Immigration Reform Law Institute Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521469956
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2023287004
Rating
60
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,912,554
Expenses
$1,627,641
Assets
$574,316
Liabilities
$10,574

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • DALE WILCOX - EXEC DIR (GEN. COUNSEL UNTIL 07/25, CHAIRMAN): $431,180 total reported compensation
  • CHRISTOPHER HAJEC (DIRECTOR OF LITIGATION): $261,101 total reported compensation
  • JULIE KIRCHNER (DIRECTOR UNTIL 07/25): $207,814 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The immigration reform law institute, inc. (irli) promotes diligent enforcement of immigration laws in keeping with congressional intent; and to help protect all americans, not least the poor, who are harmed by uncontrolled and unlawful immigration.

What it reported doing in 2025

Irli maintained more than 150 active cases and filed numerous friend-of-the-court briefs in the united states supreme court, the united states court of appeals, united states district courts, and state courts concerning national security and national sovereignty, protecting federal-state cooperation in immigration enforcement, protecting american workers, protecting the environment, defending pro-enforcement state and local officials, ending public-benefit windfalls for illegal aliens, defending pro-enforcement federal, state and local laws, policies, referenda, and initiatives, protecting electoral process integrity, protecting the efficiency of immigration enforcement, and exposing government action to public inspection through foia lawsuits.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 97% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 49
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 37
  • Sustainability: 57
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 27.1%; rating input score 27
  • Program expense ratio: 74%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $60.95 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • 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: 0%; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 66.9%; rating input score 95; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.35; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 44.8%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.2% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 10.1% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11.2% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 27.1% of revenue deployed · 74% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 5 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $431K · 10 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $102K reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 27/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 11/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.