The Gill Foundation was established in 1994 by Tim Gill. The foundation, based in Denver, Colorado, was created as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt private foundation to support public policy efforts that promote equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and economic opportunity in Colorado.¹

In the foundation’s 2015 Annual Report, its assets are listed at over $206 million, with a total of over $20 million in grants awarded to nonprofit organizations that year.²

Founding

Software entrepreneur and philanthropist Tim Gill started the Gill Foundation in 1994 when he was inspired to play a greater role in LGBT advocacy after Colorado passed Initiative 2, which prohibited municipalities from enacting ordinances adding sexual orientation as a protected status under anti-discrimination laws.³ At the foundation’s inception it announced that it sought “equal opportunity for all people regardless of sexual orientation or gender expression” both nationally and in Colorado.⁴ It is one of the nation’s leading funders of state-level public policy efforts for LGBT interests.⁵ The foundation has invested more than $304 million in programs and organizations across the country.⁶

Grant Overview

The Gill Foundation’s giving priorities fall under four key areas.⁷

• Equal Treatment: Securing equal treatment of LGBT people in employment, housing, and public life by putting in place non-discrimination laws.⁸
• Safe Schools: Reducing bullying and promoting acceptance of LGBT peers in schools.⁹
• Family Recognition: Providing key support and funding to legal organizations that play a key role in litigation strategy in same-sex marriage cases. The foundation continues to fight the push for religious freedom protections to ease consequences of the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court ruling, which held that there was a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.¹⁰
• Prosperous Colorado: Collaborating with the Colorado Civic Engagement Roundtable, the foundation makes grants in Colorado that specifically address LGBT advocacy, STEM education, civic engagement, and public broadcasting.¹¹

The Gill Foundation announced in early 2021 that it would contribute $1 million to an awareness campaign against anti-LGBTQ discrimination. The donation was made to Freedom for All Americans Education Fund (FAAEF) amid new efforts to push for the Equality Act. Although the 501(c)3 branch of FAAEF cannot strictly partake in any legislative advocacy, its 501(c)4 branch can lobby for the Equality Act. In an email to fellow LGBTQ donors, Tim Gill and Scott Miller exhorted others to follow in their steps. ¹²

Board and Key Staff

Founder Tim Gill continues to serve as Chairman of the foundation board.¹³ Other board members include¹⁴:

Scott Miller is listed as the Gill Foundation co-chair. In 2021, Miller was nominated by President Joe Biden to be the American ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein. ¹⁵ The nomination came after Miller and his husband, Tim Gill, gave a combined $3.6 million in political contributions to democratic political figures. Biden’s 2020 campaign reportedly received $365,000. $1.1 million was also spent in support of Hillary Clinton in 2016. ¹⁶

John Barabino and Mary Bonauto are staff.

Courtney Cuff is the current president of the Gill Foundation, succeeding Tim Sweeney in September 2012.¹⁷ Other key leadership staff includes¹⁸:

Robin Hubbard is Gill Foundation Chief Operations Officer.

Brad Clark is the foundation’s Vice President of Partnerships.

Gautam Raghavan is Vice President of Policy.

Affiliations

The Gill Foundation actively seeks and collaborates with philanthropists to help fund projects and programs promoting LGBT rights and equality.

The Gill Foundation created OutGiving, a network of center-left donors and philanthropists who support LGBT efforts. Each year, a private OutGiving Conference is held, bringing together top funders whose annual philanthropic giving to LGBT causes exceeds $25,000.¹⁹

The State Equality Fund (SEF) was created so that major supporters of LGBT rights could collaborate with their funding.²⁰ This includes the Gill Foundation and other donors, including the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, the Ford Foundation, and anonymous donors. SEF has invested a total of $14.5 million in 148 unique projects. In 2015, it decided to begin phasing out the funding program.²¹

The Gill Foundation is a part of the Civil Marriage Collaborative, a grant-making initiative designed to leverage and support same-sex marriage laws and legislation on a state-by-state basis. This includes projects for public education efforts such as research, polling, message development, and outreach. Since it began in 2004, the collaborative has awarded over $18 million to various jurisdictions.²²

The Gill Foundation is a major supporter of Freedom for All Americans (FFAA), which is a campaign run by the American Unity Fund, a Super PAC created by Tim Gill and hedge fund executive Paul Singer.²³ FFAA seeks to enact a federal anti-discrimination law that would prohibit different treatment based on sexuality and gender identity. The group has focused its attention particularly in the South, fighting religious freedom protection efforts in Georgia and North Carolina. Other major donors associated with the group include hedge fund manager Dan Loeb.²⁴

Contributors

In the Gill Foundation’s 2013 tax forms, the following left-of-center donors were identified as contributors to the foundation’s various programs²⁵:

• Ford Foundation
• H. Van Ameringen Foundation
• Our Fund Inc.
• David Geffen Foundation
• Liberty Hill Foundation
• Community Foundation of Western North Carolina
• Arcus Foundation
• Evelyn & Walter Haas Jr. Fund
• Women’s Equality Center
• James C. Hormel Revocable Living Trust
• The Palette Fund
• David Dechman Foundation
• Esmond Harmsworth Foundation
• Tides Foundation
• Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation
• David Bohnett Foundation
• Tim Gill
• Johnson Family Foundation
• Wild Geese Foundation

1. “About.” About | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/about/.
2. “Gill Foundation Annual Reports.” Gill Foundation | 2015 Summary of Financial Information. Accessed December 28, 2016. http://annualreports.gillfoundation.org/annual-reports/year-2015/2015-financials/2015-summary-of-financial-information/.
3. “Gill Foundation: Grants for LGBT.” Inside Philanthropy. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.insidephilanthropy.com/fundraising-for-lgbt/gill-foundation-grants-for-lgbt.html.
4. “The Gill Foundation: Taking a Strategic Approach to Philanthropy.” 2007. Accessed February 03, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20110214095825/http://www.effectivephilanthropy.org/assets/pdfs/CEP_BeyondtheRhetoric_Gill.pdf.
5. “About.” About | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/about/.
6. “Tim Gill Board Member.” Tim Gill | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/board-member/tim-gill/.
7. Gill Foundation. Accessed February 03, 2017. https://www.guidestar.org/profile/84-1264186.
8. “Equal Treatment.” Equal Treatment | Gill Foundation. Accessed February 04, 2017. https://gillfoundation.org/priorities/equal-treatment/.
9. Safe Schools | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/priorities/safe-schools/.
10. Family Recognition | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/priorities/family-recognition/
11. Prosperous Colorado | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/priorities/a-prosperous-colorado/
12. Johnson, Chris. “Gill Foundation Puts up $1 Million for Campaign to Expand LGBTQ Civil Rights.” Washington Blade: LGBTQ News, Politics, LGBTQ Rights, Gay News, January 20, 2021. https://www.washingtonblade.com/2021/01/20/gill-foundation-puts-up-1-million-for-campaign-to-expand-lgbtq-civil-rights/.
13. Gill Foundation. Accessed February 03, 2017. https://www.guidestar.org/profile/84-1264186.
14. “Board and Staff.” Board and Staff | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 26, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/about/board-and-staff/.
15. “President Biden Announces 10 Key Nominations.” The White House. The United States Government, August 6, 2021. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/08/06/president-biden-announces-10-key-nominations/.
16. TheAdvocateMag. “Biden’s out Nom for Swiss Ambassador Is Mega-Donor for LGBTQ+ Causes.” ADVOCATE. Advocate.com, August 10, 2021. https://www.advocate.com/politics/2021/8/10/bidens-out-nom-swiss-ambassador-mega-donor-lgbtq-causes.
17. “Gill Foundation Names Courtney Cuff as President and CEO.” GLAAD. June 10, 2013. Accessed February 05, 2017. http://www.glaad.org/news/gill-foundation-names-courtney-cuff-president-and-ceo.
18. “Board and Staff.” Board and Staff | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 26, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/about/board-and-staff/.
19. “Gill Foundation: Grants for LGBT.” Inside Philanthropy. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.insidephilanthropy.com/fundraising-for-lgbt/gill-foundation-grants-for-lgbt.html.
20. “State Equality Fund.” Open Society Foundations. Accessed February 04, 2017. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/about/programs/us-programs/grantees/state-equality-fund-0.
21. “State Equality Fund.” State Equality Fund | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/it-takes-money/state-equality-fund/.
22. [1] “Civil Marriage Collaborative.” Civil Marriage Collaborative | Gill Foundation. Accessed December 28, 2016. https://gillfoundation.org/it-takes-money/civil-marriage-collaborative/.
23. Haberman, Maggie. “Gay Marriage Backers to Finance Anti-Discrimination Efforts.” The New York Times. April 30, 2015. Accessed February 04, 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/04/30/gay-marriage-backers-to-finance-anti-discrimination-efforts/?_r=0.
24. Haberman, Maggie. “Gay Marriage Backers to Finance Anti-Discrimination Efforts.” The New York Times. April 30, 2015. Accessed February 04, 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/04/30/gay-marriage-backers-to-finance-anti-discrimination-efforts/?_r=0.
25. Economic Research Institute. Accessed December 28, 2016. http://990.erieri.com/EINS/841264186/841264186_2014_0bfe2601.PDF.