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Common Cause EIN 52-6078441

Common Cause FY2021 filing

EIN  52-6078441 Membership association Washington, DC Founded 1968
Form 990 (PDF)
You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →
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Verified accurate 8/15/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$10–100M
What they do
Advocates for democratic reforms by promoting fair voting and redistricting, reducing the influence of money in politics, and demanding government ethics and accountability.
Leadership
Martha Tierney · Chair
Money in and out
$13.3M revenue, $8.0M expenses
Bottom line
+40% operating surplus

Advocates for democratic reforms by promoting fair voting and redistricting, reducing the influence of money in politics, and demanding government ethics and accountability. For fiscal year 2021 it reported $13.3M in revenue, $8.0M in expenses, and $8.7M in net assets.Pt I

Membership & operating revenue · FY2021
Total revenue
$13.3M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$8.0M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$8.7M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $5.3M
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.38 Management & general $0.23 Fundraising $0.39
Operating surplus
+40%
revenue over expenses
Earned revenue
0%
of revenue from program services & dues
Payroll share
32%
of spending is salaries & benefits

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2021 · Form 990
Revenue
$13.3M
FY2021
Expenses
$8.0M
FY2021
Total assets
$10.1M
FY2021
Total liabilities
$1.4M
FY2021
Total revenue
$13.3M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$8.0M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$8.7M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$5.3M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$10.1M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B38%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 327
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 426
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $3.0M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2020.
01

Voting & elections testified to state legislatures in support of legislation promoting the use of risk-limiting audits in connecticut, maine, massachusetts, and rhode island. Testified before congress in the house committee on homeland security's subcommittee on cybersecurity, infrastructure protection, and innovation on protecting the…

$1.4Mprogram expense
02

Redistricting & representationled several activities related to the 2020 census outreach including outreach to hard-to-reach communities through small partner grants, peer-to-peer texting to more than 200,000+ people, translation of media advertisements, in-language op-eds and radio ads.

$812Kprogram expense
03

Money in politics & ethics testified before congress in the house committee on the judiciary's subcommittee on the constitution, civil rights, and civil liberties about constitutional means to prevent abuse of the clemency power.

$784Kprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CCommon Cause
EINHdr · item D52-6078441
Principal addressHdr · item CWashington, DC
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.commoncause.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1968
State of legal domicileHdr · item MDC
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(4) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFNonprofit
Ruling yearIRS BMFApr 1968

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a27
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b26
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 · most recent filed roster (FY2020); the FY2021 filing did not itemize Part VII
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Nancy Ratzan
Vice Chair
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Olga Kauffman
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Richard Bainter
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Emmet Bondurant
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Rebecca Cokley
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
See Common Cause executive salaries →

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants99%$13.2M
Investment income$32K
Other revenue$43K
Total revenueLn 12$13.3M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.38 Management & general $0.23 Fundraising $0.39
Program services38%$3.0M
Management & general23%$1.8M
Fundraising39%$3.1M
Total functional expensesLn 25$8.0M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$6.1M
Total assetsLn 16$10.1M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$1.4M
Total net assetsLn 32$8.7M
Months of cash on handcomputed9.2

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2021 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $8.7M · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $8.0M · Less non-cash grants $11K · Cash operating expenses/yr $8.0M
13.1 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $3.0M · Total expenses $8.0M
38%
Management & General
Management & general $1.8M · Total expenses $8.0M
23%
Fundraising
Fundraising $3.1M · Total expenses $8.0M
39%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense $3.1M · Solicited contributions $13.2M
$0.24 to raise $1
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $13.2M · Total revenue $13.3M
99%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $13.3M
—
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $0 · Total revenue $13.3M
0%
Investment reliance
Investment income $32K · Total revenue $13.3M
0%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $0 · Total expenses $8.0M
0%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $13.3M · Prior year —
No prior year on file
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $8.7M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $13.3M · Expenses $8.0M
+40%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $10.1M
—
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $8.7M · Total assets $10.1M
86%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $2.6M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $10.1M
25%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Martha Tierney · Reported title CHAIR · Highest reported compensation $0 · Total expenses $8.0M
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $2.5M · Total expenses $8.0M
32%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 38%——
Overhead ratio 23%——
Fundraising cost ratio 24%——
Legal fee ratio 0%——
Accounting fee ratio 0%——

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 · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Democracy North CarolinaFY2025$75K
Home Rule GloballyFY2025$2K
Whitney Family FoundationFY2025$200
Total grants receivedfrom 3 funders$77K
See all 3 funders →
Grants paid · 6 grants · $278K · 2023–2023
Progress Georgia INCGA · FY2023$132,500
Equity in Education INCGA · FY2023$60,000
One Huddle One Mission LLCFY2023$30,000
Georgia Youth Justice Coalition for Action INCGA · FY2023$20,000
Faith in Public Life Action FundDC · FY2023$20,000
Future GeorgiaGA · FY2023$15,500

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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
FY2024$8.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$8.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$10.1M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$13.3M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2021IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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