Salk Institute for Biological Studies
Legal name: The Salk Institute for Biological Studies
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 952160097
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- La Jolla, CA, United States
- Phone
- (858) 453-4100
- Rating
- 77
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Biological & Life Sciences
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $181,393,442
- Expenses
- $176,890,799
- Assets
- $836,148,506
- Liabilities
- $149,172,313
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
39 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- GERALD JOYCE MD PHD (PRESIDENT / PROFESSOR)
Highest reported compensation
- GERALD JOYCE MD PHD (PRESIDENT / PROFESSOR): $969,960 total reported compensation
- JAN KARLSEDER PHD (PROFESSOR): $554,433 total reported compensation
- FRED GAGE PHD (PROFESSOR): $516,843 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 Salk Institute is an independent, nonprofit research institute founded in 1960 by Jonas Salk, whose mission is to drive foundational, collaborative, risk-taking research that addresses society’s most pressing challenges (including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and agricultural vulnerability). The Salk Institute is an independent, nonprofit research institute founded in 1960 by Jonas Salk, developer of the first safe and effective polio vaccine. The Institute’s mission is to drive foundational, collaborative, risk-taking research that addresses society’s most pressing challenges, including cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and agricultural vulnerability. This foundational science underpins all translational efforts, generating insights that enable new medicines and innovations worldwide.
What it reported doing in 2024
See schedule o
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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 85
- Transparency & Controls: 61
- Accountability: 86
- Sustainability: 58
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 88.5%; rating input score 89
- Program expense ratio: 84%; rating input score 84
- Fundraising efficiency: $27.37 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
- Compensation committee: Pass
- 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: Scored; rating input score 0
- Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 82.8%; rating input score 83; 30th 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: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 2.5%; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.73; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 3.5%; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 2.4% per year; rating input score 100; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: Mission, programs, and operating context captured from the official website.
- Where the money goes: 88.5% of revenue deployed · 84% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 24 of 29 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $148.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $970K · 39 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $7.2M reported
- Consistency: 49 of 50 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 11 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 15 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 45/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 31/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.