Washington Innocence Project EIN 83-3498962 Form 990 (PDF) Claim this org

Washington Innocence Project

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Frees innocent prisoners and improves the justice system through education and advocacy. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $1.7M in revenue, $1.4M in expenses, and $650K in net assets.Pt I

Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Crime & Legal
Location
Seattle, WA
Website
wainnocenceproject.org
Filings
6 on file (2019–2024)
Revenue
$1.7MFY2024
Expenses
$1.4M
Net assets
$650K
People
9
Filings
6
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  83-3498962 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Seattle, WA
Form 990 (PDF)
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Figures match the IRS filing checked 9/13/26 · see original: IRS
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Size
$1–10M
What they do
Frees innocent prisoners and improves the justice system through education and advocacy.
Leadership
Lara Zarowsky · Executive Director · $142K
Money in and out
$1.7M revenue, $1.4M expenses
Bottom line
76% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$1.7M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$1.4M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$650K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $331K
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▲ +26% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
5.0mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▲ +108% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
+19%
revenue over expenses, this year▲ +156% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$1.7M
FY2024▲ +114%
Expenses
$1.4M
FY2024▲ +29%
Total assets
$743K
FY2024▲ +81%
Total liabilities
$93K
FY2024▲ +2%
Total revenue
$1.7M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$1.4M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$650K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$331K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$743K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B76%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 36
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 46

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CWashington Innocence Project
EINHdr · item D83-3498962
Principal addressHdr · item CSeattle, WA
WebsiteHdr · item Jwainnocenceproject.org
Year of formationHdr · item Lpending
State of legal domicileHdr · item MWA
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFCrime & Legal (I10)
Ruling yearIRS BMFOct 2019

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a6
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b6
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
$141,900Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice President Until 082024
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member Until 102024
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Lara Zarowsky’s $142K as Executive Director is at the 58th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1146 $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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Lara Zarowsky$141,900$143,600$133,900
Lara Zarowsky$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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Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $1.1M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

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.

$535Kprogram expense
02

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.

$375Kprogram expense
03

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.

$161Kprogram expense

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants103%$1.8M
Program service revenue$1K
Total revenueLn 12$1.7M

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%$1.1M
Management & general19%$271K
Fundraising5%$71K
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.4M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$585K
Total assetsLn 16$743K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$93K
Total net assetsLn 32$650K
Months of cash on handcomputed5.0

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $585K · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $1.4M · Less non-cash grants $6K · Cash operating expenses/yr $1.4M
5.0 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $1.1M · Total expenses $1.4M
76%
Management & General
Management & general $271K · Total expenses $1.4M
19%
Fundraising
Fundraising $71K · Total expenses $1.4M
5%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $75K · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $1.1M
$0.07 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $1.8M · Total revenue $1.7M
103%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $1.7M
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $1K · Total revenue $1.7M
0.08%
Investment reliance
Investment income $-3K · Total revenue $1.7M
-0.2%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $1K · Total expenses $1.4M
0.10%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $1.7M · Prior year $817K
+114%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $178K · FY2024 $1.7M
+58%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $650K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $1.7M · Expenses $1.4M
+19%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $743K
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $650K · Total assets $743K
87%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $743K
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Lara Zarowsky · Reported title EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $142K · Total expenses $1.4M
10%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $1.0M · Total expenses $1.4M
71%
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 4%
Revenue growth 114%
Legal fee ratio 0.07%
Accounting fee ratio 0.7%

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 · FY2024
See all 8 funders →
Grants paid · 1 grant · $100K · 2024–2024
Unitemized GrantFY2024$100,000

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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)$1.7M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$817K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$675K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$685K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$497K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2019$178K 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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