Home › International, foreign affairs & national security
Federation of American Scientists
Federation of American Scientists reported $35.6 million in revenue and $36.4 million in expenses for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025. Of every $100 it spent, $88.43 went to program services, $10.02 to management and general costs and $1.55 to fundraising. Its largest source of revenue was contributions and grants: 98.2% of the total. Government grants made up 23.5%. The highest compensation it reported for one person was $779,473 (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER). 90 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation. Revenue rose 427% between FY2020 and FY2025. Source: Form 990, FY2025.
Where $100 of spending went
The fiscal year ending June 30, 2025 · Form 990, Part IX, line 25 · total expenses $36MFor context, the median across 469 covered international, foreign affairs & national security charities: $89.04 programs, $8.28 management, $2.68 fundraising (medians computed separately, so they may not sum to $100).
Where $100 of revenue came from
The fiscal year ending June 30, 2025 · Form 990, Part VIII · total revenue $36MThe 990 scorecard · same measures for every charity, no grades
| Measure | FY2025 | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Program services Part IX 25(B) ÷ 25(A) | 88.4% | 86.1% |
| Management & general Part IX 25(C) ÷ 25(A) | 10.0% | 8.0% |
| Fundraising Part IX 25(D) ÷ 25(A) | 1.6% | 2.6% |
| Fundraising cost per $1 of contributions Part IX 25(D) ÷ Part VIII 1h | $0.02 | $0.03 |
| Contributions & grants share of revenue Part VIII 1h ÷ 12 | 98.2% | 96.6% |
| Government grants share of revenue Part VIII 1e ÷ 12 | 23.5% | 0.0% |
| Program service revenue share Part VIII 2g ÷ 12 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Highest reported compensation Part VII-A, columns D–F | $779,473 | $341,362 |
| Highest compensation as share of expenses Part VII-A ÷ Part IX 25(A) | 2.14% | 1.06% |
| People paid over $100,000 Part VII, line 2 | 90 | 10 |
| Net assets, in months of expenses Part X 33(B) ÷ monthly expenses | 10.2 | 7.5 |
| Independent voting board members Part VI 1a–1b | 9 of 10 | 100.0% |
A median is context, not a target: hospitals, universities, food banks and grantmakers spend in very different ways. What these measures can and can't tell you.
What the money paid for, in its own words
FY2025 · Form 990, Part III · the three largest programs by expenseFiscal sponsorships (formerly known as special projects): a home for initiatives that bring science and technology to bear on critical policy challenges. The program is designed to address a continuing long-term challenge: ensuring that high impact science and technology projects for the public good have the operational infrastructure, financial sustainability, and strategic support they need to launch quickly, operate responsibly, and demonstrate measurable public benefit. In fy2025, fas accepted tax-deductible contributions on behalf of sponsored nine projects and provided financial…
Talent initiatives: fellowship programs that cultivate policy entrepreneurship skills among scientific and technical (s&t) talent and deploy experts into public service to make progress on the most important s&t challenges of our time. In fy2025, fas continued to manage fellowships across the federal government, including at the US department of agriculture where fellows bridged the gaps between policy design and practical implementation, particularly for rural and tribal farming communities. Additionally, fas expanded the talent initiatives program to provide fellowships into civil society…
Science policy entrepreneurship and day one project: a platform for shaping public policy that democratizes the policy process by supporting individuals across the science and technology ecosystem with promising ideas and turning them into actionable policy. In fy2025, fas hosted the day one 2025 summit, a culmination of a year-long policy sprint that created more than 200 nonpartisan, implementation ready policy proposals for a new administration spanning a broad range of science and technology domains. This summit showcased the proposals, convening more than 130 participants, and laid the…
Highest reported compensation
FY2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section A · roles as filed; names are in the filing, not here| Role | From this org | From related orgs | Other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Director/trustee, officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $683,472 | $0 | $96,001 | $779,473 |
| CHIEF IMPACT OFFICER (THRU 10/24) Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $318,173 | $0 | $296 | $318,469 |
| DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL INNOVATION Highest compensated employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $263,794 | $0 | $48,057 | $311,851 |
| CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER (THRU 6/25) Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $254,036 | $0 | $18,399 | $272,435 |
| DIRECTOR OF GLOBAL RISKS Highest compensated employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $194,969 | $0 | $46,422 | $241,391 |
| CHIEF OF STAFF Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $200,643 | $0 | $21,127 | $221,770 |
| DIRECTOR OF SCIENCE POLICY Highest compensated employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $192,394 | $0 | $26,326 | $218,720 |
| DIR. POLICY FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMS Highest compensated employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $187,836 | $0 | $22,313 | $210,149 |
90 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation from Federation of American Scientists (Part VII, line 2). Compensation of current officers, directors and key employees totaled $1.5M (Part IX, line 5).
6 years of filings
Form 990, Parts I, VII, IX and X · each row is that year's own filing, linkedGovernance answers, as filed
FY2025 · the organization's own yes/no answers; explanations, if any, are in Schedule O of the filing · what each means- Voting board members, and how many are independent Part VI, lines 1a–1b10 · 9 independent
- Audited financial statements Part XII 2bYes
- Conflict-of-interest policy Part VI 12aYes
- Whistleblower policy Part VI 13Yes
- Document retention policy Part VI 14Yes
- Independent process for top executive pay Part VI 15aYes
- Board given the 990 before filing Part VI 11aYes
- Family or business ties among insiders Part VI 2No
- Aware of a significant diversion of assets Part VI 5No
- Excess benefit transaction with an insider Part IV 25aNo
- Loans to or from insiders outstanding Part IV 26No
- Lobbying, or a 501(h) election in effect Part IV 4Yes
- Over $15,000 of professional fundraising services Part IV 18No
- Over $10,000 of activity outside the U.S. Part IV 14bYes
- Employees Part I, line 5116
- Volunteers Part I, line 69
Largest outside contractors
FY2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section B · businesses only| DELIVERY ASSOCIATES LTD Program administration | $4,948,393 |
| THE LEARNING AGENCY Ali support | $437,604 |
| EDUCATION FIRST CONSULTING LLC Ali support | $306,000 |
| MORITZ ADVISORY LLC Ali support | $222,500 |
Individuals listed as contractors are left out. 30 contractors were paid more than $100,000 in all.
Private foundation grants it received
14 private foundations reported grants to Federation of American Scientists totaling $7.2M on their tax year 2023 Form 990-PF returns. See which foundations, on WHOFUNDS.
Source: WHOFUNDS open grant graph, matched from Form 990-PF Part XV.
Correct a figure or respond
Every number above is copied from Federation of American Scientists's own Form 990. If one doesn't match the filing, that's our error and we'll fix it. If you work for Federation of American Scientists, you can publish a response that is linked from this page.
Share or embed this breakdown
Of every $100 Federation of American Scientists spent in FY2025, $88.43 went to programs. The full breakdown, from its IRS Form 990:
Embed on your site
Similar-sized charities in this cause
- Human AppealMission Viejo, CA · revenue $36M · programs 69.1% · 2024
- AisgChina, · revenue $36M · programs 75.5% · FY2025
- International HouseNew York, NY · revenue $36M · programs 72.3% · FY2025
- American Committee for Shaare Zedek Hospital in JerusalemNew York, NY · revenue $36M · programs 92.6% · FY2025
- AshokaArlington, VA · revenue $35M · programs 80.6% · FY2025
All international, foreign affairs & national security charities · Largest charities in District of Columbia
Questions people ask
How much of Federation of American Scientists's spending goes to programs?
In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, Federation of American Scientists reported that 88.4% of its $36.4 million in expenses went to program services, 10.0% to management and general and 1.6% to fundraising (Form 990, Part IX).
How much does Federation of American Scientists pay its top executive?
The largest total compensation Federation of American Scientists reported for one person in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025 was $779,473, for the role of CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (Form 990, Part VII, including compensation from related organizations and other compensation).
Where does Federation of American Scientists get its money?
Of $35.6 million in revenue in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, 98.2% came from contributions and grants (including 23.5% from government grants) and 0.0% from program service revenue (Form 990, Part VIII).
Is Federation of American Scientists a registered charity?
The IRS lists EIN 23-7185827 as a 501(c)(3) organization (publicly supported organization (509(a)(2))), and its records show contributions as tax-deductible. Form 990 filings on record here cover tax years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024. A filing shows what the organization reported; it doesn't by itself show whether a program works.
Sources
- FY2025: Form 990 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, object 202620939349300837 · read the filing · XML
- FY2024: Form 990 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, object 202501349349313450 · read the filing
- FY2023: Form 990 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, object 202431369349308123 · read the filing
- FY2022: Form 990 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, object 202311289349301686 · read the filing
- FY2021: Form 990 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021 (amended), object 202220689349301237 · read the filing
- FY2020: Form 990 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, object 202121329349302667 · read the filing
All filings for EIN 23-7185827: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer · IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. Figures are as the organization reported them; we have not audited them.