Opensecrets EIN 52-1275227

Opensecrets FY2020 filing

EIN  52-1275227 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Washington, DC Founded 1983
Form 990 (PDF)
You’re viewing the FY2020 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →
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Verified accurate 8/30/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$1–10M
What they do
Tracks money's influence on elections and policy to inform voters and improve government.
Leadership
Sheila Krumholz · Executive Director · $159K
Money in and out
$1.5M revenue, $2.2M expenses
Bottom line
86% program efficiency

Tracks money's influence on elections and policy to inform voters and improve government. For fiscal year 2020 it reported $1.5M in revenue, $2.2M in expenses, and $2.3M in net assets.Pt I

Where the money goes · FY2020
Total revenue
$1.5M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$2.2M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$2.3M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$680K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.86 Management & general $0.05 Fundraising $0.08
Program efficiency
86%
of spending reaches programs
Operating runway
11.0mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate
Surplus margin
-46%
revenue over expenses, this year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2020 · Form 990
Revenue
$1.5M
FY2020
Expenses
$2.2M
FY2020
Total assets
$3.0M
FY2020
Total liabilities
$727K
FY2020
Total revenue
$1.5M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$2.2M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$2.3M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$680K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$3.0M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B86%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 311
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 411
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

2 program services account for $1.9M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2020.
01

Education and Outreach

Education and outreach: a four time webby winner for being the best politics resource online, the center's website, OPENSECRETS.ORG, allows users to explore the connections between money and politics and hold elected and appointed officials accountable.

$976Kprogram expense
02

Research and Analysis

As a watchdog organization serving the public, the center's reporting staff and researchers work hand-in-hand to comb the data for patterns and anomalies, which are shared in data tools on OPENSECRETS.ORG and through the center's newsletter, news articles, and reports.

$904Kprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item COpensecrets
EINHdr · item D52-1275227
Principal addressHdr · item CWashington, DC
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.opensecrets.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1983
State of legal domicileHdr · item MDC
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFPublic & Societal Benefit (W20Z)
Ruling yearIRS BMFSep 1983

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a11
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b11
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Executive Director
$159,162Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Information Te
$135,996Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Development
$117,507Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Hilary Braseth’s $222K as Executive Director is at the 77th percentile of top reported officer pay among 731 $1–10M 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

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Hilary Braseth$222,497$206,428
Hilary Braseth$216,497
Sheila Krumholz$209,012$167,842$162,810$159,162
Jacob Hileman$155,865$174,389
Jacob Hileman$154,865$153,674$142,590$140,076
Sarah Bryner$148,740
Jacob L Hileman$135,996
Victoria Sorg$125,436$126,000

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.

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants$1.4M · 94%
Program service revenue$67K · 4%
Investment income$18K · 1%
Contributions & grants94%$1.4M
Program service revenue4%$67K
Investment income1%$18K
Total revenueLn 12$1.5M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.86 Management & general $0.05 Fundraising $0.08
Program services86%$1.9M
Management & general5%$116K
Fundraising8%$178K
Total functional expensesLn 25$2.2M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$790K
Total assetsLn 16$3.0M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$727K
Total net assetsLn 32$2.3M
Months of cash on handcomputed4.4

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2020 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $2.0M · Operating expenses/yr $2.2M
11.0 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $1.9M · Total expenses $2.2M
86%
Management & General
Management & general $116K · Total expenses $2.2M
5%
Fundraising
Fundraising $178K · Total expenses $2.2M
8%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense $178K · Solicited contributions $1.4M
$0.13 to raise $1
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $1.4M · Total revenue $1.5M
94%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $1.5M
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $67K · Total revenue $1.5M
4%
Investment reliance
Investment income $18K · Total revenue $1.5M
+1%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $67K · Total expenses $2.2M
3%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $1.5M · Prior year —
No prior year on file
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $2.3M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $1.5M · Expenses $2.2M
-46%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $3.0M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $2.3M · Total assets $3.0M
76%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $1.2M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $3.0M
40%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Sheila Krumholz · Reported title EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $159K · Total expenses $2.2M
7%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $1.6M · Total expenses $2.2M
74%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 86%
Overhead ratio 5%
Fundraising cost ratio 13%
Accounting fee ratio 2%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
See all 20 funders →

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2025 (Latest)$4.3M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2024$3.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$2.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$5.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$6.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$1.5M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2020IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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