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American Legion Charities

Indianapolis, IN · EIN 90-1017997 · 501(c)(3) · Publicly supported organization (170(b)(1)(A)(vi))
Latest filing: Form 990 for calendar year 2024 (tax year 2024) · View the filing · Correct or respond

American Legion Charities reported $17.1 million in revenue and $18.3 million in expenses for calendar year 2024. Of every $100 it spent, $40.90 went to program services, $2.08 to management and general costs and $57.02 to fundraising. Its largest source of revenue was contributions and grants: 97.1% of the total. The highest compensation it reported for one person was $436,031 (Secretary (Thru May 2024)). Revenue rose 1264% between 2019 and 2024. Source: Form 990, 2024.

Where $100 of spending went

Calendar year 2024 · Form 990, Part IX, line 25 · total expenses $18M

Program services$40.90 $7.5M
Management & general$2.08 $381K
Fundraising$57.02 $10M

For context, the median across 1,001 covered philanthropy, voluntarism & grantmaking charities: $91.65 programs, $6.50 management, $1.85 fundraising (medians computed separately, so they may not sum to $100).

Where $100 of revenue came from

Calendar year 2024 · Form 990, Part VIII · total revenue $17M

Contributions & grants (non-government)$97.12 $17M
Investment income$1.07 $183K
Other revenue$1.81 $310K

The 990 scorecard · same measures for every charity, no grades

2024 filing. Median across 1,001 covered charities in this category, from their latest filings.
Measure	2024	Median
Program services Part IX 25(B) ÷ 25(A)	40.9%	90.2%
Management & general Part IX 25(C) ÷ 25(A)	2.1%	6.4%
Fundraising Part IX 25(D) ÷ 25(A)	57.0%	1.8%
Fundraising cost per $1 of contributions Part IX 25(D) ÷ Part VIII 1h	$0.63	$0.02
Contributions & grants share of revenue Part VIII 1h ÷ 12	97.1%	79.9%
Government grants share of revenue Part VIII 1e ÷ 12	0.0%	0.0%
Program service revenue share Part VIII 2g ÷ 12	0.0%	0.0%
Highest reported compensation Part VII-A, columns D–F	$436,031	$325,675
Highest compensation as share of expenses Part VII-A ÷ Part IX 25(A)	2.38%	1.56%
People paid over $100,000 Part VII, line 2	0	3
Net assets, in months of expenses Part X 33(B) ÷ monthly expenses	-1.6	56.6
Independent voting board members Part VI 1a–1b	7 of 7	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

2024 · Form 990, Part III · the three largest programs by expense

$7.5M expenses · 100.0% of program spending · grants $5.9M

To promote the common good and the general welfare of the people of the United States of America by raising money for the programs of the American Legion and its departments and posts

Highest reported compensation

2024 · 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
Secretary (Thru May 2024) Officer, 1.0 hrs/week	$0	$330,178	$105,853	$436,031
Assistant Treasurer Officer, 1.0 hrs/week	$0	$227,876	$101,349	$329,225
Secretary (Began May 2024) Officer, 1.0 hrs/week	$0	$266,432	$55,868	$322,300

0 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation from American Legion Charities (Part VII, line 2).

6 years of filings

Form 990, Parts I, VII, IX and X · each row is that year's own filing, linked

RevenueExpenses

Filing	Revenue	Expenses	Programs	Net assets	Top pay
2024 ⓘ	$17M	$18M	40.9%	−$2.4M	$436,031
2023 ⓘ	$17M	$16M	41.6%	−$2.6M	$502,085
2022 ⓘ	$22M	$30M	7.1%	−$3.8M	$284,270
2021 ⓘ	$2.2M	$2.0M	97.2%	$4.9M	—
2020 ⓘ	$1.2M	$667K	94.6%	$4.9M	—
2019 ⓘ	$1.3M	$1.1M	94.3%	$4.3M	—

Governance answers, as filed

2024 · 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–1b7 · 7 independent
Audited financial statements Part XII 2bYes
Conflict-of-interest policy Part VI 12aYes
Whistleblower policy Part VI 13No
Document retention policy Part VI 14No
Independent process for top executive pay Part VI 15aNo
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 4No
Over $15,000 of professional fundraising services Part IV 18Yes
Over $10,000 of activity outside the U.S. Part IV 14bNo
Employees Part I, line 50
Volunteers Part I, line 67

Private foundation grants it received

20 private foundations reported grants to American Legion Charities totaling $40,765 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 American Legion Charities's own Form 990. If one doesn't match the filing, that's our error and we'll fix it. If you work for American Legion Charities, you can publish a response that is linked from this page.

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Similar-sized charities in this cause

United Way of Greater Charlotte
Charlotte, NC · revenue $17M · programs 72.8% · FY2025
Boca Grande Health Clinic Fndtn
Boca Grande, FL · revenue $17M · programs 91.6% · FY2025
The Jewish Home Foundation
Atlanta, GA · revenue $17M · programs 100.0% · FY2025
Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Hartford
West Hartford, CT · revenue $17M · programs 86.4% · FY2025
Legacy Ministries International
Miamisburg, OH · revenue $17M · programs 82.9% · FY2025

All philanthropy, voluntarism & grantmaking charities · Largest charities in Indiana

Questions people ask

How much of American Legion Charities's spending goes to programs?

In calendar year 2024, American Legion Charities reported that 40.9% of its $18.3 million in expenses went to program services, 2.1% to management and general and 57.0% to fundraising (Form 990, Part IX).

How much does American Legion Charities pay its top executive?

The largest total compensation American Legion Charities reported for one person in calendar year 2024 was $436,031, for the role of Secretary (Thru May 2024) (Form 990, Part VII, including compensation from related organizations and other compensation).

Where does American Legion Charities get its money?

Of $17.1 million in revenue in calendar year 2024, 97.1% came from contributions and grants and 0.0% from program service revenue (Form 990, Part VIII).

Is American Legion Charities a registered charity?

The IRS lists EIN 90-1017997 as a 501(c)(3) organization (publicly supported organization (170(b)(1)(a)(vi))), 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

2024: Form 990 for calendar year 2024, object 202543219349313109 · read the filing · XML
2023: Form 990 for calendar year 2023, object 202413129349303836 · read the filing
2022: Form 990 for calendar year 2022, object 202321329349305902 · read the filing
2021: Form 990 for calendar year 2021, object 202241739349301504 · read the filing
2020: Form 990 for calendar year 2020, object 202111379349306706 · read the filing
2019: Form 990 for calendar year 2019, object 202011369349305006 · read the filing

All filings for EIN 90-1017997: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer · IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. Figures are as the organization reported them; we have not audited them.