Global Action on Gun Violence Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
884053494
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2022
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
4342497303
Rating
65
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Civil Rights, Social Action, Advocacy N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,143,098
Expenses
$838,238
Assets
$1,236,465
Liabilities
$28,447

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Jonathan Lowy (President/Founder)

Highest reported compensation

  • Jonathan Lowy (President/Founder): $250,000 total reported compensation
  • Elizabeth Burke (Chief Operating Officer): $100,000 total reported compensation
  • Lisa M Proctor (Chief Finance Officer): $47,486 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

GAGV is committed to ending the global gun violence crisis by working with and for the international community through litigation, human rights, education and advocacy, with a focus on reforming dangerous gun industry practices that facilitate gun trafficking.

What it reported doing in 2025

GAGVs litigation program brings, litigates and assists in lawsuits in courts in and outside of the U.S., and human rights tribunals and commissions, to reform dangerous gun industry practices and weak U.S. laws that contribute to gun violence and trafficking, and defend strong laws that prevent gun-related harms. GAGV is counsel for the Government of Mexico in its litigation against gun companies to prevent their supply of guns to the trafficking pipeline. GAGVs educational and advocacy program analyzes and communicates on the scope of the global gun problem, and the solutions to it, including by comparing gun laws and policies around the world. GAGV is particularly focused on stopping the flow of crime guns from their gun industry source.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 71% 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 most voting board members are independent. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 65
  • Transparency & Controls: 44
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 60
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 60.5%; rating input score 61
  • Program expense ratio: 80.9%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.98 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 26.7%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.48; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 47.4%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 26% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 25.4% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 60.5% of revenue deployed · 80.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $678K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $250K · 9 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2023 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 41/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 55/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 52/100.