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Citizens Against Government Waste

  • Washington, DC
  • Tax-exempt since Aug. 1984
  • EIN: 52-1363952

Organization summary

Type of Nonprofit

Designated as a Organizations for any of the following purposes: religious, educational, charitable, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering national or international amateur sports competition (as long as it doesn't provide athletic facilities or equipment), or the prevention of cruelty to children or animals.

Donations to this organization are tax deductible.

Summary charts: organization finances over time

Revenue
$1.95M (2023)

Expenses
$2.65M (2023)

Total Assets
$1.94M (2023)

Total Liabilities
$788k (2023)

Source: Form 990 tax filings from 2011 to 2023

Tax Filings by Year

Form 990 is an information return that most organizations claiming federal tax-exempt status must file yearly with the IRS. Nonprofit Explorer has IRS digitized Form 990 data for filings processed in 2012 and later. If this organization filed an amended return, it may not be reflected below. Duplicate download links may indicate a resubmission or amendment to this organization's original return. Form 990 data is from the IRS.

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2023

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$1,953,590
Expenses
$2,650,629
Net Income
-$697,039
Net Assets
$1,152,525
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $1,725,994
88.3%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $88,822
4.5%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $5,371
0.3%
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $133,403
6.8%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $633,009
23.9%
Professional Fundraising Fees $152,905
5.8%
Other Salaries and Wages $503,496
19.0%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $1,940,064
Total Liabilities $787,539
Net Assets $1,152,525
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (President & Secretary) $354,957 $4,494 $33,853
Mekdes Yifru (Cfo) $116,068 $1,470 $1,664
Deborah Collier (Vp Of Policy And Gov't Aff) $104,340 $1,321 $22,857
Bob Heckman (Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
Mike Rose (Director) $0 $0 $0
Elizabeth Wright (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on July 22, 2024

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2022

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,348,354
Expenses
$2,591,874
Net Income
-$243,520
Net Assets
$1,849,564
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $2,161,655
92.0%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $8,390
0.4%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $7,127
0.3%
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $171,182
7.3%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $552,377
21.3%
Professional Fundraising Fees $233,739
9.0%
Other Salaries and Wages $482,542
18.6%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $2,175,510
Total Liabilities $325,946
Net Assets $1,849,564
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (President) $307,736 $3,895 $28,134
Mekdes Yifru (Cfo) $101,648 $1,287 $1,611
Deborah Collier (Vp Of Policy And Gov't Aff) $91,385 $1,157 $22,805
Bob Heckman (Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Secretary) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
Mike Rose (Director) $0 $0 $0
Elizabeth Wright (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on July 19, 2023

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2021

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,642,299
Expenses
$2,762,677
Net Income
-$120,378
Net Assets
$2,561,862
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $2,245,473
85.0%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $10,398
0.4%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $5,646
0.2%
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $380,782
14.4%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $635,139
23.0%
Professional Fundraising Fees $243,671
8.8%
Other Salaries and Wages $529,618
19.2%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $2,739,250
Total Liabilities $177,388
Net Assets $2,561,862
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (President) $307,982 $3,899 $31,833
Mekdes Yifru (Cfo) $101,648 $1,287 $1,611
Elizabeth Wright (Director, Health & Science Division) $96,963 $1,227 $12,768
Deborah Collier (Vp Of Policy And Gov't Aff) $91,682 $1,161 $22,338
Steven Hofman (Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Bob Heckman (Treasurer) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Secretary) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
Mike Rose (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on July 28, 2022

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2020

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,502,988
Expenses
$2,769,288
Net Income
-$266,300
Net Assets
$2,793,785
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $2,284,621
91.3%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $14,296
0.6%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $7,321
0.3%
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $196,750
7.9%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $685,181
24.7%
Professional Fundraising Fees $184,607
6.7%
Other Salaries and Wages $450,718
16.3%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $3,117,994
Total Liabilities $324,209
Net Assets $2,793,785
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (President) $309,153 $3,913 $30,786
Mekdes Yifru (Cfo) $101,597 $1,286 $1,594
Deborah Collier (Vp Of Policy And Gov't Affairs) $89,510 $1,144 $21,262
Ariane Sweeney (Vp, Membership & Devpment) $62,438 $790 $5,193
Leslie Paige (Vp, Policy & Communications) $61,697 $781 $10,916
Steven Hofman (Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Bob Heckman (Treasurer) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Secretary) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
Mike Rose (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on Aug. 2, 2021

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
XML

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2019

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,764,560
Expenses
$3,674,661
Net Income
-$910,101
Net Assets
$3,208,880
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $2,604,946
94.2%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $95,213
3.4%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $54,133
2.0%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $10,268
0.4%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $725,262
19.7%
Professional Fundraising Fees $182,958
5.0%
Other Salaries and Wages $825,605
22.5%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $3,651,040
Total Liabilities $442,160
Net Assets $3,208,880
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (Director & President) $337,584 $8,656 $18,564
Leslie Paige (Vp, Policy & Communication) $165,737 $0 $18,564
Ariane Sweeney (Vp, Membership & Developme) $164,621 $4,222 $14,076
Steven Hofman (Director & Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Bob Heckman (Director & Treasurer) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Director & Secretary) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on Aug. 7, 2020

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML
990-T

For unrelated business income from activities not substantially related to the organization's tax-exempt purpose

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2018

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$3,117,817
Expenses
$3,816,306
Net Income
-$698,489
Net Assets
$3,787,192
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $3,002,448
96.3%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $115,452
3.7%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets -$17,203
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $17,120
0.5%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $718,872
18.8%
Professional Fundraising Fees $193,193
5.1%
Other Salaries and Wages $903,083
23.7%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $4,262,459
Total Liabilities $475,267
Net Assets $3,787,192
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (Director & President) $338,817 $8,688 $18,413
Ariane Sweeney (Vp, Membership & Developme) $166,357 $4,266 $12,823
Leslie Page (Vp, Policy & Communication) $160,042 $4,104 $17,998
Steven Hofman (Director & Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Bob Heckman (Director & Treasurer) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Director & Secretary) $0 $0 $0
Jeffrey P Altman (Director) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on July 30, 2019

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML
990-T

For unrelated business income from activities not substantially related to the organization's tax-exempt purpose

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2017

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$4,613,493
Expenses
$3,768,713
Net Income
$844,780
Net Assets
$4,785,432
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $4,387,561
95.1%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $106,164
2.3%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $105,668
2.3%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $14,100
0.3%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $706,734
18.8%
Professional Fundraising Fees $163,028
4.3%
Other Salaries and Wages $830,884
22.0%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $5,176,962
Total Liabilities $391,530
Net Assets $4,785,432
Other
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (Director & President) $325,781 $8,353 $20,877
Ariane Sweeney (Vp, Membership & Developme) $166,897 $4,280 $13,322
Leslie Page (Vp, Policy & Communication) $158,679 $4,069 $17,409
Steven Hofman (Director & Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Bob Heckman (Director & Treasurer) $0 $0 $0
Jeffrey P Altman (Director) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Director) $0 $0 $0
Mary Grace (Director) $0 $0 $0
Terry Grace Sears (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on July 26, 2018

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2016

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,656,500
Expenses
$3,741,609
Net Income
-$1,085,109
Net Assets
$3,806,011
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $2,573,729
96.9%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets -$5,230
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $88,001
3.3%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $723,284
19.3%
Professional Fundraising Fees $146,175
3.9%
Other Salaries and Wages $639,933
17.1%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $4,370,783
Total Liabilities $564,772
Net Assets $3,806,011
Other
Reported conflict of interest transactions
Compensation
Key Employees and Officers Compensation Related Other
Thomas A Schatz (Director & President) $297,642 $7,632 $18,430
Ariane Sweeney (Vp, Membership & Development) $144,067 $11,681 $12,694
Leslie Page (Vp, Policy & Communication) $141,767 $3,636 $18,464
Robert J Tedeschi (Treasurer & Cfo) $77,163 $3,215 $7,647
Steven Hofman (Director & Chairman) $0 $0 $0
Bob Heckman (Director & Treasurer) $0 $0 $0
Jeffrey P Altman (Director) $0 $0 $0
Michael Franc (Director) $0 $0 $0
Mary Grace (Director) $0 $0 $0
+ View more people

Document Links

990
Filed on Aug. 10, 2017

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

View Filing
PDF XML

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2015

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$7,019,241
Expenses
$3,023,349
Net Income
$3,995,892
Net Assets
$4,648,573
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $6,987,998
99.6%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets -$996
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $32,239
0.5%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $762,754
25.2%
Professional Fundraising Fees $80,221
2.7%
Other Salaries and Wages $498,608
16.5%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $4,708,442
Total Liabilities $59,869
Net Assets $4,648,573

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2014

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,979,764
Expenses
$3,435,427
Net Income
-$455,663
Net Assets
$640,241
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $2,734,735
91.8%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $188,189
6.3%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $56,840
1.9%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $644,347
18.8%
Professional Fundraising Fees $123,736
3.6%
Other Salaries and Wages $421,825
12.3%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $853,646
Total Liabilities $213,405
Net Assets $640,241

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2013

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$2,976,032
Expenses
$3,089,908
Net Income
-$113,876
Net Assets
$1,254,898
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $3,038,729
> 100%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $5
0.0%
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets -$62,702
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $660,728
21.4%
Professional Fundraising Fees $101,693
3.3%
Other Salaries and Wages $375,911
12.2%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $1,486,860
Total Liabilities $231,962
Net Assets $1,254,898

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2012

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$3,267,300
Expenses
$3,303,535
Net Income
-$36,235
Net Assets
$1,164,273
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $3,250,963
99.5%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $2,262
0.1%
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $14,075
0.4%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $0
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $585,192
17.7%
Professional Fundraising Fees $139,396
4.2%
Other Salaries and Wages $470,057
14.2%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $1,309,156
Total Liabilities $144,883
Net Assets $1,164,273

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2011

Extracted Financial Data

Extracted Financial Data from Form 990
Revenue
$7,064,996
Expenses
$7,393,375
Net Income
-$328,379
Net Assets
$1,130,730
Notable Sources of Revenue Percent of Total Revenue
Contributions $6,953,581
98.4%
Program Services $0
Investment Income $0
Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $791
0.0%
Rental Property Income $0
Net Fundraising $0
Sales of Assets $42,884
0.6%
Net Inventory Sales $0
Other Revenue $67,740
1.0%
Notable Expenses Percent of Total Expenses
Executive Compensation $588,061
8.0%
Professional Fundraising Fees $114,476
1.5%
Other Salaries and Wages $427,348
5.8%
Assets/Debt
Total Assets $1,358,786
Total Liabilities $228,056
Net Assets $1,130,730

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2010

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2009

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2008

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2007

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2006

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2005

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2004

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2003

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2002

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

Fiscal Year Ending Dec.
2001

No Extracted Financial Data

Extracted financial data is not available for the forms filed in this tax period, but Form 990 documents are available for download.

Document Links

990

Primary tax return for a nonprofit’s activities, finances, and governance

PDF

About This Data

Nonprofit Explorer includes summary data for nonprofit tax returns and full Form 990 documents, in both PDF and digital formats.

The summary data contains information processed by the IRS during the 2012-2019 calendar years; this generally consists of filings for the 2011-2018 fiscal years, but may include older records. This data release includes only a subset of what can be found in the full Form 990s.

In addition to the raw summary data, we link to PDFs and digital copies of full Form 990 documents wherever possible. This consists of separate releases by the IRS of Form 990 documents processed by the agency, which we update regularly.

We also link to copies of audits nonprofit organizations that spent $750,000 or more in Federal grant money in a single fiscal year since 2016. These audits are copied from the Federal Audit Clearinghouse.

Which Organizations Are Here?

Every organization that has been recognized as tax exempt by the IRS has to file Form 990 every year, unless they make less than $200,000 in revenue and have less than $500,000 in assets, in which case they have to file form 990-EZ. Organizations making less than $50,000 don’t have to file either form but do have to let the IRS they’re still in business via a Form 990N "e-Postcard."

Nonprofit Explorer has organizations claiming tax exemption in each of the 27 subsections of the 501(c) section of the tax code, and which have filed a Form 990, Form 990EZ or Form 990PF. Taxable trusts and private foundations that are required to file a form 990PF are also included. Small organizations filing a Form 990N "e-Postcard" are not included in this data.

Types of Nonprofits

There are 27 nonprofit designations based on the numbered subsections of section 501(c) of the tax code. See the list »

Get the Data

For those interested in acquiring the original data from the source, here’s where our data comes from:

  • Raw filing data. Includes EINs and summary financials as structured data.
  • Exempt Organization profiles. Includes organization names, addresses, etc. You can merge this with the raw filing data using EIN numbers.
  • Form 990 documents. Prior to 2017, these documents were obtained and processed by Public.Resource.org and ProPublica. Bulk PDF downloads since 2017 are available from the IRS.
  • Form 990 documents as XML files. Includes complete filing data (financial details, names of officers, tax schedules, etc.) in machine-readable format. Only available for electronically filed documents. Electronic data released prior to October 2021 is also available through Amazon Web Services.
  • Audits. PDFs of single or program-specific audits for nonprofit organizations that spent $750,000 or more in Federal grant money in a single fiscal year. Available for fiscal year 2015 and later.

API

The data powering this website is available programmatically, via an API. Read the API documentation »

Byline

By Andrea Suozzo, Alec Glassford and Ash Ngu, ProPublica, and Brandon Roberts, Special to ProPublica.
Design by Jeff Frankl. Additional development by Ken Schwencke, Mike Tigas, and Sisi Wei.

E-file viewer adapted from IRS e-File Viewer by Ben Getson. Code for scraping audit documents adapated from Govwiki.

Updated