Jeffersonian Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
462233126
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Arlington, VA, USA
Phone
7033730933
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Alliance/Advocacy

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$703,605
Expenses
$647,674
Assets
$500,681
Liabilities
$841,647

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

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LISA NELSON (CEO)
  • LINDA UPMEYER (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • LISA NELSON (CEO): $527,789 total reported compensation
  • LISA BOWEN (CFO): $278,248 total reported compensation
  • JONATHAN WILLIAMS (DIRECTOR): $272,208 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 mission of the jeffersonian project is to educate the public and government policy makers by providing nonpartisan research on current events and other issues of concern to the public and government policy makers.

What it reported doing in 2024

The jeffersonian project prepares information and documents to educate the public as well as congress on various areas, including health care, civil society, welfare, education, the national budget and the environment.in partnership with rungenz jeffersonian project works to empower and recruit the next generation of conservative leaders by identifying future public servants, equipping them with the tools to succeed, and building a nationwide network of young elected officials.

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. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 62
  • Sustainability: 38
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 72.8%; rating input score 73
  • Program expense ratio: 79.1%; rating input score 79
  • Fundraising efficiency: $201.03 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 92; 92nd 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: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 75%; rating input score 75; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 44
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 7.9%; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.77; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.68; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 30%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.6% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 14.4% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 23.9% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 72.8% of revenue deployed · 79.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 4 board members independent · 4 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $512K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $528K · 9 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 9 not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 57/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 35/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 3/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 7/100.