Texas 2036

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
813063099
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2021, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Austin, TX, USA
Phone
4693842036
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Reported finances

Revenue
$12,180,058
Expenses
$9,576,796
Assets
$16,796,692
Liabilities
$580,060

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

Leadership & pay

49 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • David Leebron (President/CEO)
  • Arthur James Rodriguez (Executive Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • David Leebron (President/CEO): $720,349 total reported compensation
  • John Hryhorchuk (SVP, Policy and Advocacy): $359,589 total reported compensation
  • Arthur James Rodriguez (Executive Vice President): $343,143 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Texas 2036 identifies and advances data-driven policies that will improve lives and expand opportunities for all Texans.

What it reported doing in 2025

Policy Development: In 2025, Texas 2036 advanced its data-driven, research-informed, nonpartisan work by developing and publishing research, interactive data tools, and viable policy solutions to address Texas' most complex and long-term challenges. Guided by the goals and priorities outlined in our strategic framework for the state, Texas 2036 prepared and disseminated extensive data, research, stakeholder input, and policy analysis to legislative committees, government commissions and agencies, and business, non-profit, and civic organizations. These materials were also made freely available to the public through our website.(Continued on Schedule O)Texas 2036 continued to develop and engage with multi-sector stakeholder coalitions including Aim Hire Texas, a statewide consortium of advocates, employers, non-profit organizations, and education and training providers focused on improving the Texas workforce system; the States for the Future network, a collaboration of organizations and states pursuing a new approach to solving significant and systemic challenges; the Texas Water Funding Coalition, a group of business leaders and organizations from across the state urging Texas leaders to establish a dedicated revenue source to fund water projects including expanding the state's water supply portfolio and fixing aging and deteriorating water systems; and Employers for Childcare, a diverse group of business leaders collaborating to develop and advocate for public policy reforms to expand access to affordable, quality childcare for working families in Texas. Texas 2036 also developed and initiated several projects to continue to document the challenges and opportunities facing Texas, including data analyses, research summaries, reports, and related resources aligned with its strategic framework. These materials have been, or will be, made publicly available to support informed understanding and consideration of the issues affecting the state.

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 99% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 58
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 60
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 56.1%; rating input score 56
  • Program expense ratio: 70%; rating input score 70
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.54 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 21.4%; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.75; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 35.7%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.6% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 12.8% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 56.1% of revenue deployed · 70% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 34 of 34 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $6.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $720K · 49 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $843K reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 38 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 15 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 56/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 29/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 48/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 1/100.