Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
522079266
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2022740235
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,296,247
Expenses
$1,147,565
Assets
$495,492
Liabilities
$8,162

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

Leadership & pay

4 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LAWRENCE J SPIWAK (PRESIDENT)
  • GEORGE FORD PHD (SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT/CHIEF ECONOMIST)

Highest reported compensation

  • LAWRENCE J SPIWAK (PRESIDENT): $453,710 total reported compensation
  • GEORGE FORD PHD (SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT/CHIEF ECONOMIST): $453,710 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 phoenix center was established in 1998 with a mission to provide independent assessments of the economic and material implications of regulatory and economic policy in the u.s. And abroad. To achieve this goal, the center supports objective, solutions-based academic research unencumbered by political hyperbole, partisanship, and ideological agendas. Its work is grounded in fact, law, and economic theory.

What it reported doing in 2025

The phoenix center for advanced legal & economic public policy studies (www.phoenix-center.org) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) research organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age. In 2025, the phoenix center maintained a robust research agenda which contributed positively to the policy debate. All of the phoenix center's research may be downloaded free from its webpage and from the social science research network.key publications in 2025:- one (1) policy paper.- nine (9) policy bulletins.- six (6) policy perspectives.- two (2) law and economics in briefs.- four phoenix center papers were published or accepted for publication in peer-reviewed academic journals, including concurrences, the federal communications law journal, the journal of regional economics and public choice.- phoenix center staff had seven (7) op-eds and essays in an assortment of outlets, including the yale journal on regulation and the federalist society blog.- phoenix center staff authored a chapter in the forthcoming research handbook on digital regulatory agencies (edward elgar).in 2025, citations to phoenix center research could be found in academic journals such as economic inquiry, journal of economic geography, the review of industrial organization, journal of financial stability, the international journal of electronic commerce, telecommunications policy, information economics and policy, information & media, public opinion quarterly, international journal of finance & economics, international review of economics & finance, technology in society, franchise law journal, journal of cultural analysis and social change, the international journal of psychiatry in medicine, frontiers in public health, the international journal of public health, the international journal of innovation studies, behavior & information technology, current issues in tourism, notre dame journal on emerging technologies, mitchell hamline law journal of public policy and practice, the houston law review and the Texas tech law review, among others.phoenix center staff were invited to present our research at a variety of conferences this year, including participating on a panel at the naruc winter policy summit, speaking at a conference sponsored by techfreedom and cei entitled "burning the house down to roast the pig: constitutional limits of ftc, fcc and doj interference in media and speech," participating in a capitol hill seminar sponsored by the gw competition & innovation lab entitled "free speech and antitrust: who controls the public square?", moderating a federalist society webinar entitled "litigation update: ftc v. Microsoft, and participating in a roundtable sponsored by the university of Pennsylvania law school entitled "the new video marketplace: updating the law for changing times?"the phoenix center filed two (2) amicus briefs with assorted courts.both the center's chief economist and president remain in the top 1% of downloaded authors on the social science research network.key leadership roles:- lawrence spiwak (president) serves as co-chair of federal communications bar association's committee for the federal communications law journal and also serves on both the federalist society's telecommunications and antitrust practice executive committees.the organization maintains its commitment to providing independent, analytical rigor to policy debates, emphasizing fact-based research over political rhetoric. Their work spans broad public policy issues related to governance and socioeconomic conditions, with particular attention to the digital age's legal and economic challenges. The phoenix center continues to promote public confidence in democratic processes and the free enterprise system while fostering open debate about future policy directions.

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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 34
  • Sustainability: 41
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 75.6%; rating input score 76
  • Program expense ratio: 85.4%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $17.79 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: 50%; rating input score 50; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 11.5%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.43; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 79.1%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.5% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 75.6% of revenue deployed · 85.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 4 board members independent · 1 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $980K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $454K · 4 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 22 of 22 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 7 not reported.
  • Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 50/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 22/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 55/100.