Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Oct 2015.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
82 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
3 people listed on the 990; $25K paid to officers and key staff (Part VII, Section A).
Partrick Hynes’s $5K as Chair & Executive Director is at the 5th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1044 $100K–1M 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2022 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Partrick Hynes | $5,000 | $15,000 |
| William B Canfield | — | $10,000 |
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 American Potential executive salaries →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 15aNo
Programs and updates
Educates the public on policy issues like unlocking potential, revitalizing communities, and restoring global leadership.
Questions for American Potential
Your first name shows with your question. American Potential answers here, for everyone.
American Potential carried out its exempt purpose through advertising and communications strategies.
Form 990 Part III, line 4, FY2020. The organization’s own words, as filed with the IRS. Find it at the IRS (EIN 47-4797969) · Dispute this lineBy the numbers
The FY2020 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY20 | End FY20 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $2K | $156K |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $0 | $0 |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $2K | $156K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $0 | $104K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $2K | $52K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Pay of officers and key staff (Part IX, line 5)Ln 5 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Pay of disqualified personsLn 6 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Management feesLn 11a | $482K | $462K | $20K | $0 |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $10K | $8K | $2K | $0 |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $21K | $624 | $20K | $0 |
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Professional fundraising feesLn 11e | $326K | $326K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $142K | $142K | $0 | $0 |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $1.1M | $1.1M | $0 | $0 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| RoyaltiesLn 15 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| TravelLn 17 | $35K | $30K | $5K | $0 |
| Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| InterestLn 20 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Payments to affiliatesLn 21 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $1K | $0 | $1K | $0 |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $2.1M | $1.8M | $48K | $326K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 LatestFiled with the IRS Jun 18, 2025 | $425K | $394K | $31K | $65K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS May 8, 2024 | $366K | $337K | $29K | $34K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS Nov 2, 2023 | $652K | $654K | −$2K | $5K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021Filed with the IRS Oct 26, 2022 | $360 | $7K | 990 PDF | ||
| FY2020 ViewingFiled with the IRS Nov 12, 2021 | $2.2M | $2.1M | $50K | $52K | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2020 990
Part I · Summary $2,175,000 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 3 of 3 board members independent, 4 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $2,175,000 across 9 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $2,124,571 across 30 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $155,761 assets, 28 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $52,011 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2020 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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