Institute for Reforming Government

The Institute for Reforming Government (IRG) is a non-partisan, public policy think tank that intends to simplify government at the state, regional, and national levels. IRG advocates for policies that support tax reform, limited government, and decreased regulations. 1

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At-A-Glance

Type: Non-profit, 501(c)(3)
Issue Areas: Multi-Issue Advocacy
Website: reforminggovernment.org
Formation:

2018

President:

Charles “CJ” Szafir

Location: Madison, WI View on map
Tax ID: 82-4034864
Most Recent Filing: 2024
Budget (2024): Assets: $1,142,333 Revenue: $1,468,754 Expenses: $1,252,493

Contents

    The Institute for Reforming Government is an associate member of the State Policy Network, a coalition of free-market state-level policy organizations. 2 While IRG is non-partisan, members of its board have affiliations with the Republican Party.

    Activity

    The Institute for Reforming Government is a non-partisan, public policy think tank that intends to simplify government at the state, regional, and national levels. The Institute advocates for policies that support tax reform, limited government, and decreased regulations. 1

    The Institute for Reforming Government is critical of Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers’s (D) proposed 2021-2023 budget, claiming that it will unnecessarily expand government and turn Wisconsin’s projected budget surplus into a deficit. IRG further claims that low-income and middle-class families will be harmed the most by increases in personal and local sales taxes; families will lose school choice options like educational vouchers, public charter, or private school because of record spending on public education; and individual and employer health insurance markets will be threatened by expanding Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act and establishing a so-called “Public Option” government-run health care plan. 3

    The Institute for Reforming Government believes that federal stimulus funds from the American Rescue Plan should be used to issue refunds to Wisconsin taxpayers. IRG claims that this would create significant financial relief for low-income and middle-class families and that these families are better equipped to spend the money than the government. 4

    Funding

    The Institute for Reforming Government is funded by donations from individuals, foundations, and corporations. While IRG does not disclose its donors, tax filings show donations from the Bradley Impact Fund ($75,000 in 2018) 5 and the Waukesha County Community Foundation ($25,000 in 2019). 6

    People

    Charles “CJ” Szafir is president of the Institute for Reforming Government and the former executive vice president of the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty. Szafir serves as the vice president of the Milwaukee Lawyers’ Chapter of the Federalist Society. 7

    Jim Bender is the government affairs representative at IRG. Bender formerly served as president of School Choice Wisconsin and as chief of staff and communications director for former Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald (R). 8

    Michael Brickman is a senior fellow at IRG. Brickman is a former policy advisor at the Department of Education and to former Governor Scott Walker (R-WI) and the former national policy director of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. 9

    Daniel Kelly is a senior fellow in constitutional governance at IRG. Kelly formerly served as a Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice and as vice president and general counsel for the Kern Family Foundation. 10

    Board of Directors

    Ivan Gamboa is the chair of the board for the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority. 7

    Bill Johnson is the treasurer of the board and the former finance chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin. 7

    Scott Walker is a former national honorary chairman of IRG. Walker formerly served as the Governor of Wisconsin, the Milwaukee County Executive, and as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. 7

    Jim Villa is the former campaign manager and chief of staff for then-County Executive Scott Walker (R). 7 Villa also served as chief of staff for former Wisconsin State Senator Alberta Darling (R) and as deputy director to former Governor Tommy Thompson (R-WI). 11

    Financial Statistics

    Total Assets

    Total Revenue

    Total Expenses

    YearTotal AssetsTotal RevenueTotal ExpensesFiling
    2024 $1,142,333 $1,468,754 $1,252,493 View
    2023 $923,871 $1,165,747 $1,404,777 View
    2022 $1,194,205 $1,420,160 $1,376,253 View
    2021 $1,089,740 $1,204,031 $897,426 View
    2020 $775,606 $998,366 $347,166 View

    Prior year filings: 2018

    Revenue Detail

    Expenses Detail

    Employee Compensation

    • Number of Employees: 11

    Highest Earning Employees

    EmployeeTitleTotal Compensation
    Cj SzafirCEO$144,310

    Grant Activity

    All-time grants received statistics from Candid dataset:

    • Total Grant Value: $2,859,500
    • Number of Grants: 43
    • Number of Funders: 19

    Selection of highest value grants received from the last seven years:

    AmountYearFunderSubject
    $334,0002023 STATE POLICY NETWORKGENERAL OPERATING
    $267,0002022 STATE POLICY NETWORKGENERAL OPERATING
    $187,7502021 Donors Trust Incfor general operations
    $150,0002021 STATE POLICY NETWORKECONOMIC FREEDOM RESEARCH
    $137,0002024 Bradley Impact Fund IncGENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT.
    $125,0002022 The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation IncTo support general operations
    $125,0002021 The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation IncTo support policy reform efforts in Wisconsin
    $100,0002022 Beth and Ravenel Curry FoundationUNRESTRICTED
    $100,0002020 The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation IncTo support policy reform efforts in Wisconsin
    $91,0002022 Bradley Impact Fund IncGENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES
    $85,0002021 The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation IncTo support a 2021 Bradley Freedom Grant
    $80,0002020 Donors Trust Incfor general operations
    $75,0002022 William S. Knight Foundation IncGENERAL SUPPORT
    $75,0002022 Donors Trust Incfor general operations
    $70,0002022 Judd S Alexander FoundationDE-CENTRALIZING STATE GOVERNMENT
    $70,0002022 Dwight and Linda Davis FoundationSENDING STATE GOVERNMENT TO ITS CUSTOMERS PROJECT
    $57,0002021 Bradley Impact Fund IncGENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES
    $50,0002024 Donors Trust Incfor general operations
    $50,0002021 STATE POLICY NETWORKTAX POLICY RESEARCH
    $45,5002021 Judd S Alexander FoundationELECTION INTEGRITY PROJECT
    $45,0002021 Dwight and Linda Davis FoundationGRANT
    $40,0002024 Lannon Stone Foundation IncGRANT AWARD
    $40,0002020 WAUKESHA COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INCGENERAL/OPERATING SUPPORT
    $35,0002024 Dwight and Linda Davis FoundationBUILDING BRIDGES GRANT
    $35,0002024 Vanguard CharitableFOR RECIPIENT'S EXEMPT PURPOSE

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    Financials, employee compensation, and grant information provided by Candid.

    Mentioned in this Article

    References

    1. “Home.” Institute for Reforming Government, 2021. Accessed June 4, 2021. https://reforminggovernment.org/.
    2. “The Network: Wisconsin.” State Policy Network, 2021. Accessed June 4, 2021. https://spn.org/directory/#WI.
    3. “Governor Tony Evers’ Proposed 2021-2023 Budget.” Institute for Reforming Government, 2021. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://reforminggovernment.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/2021-02-24-IRG_Evers-Budget-recap-FINAL.pdf.
    4. “Gov. Evers Should Use Federal Stimulus Money to Issue Refunds to Wisconsin Taxpayers.” Institute for Reforming Government, March 24, 2021. Accessed June 7, 2021.  https://reforminggovernment.org/gov-evers-should-use-federal-stimulus-money-to-issue-refunds-to-wisconsin-taxpayers/.
    5. Bradley Impact Fund, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2018, Schedule I, Part II.
    6. Waukesha County Community Foundation, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2019, Schedule I, Part II.
    7. “Who We Are.” Institute for Reforming Government, 2021. Accessed June 4, 2021. https://reforminggovernment.org/.
    8. “Jim Bender Joins IRG as Government Affairs Representative.” Institute for Reforming Government, January 29, 2021. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://reforminggovernment.org/jim-bender-joins-irg-as-government-affairs-representative/.
    9. “Michael Brickman Joins IRG as Senior Fellow in Education.” Institute for Reforming Government, February 26, 2021. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://reforminggovernment.org/. https://reforminggovernment.org/michael-brickman-joins-irg-as-senior-fellow-in-education/.
    10. “Daniel Kelly.” LinkedIn, 2021. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-kelly-7897a77/.
    11. “Jim Villa.” LinkedIn, 2021. Accessed June 4, 2021. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-villa-5519026/.