The 85 Fund

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
202466871
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2011
Location
Fort Worth, TX, USA
Phone
8176614087
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Alliance/Advocacy

Reported finances

Revenue
$168,530,018
Expenses
$169,654,423
Assets
$2,754,902
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Ormal Skinner (Counsel): $308,333 total reported compensation
  • Jason Snead (Counsel): $264,600 total reported compensation
  • Chad Ennis (Counsel): $222,853 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 educate the public and support activities that highlight the relationship between structural limits on government power and the protection of our dignity and our freedoms.

What it reported doing in 2024

Organization made grants and undertook activities to educate the public about the importance of constitutionalism, limited government, religious liberty, the role of the courts, education policies, and election reforms.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 72% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 52
  • Sustainability: 32
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 96.8%; rating input score 97
  • Program expense ratio: 96.1%; rating input score 96
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 33.3%; rating input score 33; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -0.7%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.02; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0.8%; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.8% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 19.7% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -20.2% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 96.8% of revenue deployed · 96.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 1 of 3 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $163.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $308K · 8 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $37.6M reported
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 45 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 39 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.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 33/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 24/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.