Smithsonian Institution EIN 53-0206027 Form 990 (PDF) Claim this org

Smithsonian Institution

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Operates world-class museums, research complexes, and national educational programs to preserve heritage and share knowledge globally. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $2.0B in revenue, $1.7B in expenses, and $6.1B in net assets.Pt I

Founded
1846
Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Arts & Culture
Location
Washington, DC
Website
www.si.edu
Filings
5 on file (2020–2024)
Revenue
$2.0BFY2024
Expenses
$1.7B
Net assets
$6.1B
People
46
Filings
5
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  53-0206027 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Washington, DC Founded 1846
Form 990 (PDF)
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Size
$100M+
What they do
Operates world-class museums, research complexes, and national educational programs to preserve heritage and share knowledge globally.
Leadership
Amy Chen · Chief Investment Officer · $1.1M
Money in and out
$2.0B revenue, $1.7B expenses
Bottom line
76% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$2.0B
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$1.7B
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$6.1B
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $276.5M
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.76 Management & general $0.19 Fundraising $0.05
Program efficiency
76%
of spending reaches programs▲ +0.7% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
32.2mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▲ +7% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
+14%
revenue over expenses, this year▼ -3% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$2.0B
FY2024▲ +4%
Expenses
$1.7B
FY2024▲ +5%
Total assets
$7.6B
FY2024▲ +5%
Total liabilities
$1.4B
FY2024▼ -5%
Total revenue
$2.0B
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$1.7B
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$6.1B
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$276.5M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$7.6B
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B76%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 317
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 417

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CSmithsonian Institution
EINHdr · item D53-0206027
Principal addressHdr · item CWashington, DC
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.si.edu
Year of formationHdr · item L1846
State of legal domicileHdr · item MDC
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFArts & Culture (A50Z)
Ruling yearIRS BMFJan 1924

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a17
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b17
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 (FY2023); the FY2024 filing did not itemize Part VII
Chief Investment Officer
$1,147,877Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary of the Smithsonian
$915,469Pt VII · Sec A
Investment Officer
$699,892Pt VII · Sec A
Investment Officer
$647,978Pt VII · Sec A
Deputy Secretary & COO
$613,661Pt VII · Sec A
Investment Officer
$573,416Pt VII · Sec A
President, Smithsonian Enterprises
$530,461Pt VII · Sec A
Under Sec for Fin/Admin & CFO
$482,777Pt VII · Sec A

Amy Chen’s $1.1M as Chief Investment Officer is at the 77th percentile of top reported officer pay among 53 $100M+ arts & culture 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

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Amy Chen$1,147,877$1,110,792$778,762$673,679
Mr Lonnie G Bunch III$915,469$861,379$738,754$726,156
Mr Lonnie G Bunch III$857,930
Jeffrey Smith$699,892$680,092$422,679$615,259
Amy Chen$662,776
Michael Giovenco$647,978$625,494$530,390
Meroe Park$613,661$580,769$528,377$448,911
Ryan Dotson$573,416$612,491$472,123

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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Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $1.3B of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2023.
01

Research and collections (see schedule o)

$708.3Mprogram expense
02

Education, public programs and exhibitions (see schedule o)

$444.5Mprogram expense
03

Membership (see schedule o)

$124.0Mprogram expense

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants$1.6B · 84%
Investment income$133.4M · 7%
Program service revenue$109.3M · 6%
Other revenue$77.5M · 4%
Contributions & grants84%$1.6B
Investment income7%$133.4M
Program service revenue6%$109.3M
Other revenue4%$77.5M
— government grantsLn 1e$1.4B
Total revenueLn 12$2.0B

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.76 Management & general $0.19 Fundraising $0.05
Program services76%$1.3B
Management & general19%$313.7M
Fundraising5%$88.7M
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.7B

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$1.2B
Total assetsLn 16$7.6B
Total liabilitiesLn 26$1.4B
Total net assetsLn 32$6.1B
Months of cash on handcomputed8.6

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $4.1B · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $1.7B · Less non-cash grants $150.0M · Cash operating expenses/yr $1.5B
32.2 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $1.3B · Total expenses $1.7B
76%
Management & General
Management & general $313.7M · Total expenses $1.7B
19%
Fundraising
Fundraising $88.7M · Total expenses $1.7B
5%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $76.7M · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $255.6M
$0.30 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $1.6B · Total revenue $2.0B
84%
Government reliance
Government grants $1.4B · Total revenue $2.0B
71%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $109.3M · Total revenue $2.0B
6%
Investment reliance
Investment income $133.4M · Total revenue $2.0B
+7%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $109.3M · Total expenses $1.7B
7%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $2.0B · Prior year $1.9B
+4%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $1.6B · FY2023 $2.0B
+6%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $6.1B · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $2.0B · Expenses $1.7B
+14%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $7.6B
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $6.1B · Total assets $7.6B
81%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $1.2M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $2.9B · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $7.6B
38%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Amy Chen · Reported title CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER · Highest reported compensation $1.1M · Total expenses $1.7B
0.07%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $818.1M · Total expenses $1.7B
49%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 76%
Overhead ratio 19%
Fundraising cost ratio 5%
Revenue growth 4%
Investment management fee ratio 0.07%
Legal fee ratio 0.06%
Accounting fee ratio 0.07%
Fundraising fee ratio 0.1%

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
See all 15 funders →
Grants paid · 84 grants · $65.4M · 2019–2023
Unitemized GrantFY2023$13,800,101
Tuskegee UniversityAL · FY2023$73,950
Texas Southern UniversityFY2023$63,700
Jackson State UniversityMS · FY2023$63,700
Clark Atlanta University INCGA · FY2023$63,700
Rutgers the State UniversityNJ · FY2023$46,393
Salisbury UniversityFY2023$42,000
Champaign County Forest PreserveFY2023$11,250
The Amistad Research CenterLA · FY2023$10,250
University of Maryland at College ParkFY2023$8,545
Unitemized GrantFY2022$13,238,423
Elizabeth Grace Veatch LLCFY2022$59,840
University of KansasFY2022$55,107
See all 84 grants →

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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 (Latest)$2.0B revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$1.9B revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$1.9B revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$1.8B revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$1.6B revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2024IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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