Campaign for Civil Debate

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
871060634
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2022
Location
Arlington, VA, USA
Phone
2027378808
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,590,417
Expenses
$1,248,233
Assets
$358,579
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

1 person listed

Highest reported compensation

  • MICHAEL D MCKEON (Incorporator): $5,000 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Corporation is established primarily to further the common good and general welfare of the citizens of the United States of America, and will be operated primarily for the purpose of bringing about civic betterments and social improvements.

What it reported doing in 2024

The Campaign for Civil Debate ran a digital advertising campaign, and engaged in public relations and lobbying, concerning various business practices of foreign corporations.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 63
  • Sustainability: 58
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77.7%; rating input score 78
  • Program expense ratio: 98.9%; rating input score 99
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • 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: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 21.5%; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.29; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0.4%; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -47.3% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -23.6% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 182.5% per year; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77.7% of revenue deployed · 98.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 1 of 1 board members independent · 1 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $5K · 1 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $1.2M reported
  • Consistency: 15 of 15 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 2 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2023 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 13/100.