Pretrial Justice Institute

What it reported doing in 2024

Pretrial justice institute (pji) is one partner in the pretrial justice movement, which includes organizers, advocates, researchers, public officials, technical assistance providers, and countless others working nationally and locally on an array of reforms, from incremental improvements to radical reimagination.our role in this ecosystem is to partner with community and system stakeholders to translate community members' vision for safety, fairness, and equity into tangible pretrial policies and practicesand help them build the capacity and momentum to implement them.we do this by listening to (and learning from) the people closest to the problemand leveraging our nearly 50-year history of working within pretrial processes; our technical knowledge of pretrial law, research and best practices; and our unwavering commitment to racial justice.pji's new framework for change is local antiracist pretrial justicewhere community members and public officials partner to implement decarceral solutions rooted in equity, safety and well-being for all.to foster equity, safety, and well-being in our communities, we need a seismic shift in our nation's approach to pretrial justice: one that explicitly names and addresses the systemic deprivations that lead to incarcerationand demands relief from racial oppression and correctional control, both in jails and community settings.local antiracist pretrial justice (lapj) aims to do just that.lapj is a holistic framework that addresses the spectrum of pretrial decision points, starting with a person's contact with law enforcementor being able to avoid contactthrough the disposition of their case. Our vision for lapj is a pretrial process that honors the constitutional rights of people facing charges, with the vast majority remaining in the community with access to community-based services and very limited court-imposed restrictions.by reducing the likelihood that a person comes under correctional control at the "front door" of the system, we decrease the odds of future stays in jail or prisonultimately freeing up resources that can be invested in our communities.to that end (or, really, beginning), pji partners with community and system stakeholders to develop courageous, innovative solutions that are grounded in the wisdom of people with lived experienceincluding crime survivorsand oriented toward justice for black, brown and other marginalized communities.we believe that's not only the future of pretrial justiceit's a pathway to our collective freedom.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 76.7%; rating input score 77
• Program expense ratio: 79.6%; rating input score 80
• Fundraising efficiency: $69.84 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: Limited
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 17th 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: 3.6%; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.58; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.67; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 19.6%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 1.4% per year; rating input score 100; 19th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 7.1% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings