The Israel Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
371472882
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2017
Forms available
Form 990 2017
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2028576644
Rating
62
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Judaism
Affiliation
Judaism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,850,938
Expenses
$5,063,783
Assets
$1,299,718
Liabilities
$363,384

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2017. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOSHUA BLOCK (CEO AND PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOSHUA BLOCK (CEO AND PRESIDENT): $452,302 total reported compensation
  • GARY ROSEN (SENIOR ADVISOR): $221,970 total reported compensation
  • MARYBETH LONG (CFO/COO (UNTIL 3/31/2018)): $188,713 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2017. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The israel project (tip) is a non-profit educational organization that provides factual information about israel and the middle east to the press, policy-makers and the public.

What it reported doing in 2017

Strategic communications & media relations: idenfiying and proactively communicating proven, effective messages that encourage people to support israel and policies that will make israel safer. Using sophiscated public opinion research to identify messages, themes and visuals that will bring support to key policies, the israel project has trained thousands of influential policy leaders, opinion elites and spokespeople to help strengthen israel's image in international media. The organization has conducted outreach and education to improve u.s. Understanding of the vital nature of a strong relationship between israel and other countries.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% 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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 74
  • Transparency & Controls: 42
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 17
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80.8%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 77.4%; rating input score 77
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.42 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: No; rating input score 0
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: -4.4%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.26; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.28; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 26.3%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -5.7% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -4% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -20.1% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80.8% of revenue deployed · 77.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $452K · 21 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $285K reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 35 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2012 to 2017
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 28/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Major donor itemization scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 10/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 41/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.