Economic Policy Institute
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 521368964
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025
- Location
- Washington, DC, USA
- Phone
- 2027758810
- Rating
- 81
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Economics
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $17,421,520
- Expenses
- $14,224,558
- Assets
- $21,281,763
- Liabilities
- $1,647,356
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
33 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- HEIDI SHIERHOLZ (PRESIDENT)
- NAOMI WALKER (VICE PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- HEIDI SHIERHOLZ (PRESIDENT): $270,559 total reported compensation
- NAOMI WALKER (VICE PRESIDENT): $252,270 total reported compensation
- LYLE J BIVENS (CHIEF ECONOMIST/DIR. OF RESEARCH): $251,242 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Epi uses the tools of economics to bring the interests of low- and middle-income workers into economic policy discussions. Epi's rigorous research and transformative ideas fortify worker organizing, build a shared understanding of how power and policy shape economic outcomes, and help drive progressive policy change at every level of government. We partner with national and state grassroots organizations, academics, and labor unions to advance our mission.
What it reported doing in 2025
Economic analysis and research network (earn): the economic analysis and research network (earn) is a network of research and policy organizations. Earn advances a worker-centered economy through state and local policy change, rigorous research, and collaboration between researchers, champions, and community groups across the country.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 88% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 65% for direct work, and 35% for grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - 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 total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 70
- Transparency & Controls: 84
- Accountability: 98
- Sustainability: 58
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 67.1%; rating input score 67
- Program expense ratio: 80.9%; rating input score 81
- Fundraising efficiency: $19.56 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 99.9%; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 96.3%; rating input score 96; 26th 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: 18.4%; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.5; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.08; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 12.2%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 8.3% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 7.9% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 12.3% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 67.1% of revenue deployed · 80.9% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 26 of 27 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $11.5M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $271K · 33 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 37 of 37 current checks pass
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
- Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 45 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 39 filed related-organization links
- 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 54/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 42/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.