National Registry of Exonerations Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
862065065
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
East Lansing, MI, USA
Phone
5179748239
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Reported finances

Revenue
$875,380
Expenses
$628,673
Assets
$1,224,965
Liabilities
$75,028

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MEGHAN COUSINO (PRESIDENT/TR)

Highest reported compensation

  • MEGHAN COUSINO (PRESIDENT/TR): $33,527 total reported compensation
  • JESSICA WEINSTOCK (SECRETARY &): $6,386 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To provide comprehensive information on exonerations of innocent criminal defendants in order to prevent future false convictions by learning from past errors.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization collects, analyzes, and disseminates information about all known exonerations of innocent criminal defendants in the united states, from 1989 to present. The organization publishes those stories and provides accessible, searchable, online statistical data about the cases. The organization also conducts empirical studies of the process of exoneration and of factors that lead to the underlying wrongful convictions.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 93% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

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

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 53
  • Sustainability: 69
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.2%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 84.7%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $18.25 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

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: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 60%; rating input score 60; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 44
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • 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: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 28.2%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.95; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.3%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 18.8% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -7.7% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18.4% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.2% of revenue deployed · 84.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 5 board members independent · 4 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $533K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $34K · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 22 of 22 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 56/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 49/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 49/100.