
Part X · Balance sheet $660,985 assets, 20 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $257,077$256,447
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investments$226,719
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $195,000$150,100
X-4 Accounts receivable$0
X-8 Inventories for sale or use$0
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $2,666$11,759
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $20,902$15,960
X-11 Publicly traded securities$0
X-12 Other securities$0
X-13 Program-related investments$0
X-14 Intangible assets$0
X-15 Other assets$0
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $475,645$660,985
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $252,339$205,602
X-24 Unsecured notes and loans payable$103,318
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $252,339$308,920
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $90,119$146,290
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $133,187$205,775
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $223,306$352,065
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $475,645$660,985
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $352,065 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$1,587,113
XI-2 Total expenses$1,458,354
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$128,759
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$223,306
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$352,065

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2020 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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