The New York Society Library

Legal name: The Trustees of the New York Society Library

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
131635307
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Official website data refreshed
Aug 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
New York, NY, USA
Phone
2122886900
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$31,414,155
Expenses
$4,021,049
Assets
$62,744,093
Liabilities
$1,248,807

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

Leadership & pay

25 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • CAROLYN WATERS (HEAD LIBRARIAN): $175,539 total reported compensation
  • SARA E HOLLIDAY (HEAD OF EVENTS): $148,502 total reported compensation
  • CHRISTOPHER HENRY (BUILDING SUPERINTENDENT): $141,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Since 1754, the mission of the New York Society Library has been to connect books and people in an environment of intellectual freedom.

What it reported doing in 2024

Events and exhibitionsthe library is open to the public for reading, reference, exhibitions, and many events, with circulation and other services bysubscription. At end of 2024, the library counted 3,098 family, dual, individual, e-membership and school/institutional memberships. Thelibrary houses a collection of over 300,000 volumes, and circulatedapproximately 55,000 titles to members in 2024 and lent out 513 books to 282 libraries in 47 states through its interlibrary loan service.continue on schedule othe library offers a diverse calendar of events for readers, writers, and children, with most events open to both members and nonmembers.the library offered over 276 programs in 2024, with programming heldin-person, virtually, and hybrid, with an audience in the thousands.the assunta, ignazio, ada, and romano peluso exhibition gallery, opento the public, showcases rare books and materials on literary andhistorical themes. In 2024, the library opened its 270th anniversaryexhibition, titled a belief in books.

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 most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 50
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 87
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 37.2%; rating input score 37
  • Program expense ratio: 77.2%; rating input score 77
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.21 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • 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: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th 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: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 87.2%; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 15.6; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11.6%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 1.4% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 20.8% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 37.2% of revenue deployed · 77.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $176K · 25 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $747K reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 37/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 36/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 15/100.