The Economic Club of New York

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
131655225
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
New York, NY, USA
Phone
2129477738
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Economics

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,752,282
Expenses
$4,257,933
Assets
$16,330,460
Liabilities
$909,974

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

Leadership & pay

29 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BARBARA VAN ALLEN (PRESIDENT / CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • BARBARA VAN ALLEN (PRESIDENT / CEO): $906,992 total reported compensation
  • CELINE CLARKE (CHIEF OF STAFF): $262,915 total reported compensation
  • ELIZABETH SIMONE (CONTROLLER): $228,208 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 economic club of New York is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nonpolitical organization dedicated to the promotion of the study and discussion of social, economic and political questions. For more than a century, the club has served as the premier public forum for thought leaders of the united states and the world, to express a diverse set of views and opinions in a free and open environment effectively acting as a catalyst for innovation in thought and ideas impacting social, economic and political issues facing society.

What it reported doing in 2025

Next generation: the club is committed to developing talented business and economic leaders throughout the various stages of their careers. This pipeline includes complimentary event tickets for students, specialized programming for rising executives with 7 to 15 years of experience (ecny fellows), and a termed membership for midlevel executives under the age of 45 (associate members). In 2025, nearly 2,000 students from more than 15 colleges and universities were invited to attended ecny events. There were 98 fellows in the nyc class of 2025 and 11 additional fellows in the national fellows program. Associate members are mid-level executives under the age of 45 who gain access to the club's networking resources and unparalleled events for a 5-year term. In 2025, the club had 164 associate members.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 61
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 67
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 81%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 26%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.84; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 46.5%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 13.9% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62% of revenue deployed · 81% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $3.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $907K · 29 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $239K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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 — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 2/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.