Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Oct 2019.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
76 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
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
9 people listed on the 990; $142K paid to officers and key staff.
Lara Zarowsky’s $142K as Executive Director is at the 58th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1147 $1–10M crime & legal 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 · 1 named individual · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lara Zarowsky | $141,900 | $143,600 | $133,900 | $130,000 | $90,089 |
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
Frees innocent prisoners and improves the justice system through education and advocacy.
Questions for Washington Innocence Project
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Litigation
Successfully completed the second of a three-year federal grant in partnership with the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab to evaluate and get cases into DNA testing. One particularly complicated case is now in the process of testing and numerous other petitions for DNA testing are being litigated.
Post-Release Support
A number of clients are supported through our program with stabilizing support and assistance with securing medical appointments, submitting disability applications, seeking housing, seeking employment, and providing social-emotional support as our community of former clients work to reintegrate into the free world.
Policy Reform
Continued deepening engagement with the defense bar and attempts to engage with prosecutors in a non-litigious manner to reduce costs and expedite moving cases forward. Three pieces of legislation were discussed during the legislative session, with one receiving a hearing and an interim plan established for 2025.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2024 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY24 | End FY24 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $217K | $585K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $3K | $10K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $411K | $743K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $92K | $93K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $319K | $650K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $100K | $100K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $142K | $79K | $33K | $30K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $658K | $598K | $52K | $9K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $29K | $25K | $3K | $1K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $105K | $60K | $40K | $5K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $68K | $58K | $7K | $3K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $992 | $992 | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $9K | $9K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $37K | $18K | $16K | $4K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $1K | $1K | ||
| Office expensesLn 13 | $20K | $2K | $17K | $1K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $34K | $16K | $12K | $7K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $58K | $3K | $55K | |
| TravelLn 17 | $30K | $27K | $2K | $1K |
| InterestLn 20 | $132 | $132 | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $540 | $540 | ||
| InsuranceLn 23 | $24K | $8K | $16K | |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $90K | $72K | $8K | $10K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $4K | $4K | ||
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $1.4M | $1.1M | $271K | $71K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 Latest Viewing | $1.7M | $1.4M | $331K | $650K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $817K | $1.1M | −$276K | $319K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $675K | $917K | −$242K | $595K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $685K | $722K | −$37K | $837K | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $497K | $207K | $290K | $464K | 990 PDF |
| FY2019 | $178K | $175K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $1,743,931 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 6 of 6 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $1,743,931 across 10 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $1,412,918 across 19 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $743,142 assets, 13 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $650,054 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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