The Buckeye Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
311278593
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Columbus, OH, USA
Phone
6142244422
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,575,910
Expenses
$3,063,385
Assets
$8,823,748
Liabilities
$193,552

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Robert Alt (President and CEO)
  • Rea S Hederman Jr (Vice President of Policy)
  • Lisa A Gates (Vice President of Communic)

Highest reported compensation

  • Robert Alt (President and CEO): $452,695 total reported compensation
  • Rebekah Alt (Chief Operating Officer): $299,700 total reported compensation
  • Rea S Hederman Jr (Vice President of Policy): $218,529 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The Buckeye Institute is an independent research and educational institution -- a think tank -- whose mission is to advance free-market public policy in the states.

What it reported doing in 2024

See Schedule O.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 92% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 88
  • Sustainability: 71
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.8%; rating input score 63
  • Program expense ratio: 89.2%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $37.53 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • 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: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 80%; rating input score 80; 14th 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: 33.1%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.88; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 49.3%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 23.6% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.8% of revenue deployed · 89.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 5 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $453K · 11 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $399K reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 1/100.