Murray Bessette
The data on this page comes from a financial disclosure filed by Murray Bessette, who was picked to be: Senior Advisor, Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development, Department of Education in February, 2025. It is part of a collection of thousands of ethics documents ProPublica has been collecting from across the Trump administration.
Roles Outside Government
Officials are required to disclose paid or unpaid positions they hold or recently held outside the federal government, including roles as officer, director, trustee or employee. (Form 278e, Part 1)
| Organization | Position held | Endnote | Line No. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meritus Consulting | Founding Principal, 2/2024 - 2/2025 | 1 | |
| American Civics Academy | Co-Founder, 4/2024 - Present | 2 | |
| The Remembrance Society | Trustee, 2/2024 - Present | 3 | |
| Alexander Hamilton Society | Director of Academic Programs, 7/2024 - 2/2025 | 4 | |
| Common Sense Society | Senior Vice President of Education, 3/2021 - 2/2024 | 5 | |
| Liberty Fund | Consultant, 10/2024 - 10/2024 | 6 | |
| American Civics Academy | Board member, 4/2024 - Present | 7 |
Employment Assets
Officials are required to disclose assets associated with their employment, including salary, retirement accounts, stocks, intellectual property and awards or prizes. (Form 278e, Part 2)
| Description | Value | Income | Income Type | Endnote | Line No. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRA #1 | 1 | ||||
| BHP Group Limited American Depositary Shares (BHP) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.1 | ||
| Denison Mines Corp Ordinary Shares (Canada) (DNN) | $15,001 - $50,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.2 | ||
| Grab Holdings Limited Class A Ordinary Shares (GRAB) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.3 | ||
| Intel Corp. (INTC) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.4 | ||
| IonQ Inc. Common Stock (IONQ) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.5 | ||
| NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NNE) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.6 | ||
| Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.7 | ||
| Palantir Technologies Inc. Class A Common Stock (PLTR) | $250K - $500K | None (or less than $201) | 1.8 | ||
| Sprott Inc. Common Shares (SII) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 1.9 | ||
| Alexander Hamilton Society | $104K | Salary/Bonus | 2 | ||
| Common Sense Society | $25,907 | Salary/Bonus | 3 | ||
| Liberty Fund | $3,650 | Consulting Fees | 4 | ||
| Hillsdale College - 10/4/24 | $1,500 | honorarium | 5 |
Compensation
Officials are required to disclose the sources of any compensation above $5,000 in a year. (Form 278e, Part 4)
Spouse’s Assets
Officials are required to disclose their spouse’s assets, including salary and retirement accounts worth more than $1,000. (Form 278e, Part 5)
| Description | Value | Income | Income Type | Endnote | Line No. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgetown University | salary | 1 | |||
| Commonwealth of Kentucky | consulting fees | 2 | |||
| John Wiley and Sons | consulting fees | 3 | |||
| Victory Lane Aquatic Club | salary | 4 | |||
| IRA #2 | 5 | ||||
| Palantir Technologies Inc. Class A Common Stock (PLTR) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 5.1 | ||
| Denison Mines Corp Ordinary Shares (Canada) (DNN) | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 5.2 | ||
| Georgetown University Plan #1 (DCRP) | 6 | ||||
| Nuveen Lifecycle Index 2040 Fund R6 | $50,001 - $100K | None (or less than $201) | 6.1 | ||
| Georgetown University Plan #2 (VCRP) | 7 | ||||
| Nuveen Lifecycle Index 2040 Fund R6 | $1,001 - $15,000 | None (or less than $201) | 7.1 | ||
| Virginia IRA | 8 | ||||
| BlackRock LifePath Index 2040 Fund N | $15,001 - $50,000 | None (or less than $201) | 8.1 |
Liabilities
Officials are required to disclose their liabilities totaling more than $10,000, as well as any linked to their spouse or dependent children. These include mortgages, credit card debt and student loans. The interest rates and loan repayment terms are also required. (Form 278e, Part 8)
| Creditor | Description | Endnote | Line No. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank of America | type: Credit Card, amount: $15,001 - $50,000, year-incurred: 2024, rate: 18.49, term: Revolving | 1 | |
| AMERICAN EXPRESS | type: Credit Card, amount: $50,001 - $100,000, year-incurred: 2024, rate: 22.49, term: Revolving | 2 | |
| SOFI | type: Personal Loan, amount: $15,001 - $50,000, year-incurred: 2024, rate: 13.2, term: 60 months | 3 | |
| Pinnacle Bank | type: Personal Loan, amount: $100,001 - $250,000, year-incurred: 2024, rate: 15.49, term: 60 months | 4 |
About the Data
Most political appointees and senior officials in the executive branch are required by law to file public financial disclosure reports. These are documents that detail their financial holdings, positions they hold outside government, their spouse’s holdings, their liabilities and their recent financial transactions (such as buying or selling stock) during a defined reporting period.
The most senior officials file their disclosures with an agency called the Office of Government Ethics, and others file them with a designated ethics official within their agency. The Ethics in Government Act allows members of the public and the press to request these documents.
We’re publishing this information to give the public an important glimpse into the financial ties of a powerful and often hidden cadre of presidential appointees within the federal bureaucracy.
The main document type included in the database is the OGE Form 278e, which appointees must file when they are nominated (for Senate-confirmed appointees) or when they enter government (all others), and then annually while in the position. Another common document included is the OGE Form 278-T, also known as a periodic transaction report, which all public filers must submit within 30 days of a transaction. We are also making other ethics documents available, such as ethics agreements, certificates of divestiture and other documents we have obtained under the Ethics in Government Act.
