American Civil Liberties Union Fund of Michigan

Overview

Mission

To preserve, protect, defend, and advance civil liberties and civil rights.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization undertook litigation when doing so was the most effective way to advance a civil liberties concern. Lawsuits filed set legal precedents and affected the policies and actions of public officials. The organization provided direct legal representation, and filed briefs addressing civil liberties issues in cases initiated by others, all on a pro bono basis. During the 2024-2025 fiscal year, attorney fees were valued at $95 to $1,347 per hour. The average hourly rate was approximately $868. Volunteer attorneys worked on american civil liberties union matters and provided 7,450 hours of service at a value of $6,463,351.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 85% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
237243421
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Headquarters
Detroit, MI, USA
Phone
3135786800
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 76
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 56
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 68.4%; rating input score 68
  • Program expense ratio: 73.8%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.03 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 10%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.41; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 16.9%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.1% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 68.4% of revenue deployed · 73.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $213K · 24 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $1.2M reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 annual filings from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • LOREN KHOGALI (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $212,991 total reported compensation
  • WILLIAM GREENE (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $168,398 total reported compensation
  • DANIEL KOROBKIN (LEGAL DIRECTOR): $154,170 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: FY2024.