Non-profit

Open Society Foundations (Open Society Institute)

Logo of the Open Society Institute (link)
Website:

www.opensocietyfoundations.org

Location:

NEW YORK, NY

Tax ID:

13-7029285

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)-PF

Budget (2020):

Assets: $3,969,456,779

Formation:

1993

Founders:

George Soros

Aryeh Neier

Type:

Private Foundation

President:

Mark Malloch-Brown (2020-present)

Patrick Gaspard (2018-2020)

Christopher Stone (interim, 2017-2018)

Latest Tax Filing:

2021 Form 990

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

Also see the similarly named Foundation to Promote Open Society (Nonprofit)

The Open Society Foundations (OSF; formally Open Society Institute) is a private grantmaking foundation created and funded by billionaire financier and liberal philanthropist George Soros. OSF was founded in 1993 as the Open Society Institute (OSI), which remains the foundation’s formal name; OSF has since become the main hub of a Soros-funded network of more than 20 national and regional foundations, making it one of the largest political philanthropies in the world. Built on Soros’ anti-capitalist, redistributionist political philosophy, the organization gives away nearly a billion dollars per year to left-wing organizations around the world to advance his vision of an “open society.” 1 Among those groups is the Foundation to Promote Open Society (FPOS), another foundation created after OSF which has since become the primary grantmaker in the Soros network.

In 2018, OSF reported revenues of $376 million, expenditures of $215 million (including grants of $20.3 million), and assets of $3.7 billion. 2

In the United States, OSF’s U.S. Programs have given hundreds of millions to left-wing political organizations, including multi-million dollar gifts to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Planned Parenthood, the Robin Hood Foundation, the Tides Foundation, the Brennan Center for Justice, and Alliance for Citizenship, among numerous others.  3 Confidential documents (available here) indicate that the OSF’s U.S. Programs agenda prioritizes a number of liberal issue prerogatives and funds left-wing organizations to carry out these policies. 4 Some of these prerogatives include enacting liberal comprehensive immigration reform (including a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants), cutting the number of prison inmates by 50 percent, increasing welfare handouts, and raising taxes to redistribute wealth. 5 OSF has also been criticized for “compromising” American foreign policy. 6

OSF’s operations are notoriously complex, and in 2016 the foundation was labeled the least transparent “think tank” in the United States reviewed by NGO Monitor, an OSF-funded transparency group. 7 8 In spite of this, OSF maintains a position as a stalwart financier of left-wing nonprofits, financially supporting a large number of left-wing organizations in the U.S. and exporting leftist policies to countries across the world. 9 10

George Soros

George Soros, a hedge-fund billionaire whose net worth is currently estimated at $26 billion, personally sets the budget of the Open Society Foundations and has contributed nearly $12 billion to a wide array of organizations since the late 1970s. 11

In his early life Soros was deeply influenced by philosopher Karl Popper’s concept of the “open society.” 12 Based on Popper’s philosophy, and despite having made his fortune in the financial markets, Soros argues, “the spread of market values into all areas of life is endangering our open and democratic society” and that “the main enemy of the open society,” is no longer communism but rather capitalism. 13

Consequently, Soros believes “that laissez-faire capitalism has effectively banished income or wealth redistribution” and that there needs to be a mechanism for wealth redistribution to prevent intolerable inequality. 14 Further, Soros’ contends “there is something wrong with making the survival of the fittest,” instead he calls for “cooperation” alongside competition. 15 It was to promote these principles that in 1979 Soros created the foundation known as the Open Society Fund. 16

During the 1980s, Soros’ Open Society Fund operated as a number of separately organized foundations eventually extending across 25 different countries in Africa, Europe, and Asia.  17

History

Open Society Foundations became a formal entity in 1993 as a “progressive network” that seeks to advocate Soros’ vision of society,18 which he describes as a “comprehensive, liberal democracy.” 19 Open Society Foundations launched programs in the United States beginning in 1996.  20

As of 2015, the Open Society Foundations was labeled as one of the world’s largest philanthropic organizations, with branches in 37 countries. 21 When the organization was created, “Soros said that he had no interest in creating an endowed foundation that would exist in perpetuity.”22 However in 2005 he “changed his mind,” announcing that the foundation would in fact “go on in perpetuity,” continuing to pursue Soros’ agenda well into the future. 23 Philanthropy observers noted that Open Society Foundations could one day “be the largest in the world, rivaling that of the Gates Foundation, which stands at $43 billion.” 24

Structure

Open Society Foundations is a “network of more than 20 national and regional foundations around the world.” According to Open Society Foundations’ president, the boards of those semi-independent national foundations as well as the larger regional foundations “make their own grant decisions and propose their own strategies.”25

According to the Open Society Foundations’ 2017 budget, the organization involves itself in the operations of its grantees in two general ways. The organization either makes “a very large, long-term grant to a single organization or initiative” or Open Society Foundations coordinates the separate efforts of many programs and foundations across its network through what is describes as a “shared framework.” 26 The group’s work is generally categorized into ten policy themes across seven geographic regions. 27

Funding

Financial Overview

A combined chart detailing total revenues of the Open Society Foundations and Foundation to Promote Open Society between 2000 and 2018 is available below. 28

Open Society Network: Revenues
Annual RevenuesOpen Society Foundations (Institute)Foundation to Promote Open SocietyOpen Society Policy CenterFund for Policy Reform, Inc.Fund for Policy Reform
2021 $988,350,898 $2,059,390,609 $196,000,000 - $424,703,140
2020 $526,468,189 $1,306,781,594 $139,000,000 $260,295,701 $1,446
2019 $208,513,497 $508,000,000 $94,881,557 $227,936,050 $72,182,935
2018 $209,338,778 $878,622,618 $62,000,000 $750,000,521 $11,840,022
2017 $372,081,883 $441,000,000 $16,759,566 $100,000,000 $37,716,714
2016 $255,087,605 $573,654,313 $12,000,000 $30,200,000 $513,447,617
2015 $369,708,179 $421,000,000 $17,000,000 $38,887,118 $1,405,399,362
2014 $173,259,416 $585,692,432 $8,000,000 $9,447,896 -
2013 $155,664,135 $390,573,880 $18,000,000 $(2,099,749)-
2012 $325,168,087 $512,251,834 $5,200,000 $(3,282,483)-
2011 $202,469,577 $328,274,870 $3,000,015 $4,377,720 -
2010 $120,818,153 $264,623,591 $2,500,044 $501,144 -
2009 $133,811,261 $1,071,377,089 $1,501,033 $23,487,275 -
2008 $440,000,134 $1,000,000 $2,500,000 --
2007 $277,182,954 - $1,917,555 --
2006 $575,486,624 - $2,275,050 --
2005 $380,304,738 - $1,707,422 --
2004 $73,863,651 - $1,651,848 --
2003 $203,117,247 ----
2002 $347,213,378 ----
2001 $223,614,143 ----
2000 $305,816,170 ----
Sum: $6,867,338,697 $9,342,242,830 $585,894,090 $1,439,751,193 $2,465,291,236
Grand Total: $20,700,518,046

A combined chart detailing total expenditures of the Open Society Foundations and Foundation to Promote Open Society between 2000 and 2018 is available below. 29

Open Society Network: Expenditures
Annual ExpendituresOpen Society Foundations (Institute)Foundation to Promote Open SocietyOpen Society Policy Center Fund for Policy Reform, Inc. Fund for Policy Reform
2021 $556,436,293 $2,405,888,357 $206,669,929 - $376,167,457
2020 $379,422,137 $652,770,595 $144,593,206 $238,059,118 $275,834,264
2019 $740,424,892 $391,139,499 $99,874,004 $211,139,219 $230,383,737
2018 $215,140,011 $493,524,010 $63,017,801 $142,609,239 $750,942,788
2017 $536,167,828 $219,313,003 $24,125,262 $61,993,114 $100,363,937
2016 $210,244,454 $510,993,179 $12,680,864 $18,881,992 $33,202,726
2015 $186,759,132 $544,915,615 $10,233,652 $1,437,973,977 $17,533,943
2014 $179,965,911 $465,086,516 $12,590,145 $19,626,896 -
2013 $190,444,407 $398,433,799 $11,584,378 $19,532,251 -
2012 $585,166,446 $277,229,666 $4,558,517 $16,224,900 -
2011 $208,625,687 $290,682,063 $2,706,718 $9,275,761 -
2010 $175,809,148 $385,213,501 $2,147,310 $7,834,899 -
2009 $1,111,049,908 $238,882,055 $2,700,821 $23,086,334 -
2008 $210,998,833 $10,000 $1,815,458 --
2007 $158,044,625 - $2,431,099 --
2006 $139,088,719 - $1,363,760 --
2005 $113,704,430 - $2,073,393 --
2004 $126,024,479 - $1,686,557 --
2003 $125,672,460 ----
2002 $168,084,112 ----
2001 $181,024,894 ----
2000 $209,785,840 ----
Sum: $6,708,084,646 $7,274,081,858 $606,852,874 $2,206,237,700 $1,784,428,852
Grand Total: $18,579,685,930

Donors to OSF

Between 2000 and 2018, OSF received $5.4 billion in donations: 30

YearDonor to OSFAmount ($10k+)
2018Charitable Giving LLC$100,000
2017--
2016Geosor Corporation$40,886,432
2015Geosor Corporation$25,000,000
2015Enterprise Foundation$400,000
2014Andrea Soros$950,000
2014Geosor Corporation$20,000,000
2014Enterprise Foundation$550,000
2013Andrea Soros$550,000
2013Geosor Corporation$40,001,500
2013Enterprise Foundation$550,000
2012Open Society Foundation Inc.$74,615,312
2012Geosor Corporation$25,000,000
2012Soros Humanitarian Foundation$100,000,000
2012Andrea Soros$715,000
2012Enterprise Foundation$715,000
2012UK Department for International Development$774,713
2012USAID - AMIDEAST Program$461,080
2011Open Society Foundation Inc.$97,500,000
2011Geosor Corporation$60,000,000
2011Soros Humanitarian Foundation$40,000,000
2011Jennifer and Jonathan Allan Soros Foundation$2,200,000
2011Andrea Soros$385,000
2011Enterprise Foundation$385,000
2011Bill Clarke Osprey Foundation$200,000
2011Ed and Ellen Bernard$100,000
2011Robert Meyerhoff$100,000
2011Bunting Family Foundation$52,000
2011George A. Murnaghan Fund$25,000
2011Mark and Kathy Vaselkiv$25,000
2011James Riepe Family Foundation$22,294
2011Nabil Qaddumi$18,380
2010George Soros$25,000,000
2010Open Society Foundation Inc.$47,000,000
2010Soros Foundation Hungary$35,830,408
2010Soros Foundation NIS$158,808
2010Ahmad Zuaiter$30,000
2010Akram Shakhashir$28,400
2010Samer Younis$28,400
2010Sabbagh Khoury$28,400
2010Nabil Qaddumi$10,000
2010Osprey Foundation$200,000
2010W.K. Kellogg Foundation$200,000
2010Annie E. Casey Foundation$200,000
2010Cohen Opportunity Fund$50,000
2010Marion Henry Knott Foundation$46,164
2010Clayton Baker Trust$25,000
2010Herbert Bearman Foundation$25,000
2010Soros Fund Charitable Foundation$10,000,026
2010James Riepe Family Foundation$300,000
2010Morton Jane Blaustein Foundation$75000
2010T. Rowe Price Foundation$40,000
2010Bunting Family Foundation$40,000
2010Aaron Lillie Straus Fund$25,000
2010Bill Bonnie Clarke$20,000
2010CareFirst BlueCross$150,000
2010Mark Lerner$250,000
2010Ellen Bernard$100,000
2010David Warnock Pledge$50,000
2010George Munaghan Fund$25,000
2010USAID - AMIDEAST Program$323,307
2009George Soros$100,011,210
2009Jonathan Soros$30,000,000
2009Open Society Foundation Inc.$1,500,000
2009Akram Shakhashir$23,872
2009Samer Younis$23,872
2009Samer Khoury$23,872
2009Nabil Qaddumi$23,872
2009Annie E. Casey Foundation$400,000
2009Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation$15,000
2009Lois and Irvin Blum Foundation$25,050
2009Bunting Family Foundation$58,000
2009Joseph and Harvey Meyerhoff Family Foundation$90,000
2009Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore$34,500
2009Moser Family Foundation$10,000
2009Jean and Sidney Silber Foundation$20,000
2009Robert J. Wood Foundation$250,000
2009Osprey Foundation$200,000
2009William Baker Memorial Fund$36,000
2009William Wender$15,000
2009David Nelson$25,000
2009Earl Linehan$100,000
2009George Munaghan Fund$25,000
2009Robert Meyerhoff$100,000
2009Mary C. Bunting$500,000
2009World Bank West African Monitoring Project$99,759
2009U.S. Department of State$173,482
2009Georgian Scholarships in Education$150,000
2008Geosor Corporation$250,000,000
2008George Soros$143,502,919
2008Jonathan Soros$4,658,071
2008Soros Humanitarian Foundation$23,000,000
2008Soros Charitable Foundation$4,000,000
2008Soros Foundation Hungary$5,000,000
2008Akram Shakhashir$20,188
2008Samer Younis$20,208
2008Samer Khoury$20,000
2008Nabil Qaddumi$20,215
2008Soros Fund Charitable Foundation$4,120,183
2008Alison and Richman Fund$10,000
2008Avaaz Foundation$245,000
2008Jean and Sidney Silber Foundation$10,000
2008JEHT Foundation$73,000
2008Lois and Irvin Blum Foundation$25,000
2008Mark K. Joseph$25,000
2008Annie E. Casey Foundation$200,000
2008Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore$10,000
2008Goldseker Foundation$72,000
2008Hoffberger Foundation$100,000
2008Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation$75,000
2008Osprey Foundation$300,000
2008William G. Baker Memoral Fund$22,333
2008PNC Bank$115,000
2008Gallagher Evelius Jones LLP$10,000
2008Hogan and Hartson$10,000
2008Legg Mason$10,000
2008Empower Baltimore Management Corp.$2,500,000
2008Shelter Development LLC$10,000
2008George A. Murnaghan Fund$25,000
2008George L. Bunting Jr.$34,356
2008Moser Family Foundation$10,000
2008Open Society Institute Baltimore$15,260
2008UK Department for International Development$221,157
2008U.S. Department of State$108,255
2008Georgian Scholarships in Education$150,000
2007George Soros$236,176,434
2007Soros Foundation Hungary$13,000,000
2007Soros Charitable Foundation$23,000,000
2007Abell Foundation$100,000
2007Avaaz Foundation$57,000
2007Nabil Qaddumi$21,825
2007Akram Shakhashir$21,816
2007Samer Khoury$22,000
2007Samer Younis$21,816
2007Alison and Richman Fund$10,000
2007Baltimore Community Foundation$50,000
2007Ben Zelda G. Cohen Charitable Foundation$250,000
2007Bendit Foundation$50,000
2007Bunting Family Foundation$200,000
2007Sandler Family Supporting Foundation$333,000
2007Ford Foundation$100,000
2007Jean and Sidney Silber Foundation$30,000
2007Lois and Irvin Blum Foundation$25,000
2007Marion Henry Knott Foundation$39,515
2007T. Rowe Price Foundation$265,000
2007Annie E. Casey Foundation$100,000
2007Dillon Fund$25,000
2007Osprey Foundation$1,200,000
2007Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation$305,000
2007Robert Wood Johnson Foundation$775,000
2007Mary C. Bunting$99,021
2007George L. Bunting Jr.$29,796
2007Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC$100,000
2007Edward Wiese$62,500
2007George A. Murnaghan Fund$25,000
2007Stanley Panitz$10,000
2007U.S. Department of State$341,736
2007Georgian Ministry of Education$145,337
2007USAID - AMIDEAST Program$1,195,834
2006George Soros$544,486,040
2006Soros Foundation Hungary$10,500,000
2006Soros Charitable Foundation$10,000,000
2006Mary C. Bunting$200,000
2006Lockhart Vaughan Foundation$250,000
2006Zanyyl and Isabelle Krieger Fund$250,000
2006United Way of Central Maryland$200,194
2006Cohen Opportunity Fund$200,000
2006Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation$200,000
2006Imperial College of Science and Technology$187,010
2006Georgian Ministry of Education$166,845
2006Osprey Foundation$150,000
2006George I. Bunting Jr.$65,000
2006International Science Foundation$49,100
2006Canadian International Science Foundation$35,543
2006Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund$25,000
2006T. Rowe Price Foundation$25,000
2006Samer Khoury$21,967
2006Nabil Qaddumi$21,720
2006Akram Shakhashir$21,715
2006Samer Younis$21,685
2006Jean and Sidney Silber Foundation$20,000
2006Lois and Irvin Blum Foundation$20,000
2006Baltimore Community Foundation$10,000
2006CareFirst BlueCross$10,000
2006Deborah W. Callard$10,000
2006U.S. Department of State$109,988
2006Academy for Educational Development$967,742
2006USAID - AMIDEAST Program$1,745,500
2006Mary C. Bunting$103,187
2006George Bunting Jr.$35,000
2005George Soros$340,000,000
2005Soros Charitable Foundation$20,000,000
2005Soros Humanitarian Foundation$14,750,000
2005Mary C. Bunting$200,000
2005United Palestinian Appeal$136,887
2005Imperial College of Science and Technology$113,293
2005Canadian International Science Foundation$106,957
2005Hoffberger Foundation$100,000
2005Joseph and Harvey Meyerhoff Family Foundation$100,000
2005Center for Funds and Foundations$51,000
2005Joanne Nathans$10,000
2005Commonweal Foundation$25,000
2005Marilynn Duker$25,000
2005Shelter Development LLC$25,000
2005T. Rowe Price Foundation$25,000
2005Foundation for Maryland's Future$25,000
2005Baltimore Community Foundation$10,000
2004George Soros$60,000,000
2004Unnamed Federal Agencies$5,812,288
2004Soros Humanitarian Foundation$5,000,000
2004Central European University Foundation$100,000
2004United Palestinian Appeal$90,540
2004Soros Foundation Newly Independent Baltic State$50,000
2004Peter and Helen Maxwell$26,500
2004Institute of International Education$20,000
2004International League for Human Rights$13,940
2003George Soros$1,919,819,959
2003Unnamed Federal Agencies$8,899,802
2003Charles Stewart Mott Foundation$100,000
2003United Palestinian Appeal$85,000
2003Kenneth L. Henderson$12,500
2002Soros Charitable Foundation$4,000,000
2002Unnamed Federal Agencies$,6138,125
2002George Soros$91,303,908
2002Tivadar Charitable Lead Trust$7,052,127
2002Emily Davie and Joseph Kornfel Foundation$600,000
2002Atlantic Philanthropies$75,000
2002Charles Stewart Mott Foundation$200,000
2002Geosor Corporation$252,891,500
2001Soros Charitable Foundation$52,600,000
2001Unnamed Federal Agencies$5,869,809
2001Soros Foundation Hungary$5,700,000
2001George Soros$150,529,330
2001Tivadar Charitable Lead Trust$2,536,153
2001Soros Humanitarian Foundation$1,800,000
2001Consultores Venture Capital Ltd.$750,000
2001Inversiones Financieres Del Sure (Uruguay)$588,750
2000Soros Charitable Foundation$27,500,000
2000Laurance S. Rockefeller$100,000
2000Soros Foundation Hungary$11,500,000
2000George Soros$304,059,734
2000Tivadar Charitable Lead Trust$2,536,153
2000Charles Stewart Mott Foundation$500,000
2000S-C Phoenix Holdings LLC$7,090,931
2000Georges F. De Menil$16,570
2000Soros Humanitarian Foundation$4,000,000
2000Anonymous$1,000,000
2000Steven A. Okin$10,000
2000Frank V. Sica$250,000
2000Leslie and Walter Burlock Foundation$10,000
2000Centennial Foundation$70,000
2000William H. Spencer IV$10,000
Total:$5,390,424,880

Grants from OSF

Over the last 35 years, the Open Society Foundations behemoth has given out close to $14 billion. The total Open Society Foundations budget for 2017 is $940.7 million and is organized under 7 regions and 10 themes. 31

In 2017, Open Society Foundations’ $537 million grant-making and direct program costs budget was distributed in the following manner across the world.  32

2017
Region Grants & Direct Program Costs % Of Grants and Program Costs
United States $100.30M 18.70%
Africa $69.00M 12.80%
Europe $63.30M 11.80%
Asia Pacific $57.70M 10.70%
Middle East, North Africa & SW Asia $43.20M 8.00%
Eurasia $40.00M 7.40%
Latin America & the Caribbean $33.60M 6.30%
Global $110.70M 20.60%
Unallocated $19.40M 3.60%
Total Grants & Direct Program $ $537.2M
Reserves & Program Related Investments $143.80M

Similarly Open Society Foundations’ grantmaking and direct program costs budget was distributed across the following themes.  33

2017
Region Grants & Direct Program Costs % Of Grants and Program Costs
Democratic Practice $80.2M 13.66%
Early Childhood & Education $22.4M 3.82%
Economic Governance & Advancement $99.5M 16.95%
Equality and Anti-Discrimination $82.8M 14.10%
Health & Rights $57.2M 9.74%
Higher Education $21.4M 3.65%
Human Rights Movements & Institutions $81.7M 13.92%
Information & Digital Rights $14.0M 2.38%
Journalism $25.5M 4.34%
Justice Reform & The Rule Of Law $89.6M 15.26%
Cross Thematic $12.8M 2.18%
Total $587.1M

Financial Documents

The Open Society Foundations’ (formerly Open Society Institute) IRS Form 990 filings for 2016 through 2018 are available below:

U.S. Programs

U.S. Programs Budget

In 2017, Open Society Foundations plans to spend $100 million on grants and direct program costs for the United States, the largest budget amount for any single region amounting to 18% of the organization’s total grant/program spending. 34

A leaked 2014 Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs budget indicated that the $125 million budget breaks down into five categories:

  • $50.7 million (25% of U.S. Programs budget) for Core/New initiatives that included support for grantees, “social justice laboratories, a $25 million reserve fund, and “long-term idea generation” initiatives. 35
  • $14.9 million (14.94%) for “Democracy” related initiatives 36
  • $20.28 million (20.28%) for “Justice” related initiatives focused mainly on reducing incarceration, challenging punishments, police accountability in New York, and liberalizing drug laws. 37
  • $22.95 million (22.65%) for “Equality” related initiatives namely focused on immigration reform, school discipline, “fiscal equity,” and minority programs.  38
  • $16.13 million (16.1%) for operations, admin, and program development.  39

U.S. Programs Agenda

An Open Society Foundations 2015-2018 U.S. Programs strategic plan that was taken from the group and leaked indicates that among other things, Open Society Foundations’ U.S. Programs platform calls for:40

  • An economy governed by the “redistribution of resources;”
  • A justice system that reduces incarceration, abolishes the death penalty, and promotes “health centered” drug use punishment;
  • Enactment of comprehensive immigration reform, that gives “full political, economic, and civic participation” to illegal immigrants;
  • A reduction in “the racial wealth gap” through income redistribution;
  • and “Inclusive economic development” focused on raising the minimum wage and employment for ex-convict

U.S. Programs Grants

According to Open Society Foundations president Chris Stone, Open Society Foundations through its grant-making “support groups that try to raise the political stakes, putting pressure on politicians” on progressive agenda items such as environmental regulations and oversight of police. 41 Stone says that Open Society Foundations gives money to groups that “share a commitment to social change based on common values and principles,” namely left-liberalism. 42

The web of liberal organizations funded by Open Society Foundations is extensive. In 2013, Mike Ciandella for the conservative news organization CNS News wrote,

“Soros has aided hundreds of left-wing groups in America since 2000 under the auspices of his Open Society Foundations. In just 10 years, he gave more than $550 million to liberal organizations in the United States. This has included money going to fund liberal agenda topics like Earth Day, gun control, government funding of student loans and even the IRS targeting of conservatives.” 43

In fact, according to a leaked Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs board meeting agenda, from 2009 to April 2014 Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs distributed $827 million worth of grants to 2,272 grantees.44

Year Total $ # Of Grants Median Grant $
2009 $199,848,995 461 $125,000
2010 $178,793,499 485 $125,000
2011 $189,176,939 518 $150,000
2012 $154,785,936 414 $125,000
2013 $91,555,000 351 $136,667
2014* $12,940,000 43 $225,000
Total $827,100,369 2272 $145,525

* As of April 30, 2014

During this time period, Open Society Foundations U.S. programs gave over $347 million to 25 different left-wing organizations, including the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, the Tides Foundation, the Brennan Center For Justice, the Drug Policy Alliance, and Robin Hood Foundation.  45

The top 25 major grantees list is as follows:46:

  Grantee Name Amount $
1 Drug Policy Alliance  62.0M
2 Robin Hood Foundation  50.0M
3 State of New York’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance  35.0M
4 American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, Inc.  27.7M
5 The Fund for Public Schools, Inc.  22.2M
6 Planned Parenthood Federation of America Inc.  20.0M
7 Fund for the City of New York  12.5M
8 Tides Foundation  10.1M
9 The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City  8.6M
10 ABT Associates Inc.  8.0M
11 Charles Stewart Mott Foundation  7.5M
12 Jobs for the Future Inc.  7.5M
13 The Tides Center  7.4M
14 Center for Community Change  7.2M
15 William J. Brennan Center for Justice, Inc.  7.0M
16 Bard Prison Initiative  6.5M
17 The Urban Institute  6.3M
18 YouthBuild USA Inc.  6.0M
19 Center for American Progress (CAP)  5.8M
20 Fund for Educational Excellence  5.8M
21 Leadership Conference Education Fund, Inc.  5.2M
22 Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP)  5.2M
23 The Advancement Project  4.8M
24 Alliance for Citizenship (A4C)  4.7M
25 National Immigration Forum, Inc.  4.4M
  Total 347.4M

 

Further, in November 2014, the Open Society Foundation announced that it would give “$50 million to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in support of its nationwide campaign to reduce incarceration.”47

In 2016, it was reported that Open Society Foundations gave $33 million to the Black Lives Matter movement and groups associated with it. 48

In 2014’s proposed Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs budget, 10 “anchor” grantees would receive a combined $8.25 million and 31 “core” grantees received a combined $8.46 million. 49

Open Society Foundations’ 2015-2018 U.S. Programs plan lists a number of redistributionist policy goals and sets out the organizations that will function as either “anchor” or “core” grantees for that specific set of goals. 50 Included among these grantees are a number of hot-button left-wing contemporary organizations such as the Black Lives Matter aligned group Color of Change, UnidosUS (formerly the National Council of La Raza), and the NAACP.

The first pot of grantees will help to register liberal-leaning voters, weaken businesses’ freedom of speech, subject America’s national security to international legal tests, and fight for general liberal anti-business policy.

Other grantees will help to reduce the number of inmates by half, eliminate the death penalty, and liberalize drug laws.  51

Some grantees that will help to increase political participation for illegal immigrants through increased access to “financial services,” low-income housing, comprehensive immigration reform, and an easing of school discipline.  52

Grantees will help to enact local- and national-level policies that redistribute wealth through increased economic development, a shifting local tax burdens from blue cities to redder suburbs, and raising taxes.  53

“The Brooklyn Conference”

Open Society Foundations partnered with JPMorgan Chase to sponsor “The Brooklyn Conference,” a lecture series that ran in late October of the 2017 centered around discussing intersections between art and social justice. The conference’s objectives, however, shifted towards more anti-Israel tones by featuring speakers such as Linda Sarsour, an activist who organized the left-wing Women’s March, and Alicia Garza, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter – both of whom vocally oppose Jewish Zionists. Other anti-Israel speakers included director of political Engagement at the New York Immigration Coalition Murad Awadeh and author Tania Bruguera who denounce Israel for practicing “apartheid.”54

Lobbying

Also see Open Society Policy Center (Nonprofit)

Open Society Foundations’ U.S. Programs work closely with the Open Society Policy Center55 a sister 501(c)(4) housed in the Open Society Foundations-DC office, which lobbies Congress on domestic and international policy issues. 56

Open Society Foundations president Chris Stone touts Open Society Foundations’ political engagement noting that the group has been using its lobbying efforts to promote amnesty for illegal immigrants, laws to reduce criminal punishment, and for declassification of the so-called Bush “torture report.”57

According to Stone, Open Society Foundations was “among the very first foundations” to take advantage of new tax rules that allowed for the rise of political lobbying denounced by liberals—including OSF grantees, as “dark money”—by affiliating the Open Society Policy Center 501(c)(4) with Open Society Foundations.  58 Stone also touts the fact that Open Society Foundations has a similar operation in Brussels that engages with the European Union. 59

Open Society Foundations openly fights against the rise of “dark money” in politics, 60 however, the Washington Free Beacon labeled the Open Society Policy Center “Soros’ dark money group” and noted that in 2016 the Open Society Policy Center sought for Open Society Foundations’ U.S. Programs to give $1.5 million dollars to Planned Parenthood’s dark money campaign to protect Planned Parenthood’s more than $500 million in federal subsidies. 61

Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic

On April 16, 2020, Open Society Foundations announced that it would be giving $130 million around the globe to aid disadvantaged populations fight the coronavirus by providing economic relief, improving access to medical services, and pushing back against governments that might use the crisis as an excuse to encroach on civil liberties. 62 Half of the initial budget was directed toward the United States on account of its alleged “largest number of confirmed deaths” at the time, which the OSF press release links to “systemic inequality” that “will have profound global consequences in the years to come.”

“The scale of this pandemic has laid bare the fault lines and injustices of our world,” George Soros said, as quoted in the press release. “We missed the opportunity to create a more just economy after the financial crisis of 2008 and provide a social safety net for the workers who are the heart of our societies. Today, we must change direction and ask ourselves: What kind of world will emerge from this catastrophe, and what can we do to make it a better one?” 63

OSF provided a partial breakdown of where the $130 million would go: 64

  • About $42 million to “support low-income workers, including in the informal sector, care givers, and the undocumented; protect refugees, migrants and asylum seekers; and provide access to new vaccines and treatments, regardless of economic or citizenship status.”
  • $37 million to “initiatives to support workers and their families in New York City.”
  • $12 million to “emergency relief for vulnerable workers in numerous other U.S. cities and states.”
  • $2.5 million to “fund additional community efforts in Baltimore, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C.”
  • $9 million to the “ongoing struggle to end the excessive use of mandatory imprisonment and detention around the world, which will have a catastrophic impact on health, including for those at greatest risk in crowded facilities in the United States and across Africa, Asia, Eurasia, and Latin America.”
  • $3 million for “Europe, including both London and Berlin, for local groups countering disinformation and serving the cities’ most vulnerable people, such as senior citizens. Budapest and Milan have each received over $1 million already.”
  • $3.5 million for “southern Africa, through the Open Society Foundation for South Africa and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa, to support essential emergency services and care work, and to bolster an equitable public health response from civil society, the media, the government, and the private sector.”

Controversies and Activism

Lack of Transparency

In 2016, the OSF-funded organization Transparify found that Open Society Foundations was the least transparent non-profit among those in the United States which it reviewed. Open Society Foundations earned a global transparency rating of zero stars for non-transparency of the organization’s funding. They were the only group in the United States Transparify reviewed in 2016 to receive such a low grade. 65

Similarly, the website NGO Monitor wrote that Open Society Foundations’ “Funding of NGOs is entirely non-transparent” as their “annual reports do not provide names of NGO grantees or amounts transferred to individual groups.”66

Brett Kavanaugh Confirmation Protests (2018)

Following Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court in October 2018, left-wing activists funded in part by OSF formed a protest outside the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. At least 50 of the left-wing groups sponsoring the protest had received funding from OSF or the Foundation to Promote Open Society, and included the: 67

American Civil Liberties Union, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the Center for Popular Democracy, Human Rights Campaign and. . . MoveOn.org, a Democratic organizing and lobbying group founded with Soros money. . .”

George Floyd Protests (2020)

On July 13, Open Society Foundations announced that it would be donating $150 million in 5-year grants to several racial justice groups, including Black Voters Matter Fund, Repairers of the Breach, and the Equal Justice Initiative. The group also announced a $70 million donation in local grants towards policing and criminal justice reform, civic engagement, and political training for younger demographics. 68

Support for Reparations

In June 2021, the L.A. Times reported that Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said that Soros’s Open Society Foundations had expressed willingness to fund a program that would give reparations to the city’s African American residents. 69

The city of Los Angeles previously allocated $500,000 to set up an advisory committee to identify ways to provide reparations for slavery to its African American citizens. 70 Committee members include Cheryl Harris, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) who specializes in critical race theory, and Charisse Bremond-Weaver, president of the left-leaning activist group Brotherhood Crusade. 71

International Criticism

Open Society Foundations has offices in every region of the world and gives money to grantees in over 100 countries. 72 As the publication NGO Monitor wrote, “the administrative and financial complexity of the global Open Society network cannot be overstated,” because outside the U.S. “in most cases it is possible only to ascertain a basic outline of their activities.”73

According to Forbes writer Richard Miniter, the problem is that due to Soros’ outsized spending through the Open Society Foundations, “Russia and other nations tend to see Soros as a tool of U.S. policy” in turn undercutting American foreign policy efforts. 74

Open Society Foundations’ foreign operations have been criticized for compromising U.S. foreign policy in the following manners: 75

  • Contributing significantly to anti-Israel campaigns by funding groups attempting to portray Israel as a “racist” or those that aim to weaken U.S. support for Israel;76
  • Making basing arrangements in Central Asian countries for U.S. special operators and drone flights more difficult; and  77
  • Drawing the U.S. into a series of ethnic disputes in Central Asia about which the U.S. has insufficient understanding. 78

Criticism from Romania

The Romanian Center for Independent Journalism, an Open Society Institute of New York grantee, has received $17,000 in grants from the U.S. State Department. The Soros-affiliated organization has been criticized for greatly influencing political processes and outcomes in Romania to support his ideological views. In March 2017, the elected leader of Romania’s governing party said that the Soros foundations “that he [Soros] has funded since 1990 have financed evil.”79

Lawsuits Against OSF

In October 2017, the right-leaning watchdog group Judicial Watch initiated a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for records and documentation of U.S. State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) funding activity related to Soros’ Open Society Foundations affiliates in Romania and Colombia. When the State and USAID did not respond to the request, Judicial Watch filed a federal lawsuit. Numerous Soros-funded left-leaning entities and organizations in Romania and Colombia are supported by U.S. government tax dollars. 80

Biden Community Violence Intervention Collaborative

In June 2021, the Biden administration announced a program to combat rising gun violence and violent crime using a collaborative composed of government and nonprofit organizations funding community violence intervention (CVI) measures. OSF joins other funders of the collaborative such as California Endowment, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, and the Kellogg Foundation. Other foundations funding the initiative include the Kresge Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, Arnold Ventures, the Emerson Collective, the Heising-Simons Foundation, and the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies. CVI strategies “act as an alternative to heavy-handed policing” by focusing its efforts on the minority of citizens who are perpetrators or targets of violent crime. CVI treats violence as a communicable disease rather than a violent crime and attempts to stop the “spread” of violence. 81

Tom Perriello’s White House Meetings

In January 2023, Fox News Digital released a news story on Tom Perriello, OSF’s U.S Programs Executive Director and board member of OSF-funded regulatory policy think tank Governing for Impact (GFI), and how he had reportedly visited the White House a number of times between 2021 and 2022. Between May 2021 and September 2022, Perriello’s name appeared almost 13 times within White House visitor logs on eight separate days. 82 Despite log records not showing whom he met with specifically, they did list the names of several individuals that were in contact with him including Jordan Finkelstein, the chief of staff for Biden senior adviser Anita Dunn; race and ethnicity policy advisor Richard Figueroa; chief of staff for the political strategy and outreach office Rachel Chiu; and Yohannes Abraham, whom was previously the deputy assistant to the president, the chief of staff, and executive secretary of the National Security Council. 83 After Fox News Digital released the story, an OSF spokesperson issued a statement claiming that:

“Open Society is dedicated to advancing inclusive democracy and prosperity, and human rights, in the United States and around the world…Our leadership, like our grantees, actively advocate with policymakers to advance these goals, and that includes engaging with policymakers from both parties. Tom also has taken meetings on behalf of Open Society and in his personal capacity as a former Member of Congress.” 84

Neither OSF nor the White House responded to inquiries as to the nature of Perriello’s meetings. Capital Research Center (CRC) Investigative Reporter Parker Thayer, who first identified the GFI group and reported it to Fox News Digital, commented, “Perriello’s frequent lunch meetings at the White House are just more proof that Governing for Impact, and by extension George Soros, is secretly calling the shots on regulations that will affect the daily lives of millions.” 85

Leadership

On September 11, 2017, Patrick Gaspard was appointed president of Open Society Foundations, beginning in 2018. Gaspard previously served as a top aide to former President Barack Obama and as a national Democratic Party official. 86

Christopher Stone was interim president of Open Society Foundations through 2018. Before his current post, Stone spent most of career focused on U.S. criminal justice issues, most recently teaching at Harvard’s Kennedy School. Stone’s mission was to build Open Society Foundations into a more professional foundation “that didn’t revolve around the combined institutional memory of [George] Soros and [previous President Aryeh] Neier.”87

In December 2020, Gaspard stepped down as president of Open Society Foundations. Mark Malloch-Brown, former UN deputy secretary‐general, UK minister, and OSF Global Board member, succeeded him. Before becoming deputy secretary-general, Malloch-Brown was the administrator of the UN Development Program. As a UK minister, he worked in the UK’s Foreign Office, presiding over Africa and Asia as minister of state. He was also once a World Bank vice president. 88

Board of Directors

Open Society Foundations has one “global board,” 6 geographic boards, and 17 thematic boards.  89

The Global Board is chaired by George Soros, and also includes Soros’ children Andrea, Jonathan, and Alex, as well as former NAACP President Sherrilyn Iffil, along with a number of politicians, college administrators, and corporate executives. 90 Notable members include former Liberal Party of Canada leader Michael Ignatieff, former European Union official Emma Bonino, and Dutch Royal Family member Mabel van Oranje. 91

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  72. Callahan, David. “Philanthropy vs. Tyranny: Inside the Open Society Foundations’ Biggest Battle Yet.” Inside Philanthropy. August 17, 2017. September 19, 2017.https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2015/9/14/philanthropy-vs-tyranny-inside-the-open-society-foundations.html
  73. Joffe, Alexander H. “Bad Investment: The Philanthropy of George Soros and the Arab-Israeli Conflict.” NGO Monitor. May 2013. Accessed September 19, 2017. http://www.ngo-monitor.org/soros.pdf
  74. Miniter, Richard. “Are George Soros’ Billions Compromising U.S. Foreign Policy?” September 9, 2011. Accessed September 19, 2011. https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardminiter/2011/09/09/should-george-soros-be-allowed-to-buy-u-s-foreign-policy/3/#1fa6d992454e
  75. Miniter, Richard. “Are George Soros’ Billions Compromising U.S. Foreign Policy?” September 9, 2011. Accessed September 19, 2011. https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardminiter/2011/09/09/should-george-soros-be-allowed-to-buy-u-s-foreign-policy/3/#1fa6d992454e
  76. Frommer, Rachel. “Sen. Gillibrand to Keynote Social Justice Conference Featuring Supporters of Israel Boycott.” Washington Free Beacon. October 11, 2017. Accessed October 23, 2017. http://freebeacon.com/politics/sen-gillibrand-keynote-social-justice-conference-featuring-supports-israel-boycott/.
  77. Miniter, Richard. “Are George Soros’ Billions Compromising U.S. Foreign Policy?” September 9, 2011. Accessed September 19, 2011. https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardminiter/2011/09/09/should-george-soros-be-allowed-to-buy-u-s-foreign-policy/3/#1fa6d992454e
  78. Miniter, Richard. “Are George Soros’ Billions Compromising U.S. Foreign Policy?” September 9, 2011. Accessed September 19, 2011. https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardminiter/2011/09/09/should-george-soros-be-allowed-to-buy-u-s-foreign-policy/3/#1fa6d992454e
  79. “Weekly Update: New Soros Lawsuits.” Judicial Watch. Accessed June 19, 2018. https://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/weekly-updates/weekly-update-new-soros-lawsuits/.
  80. “Weekly Update: New Soros Lawsuits.” Judicial Watch. Accessed June 19, 2018. https://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/weekly-updates/weekly-update-new-soros-lawsuits/.
  81. Rojc, Philip. “Backing Up Biden: Grantmakers Get Behind a New Federal Anti-Violence Collaborative.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, July 6, 2021. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2021/7/1/backing-up-biden-grantmakers-get-behind-a-new-federal-anti-violence-collaborative?utm_source=Funding%2BNews%2B%26%2BTips&utm_campaign=f22df871f4-newsletterdaily&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c776dbf0df-f22df871f4-95098585.
  82. “Schoffstall, Joe. “Top George Soros director has frequent Biden White House access, records show.” Fox News, January 26, 2023. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/top-george-soros-director-frequent-biden-white-house-access-records-show
  83. “Schoffstall, Joe. “Top George Soros director has frequent Biden White House access, records show.” Fox News, January 26, 2023. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/top-george-soros-director-frequent-biden-white-house-access-records-show
  84. “Schoffstall, Joe. “Top George Soros director has frequent Biden White House access, records show.” Fox News, January 26, 2023. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/top-george-soros-director-frequent-biden-white-house-access-records-show
  85. “Schoffstall, Joe. “Top George Soros director has frequent Biden White House access, records show.” Fox News, January 26, 2023. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/top-george-soros-director-frequent-biden-white-house-access-records-show
  86. Chung, Juliet. “George Soros Names New Acting Foundation Leader.” The Wall Street Journal. Sept. 11, 2017. Accessed Sept. 19, 2017. https://www.wsj.com/articles/george-soros-names-new-acting-foundation-leader-1505170680
  87. Callahan, David. “Philanthropy vs. Tyranny: Inside the Open Society Foundations’ Biggest Battle Yet.” Inside Philanthropy. August 17, 2017. September 19, 2017.https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2015/9/14/philanthropy-vs-tyranny-inside-the-open-society-foundations.html
  88. “Patrick Gaspard to Step Down as Head of Open Society Foundations.” Accessed December 15, 2020. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/newsroom/patrick-gaspard-to-step-down-as-head-of-open-society-foundations.
  89. “Open Society Foundations: About Us: Boards.” Undated. Accessed September 19, 2017. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/about/boards/open-society-global-board
  90. “Open Society Foundations: Open Society Global Board.” Undated. Accessed September 19, 2017. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/about/boards/open-society-global-board
  91. “Open Society Foundations: Open Society Global Board.” Undated. Accessed September 19, 2017. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/about/boards/open-society-global-board

Directors, Employees & Supporters

  1. Andrea Soros Colombel
    Global Board Member
  2. Jonathan Soros
    Board of Trustees Member
  3. Michael Vachon
    Board Member
  4. Tom Perriello
    Former Executive Director of U.S. Programs
  5. Patrick Gaspard
    Former President
  6. Cecilia Munoz
    Board Chair, U.S. Programs
  7. Deepak Bhargava
    Board Member
  8. Stephen Rickard
    Director, Washington Advocacy Program
  9. Alexander Soros
    Deputy Chair
  10. George Soros
    Founder, Principal Funder
  11. Andrea Batista Schlesinger
    Former U.S. Program Deputy Director
  12. Taryn Higashi
    Advisory Board Member, International Migration Initiative
  13. Mallika Dutt
    Former U.S. Programs Board Member (2010-2012)
  14. Archana Sahgal
    Former Program Officer
  15. Anna Lefer Kuhn
    Former Program Officer
  16. Nancy Youman
    Former Communications Director
  17. Helena Huang
    Former Employee
  18. Scott Nielsen
    Former Employee
  19. Evan Bacalao
    U.S. Program Officer
  20. Lynn Fahselt
    Former Communications Consultant
  21. Cristobal Alex
    Former Employee
  22. Bill Moyers
    Former Trustee
  23. Christopher Stone
    Former President/CEO/Trustee
  24. Joyce Malombe
    Advisory Board Member, Education Support Program
  25. Lara Siree Johnson
    Former Regional Coordinator
  26. John Holdren
    Informal Adviser, Grant Recipient
  27. Michele Lord
    Former Consultant

Donation Recipients

  1. We Are America Alliance (WAAA) (Non-profit)
  2. ABA Fund for Justice and Education (Non-profit)
  3. Abt Associates (For-profit)
  4. Advancement Project (Non-profit)
  5. Alliance for Citizenship (Non-profit)
  6. Alliance for Global Justice (AFGJ) (Non-profit)
  7. Alliance for Justice (AFJ) (Non-profit)
  8. Alliance for Open Society International (Open Society Institute Baltimore) (Non-profit)
  9. American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) (Non-profit)
  10. American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) (Non-profit)
  11. American Constitution Society for Law and Policy (Non-profit)
  12. American Immigration Council (AIC) (Non-profit)
  13. American Independent Institute (Non-profit)
  14. American Prospect (Non-profit)
  15. Angelica Foundation (Non-profit)
  16. Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS) (Non-profit)
  17. As You Sow (Non-profit)
  18. Black Voters Matter Fund (Non-profit)
  19. Black Youth Vote! (BYV!) (Other Group)
  20. Breakthrough (Non-profit)
  21. Californians for Safety and Justice (Non-profit)
  22. Campaign for Youth Justice (Non-profit)
  23. Campaign Legal Center (Non-profit)
  24. CASA de Maryland (Non-profit)
  25. Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC) (Non-profit)
  26. Citizen Engagement Lab (CEL) Education Fund (Non-profit)
  27. Center for American Progress (CAP) (Non-profit)
  28. Center for American Progress Action Fund (CAP Action) (Non-profit)
  29. Center for Community Change (CCC) (Non-profit)
  30. Center for Community Change (CCC) Action (Non-profit)
  31. Truman Center for National Policy (CNP) (Non-profit)
  32. Center for Public Integrity (Non-profit)
  33. Center for Public Interest Research (Non-profit)
  34. Center For Reproductive Rights (Non-profit)
  35. Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) (Non-profit)
  36. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) (Non-profit)
  37. Change-Links.org (Other Group)
  38. Civic Participation Action Fund (CPAF) (Non-profit)
  39. Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) (Non-profit)
  40. Color of Change (Non-profit)
  41. Common Cause Education Fund (Non-profit)
  42. Compassion and Choices (Non-profit)
  43. #Cut50 (Non-profit)
  44. Data & Society (Non-profit)
  45. Defending Rights and Dissent (DRAD) (Non-profit)
  46. Democracy Works (Non-profit)
  47. Demos (Non-profit)
  48. Drug Policy Alliance (Non-profit)
  49. Drum Major Institute (Non-profit)
  50. EarthRights International (ERI) (Non-profit)
  51. East West Management Institute (Non-profit)
  52. Economic Policy Institute (EPI) (Non-profit)
  53. Economic Security Project (Non-profit)
  54. Electronic Privacy Information Center (Non-profit)
  55. Equal Justice Initiative (Non-profit)
  56. Equality Virginia (Non-profit)
  57. Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM) (Non-profit)
  58. FairVote (Non-profit)
  59. Faith in Public Life (Non-profit)
  60. Fiscal Policy Institute (Non-profit)
  61. Four Freedoms Fund (Non-profit)
  62. Free Press (Non-profit)
  63. Freedom Archives (Non-profit)
  64. Fund for the City of New York (Non-profit)
  65. Funders for Justice (Other Group)
  66. Gamaliel Foundation (Non-profit)
  67. Gender Funders CoLab (Non-profit)
  68. Government Accountability Project (GAP) (Non-profit)
  69. Groundswell Fund (Non-profit)
  70. Human Rights First (Non-profit)
  71. Human Rights Funders Network (Non-profit)
  72. Human Rights Watch (Non-profit)
  73. Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) (Non-profit)
  74. Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (Non-profit)
  75. J Street Education Fund (Non-profit)
  76. Justice at Stake (Non-profit)
  77. Lambda Legal (Non-profit)
  78. Land is Life (Non-profit)
  79. Leadership Conference Education Fund (Non-profit)
  80. Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights (LCCHR) (Non-profit)
  81. League of Women Voters (LWV) (Non-profit)
  82. League of Women Voters Education Fund (LWVEF) (Non-profit)
  83. Legal Aid Society of New York (Non-profit)
  84. Life of the Law (Other Group)
  85. Living United for Change in Arizona (LUCHA) (Non-profit)
  86. Make the Road New York (MRNY) (Non-profit)
  87. MapLight (Non-profit)
  88. Media Democracy Fund (MDF) (Non-profit)
  89. Charles Stewart Mott Foundation (Non-profit)
  90. Movement Strategy Center (Non-profit)
  91. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) (Non-profit)
  92. NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) (Non-profit)
  93. National Congress of American Indians (Non-profit)
  94. National Congress of American Indians Fund (Non-profit)
  95. National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA) (Non-profit)
  96. National Immigration Forum (NIF) (Non-profit)
  97. National Organization for Women (NOW) (Non-profit)
  98. Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) (Non-profit)
  99. NEO Philanthropy (Non-profit)
  100. New America (New America Foundation) (Non-profit)
  101. New Jersey Policy Perspective (Non-profit)
  102. New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice (Non-profit)
  103. Niskanen Center For Public Policy (Non-profit)
  104. Obama Foundation (Non-profit)
  105. Oregon Center for Public Policy (Non-profit)
  106. Oxfam America (Non-profit)
  107. Faith In Action (PICO National Network) (Non-profit)
  108. Partnership for Working Families (Non-profit)
  109. People for the American Way (PFAW) (Non-profit)
  110. People for the American Way (PFAW) Foundation (Non-profit)
  111. People’s Action Institute (Non-profit)
  112. Planned Parenthood Action Fund (Non-profit)
  113. Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) (Non-profit)
  114. Population Council (Non-profit)
  115. Poynter Institute for Media Studies (Non-profit)
  116. Progressive States Network (PSN) (Non-profit)
  117. Proteus Fund (Non-profit)
  118. Public Citizen (Non-profit)
  119. Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC) (Non-profit)
  120. ReThink Media (Non-profit)
  121. Robin Hood Foundation (Non-profit)
  122. Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC) (Non-profit)
  123. Ruckus Society (Non-profit)
  124. Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) (Non-profit)
  125. SCOPE (Non-profit)
  126. Shelby Response Fund (Non-profit)
  127. Southern Center for Human Rights (Non-profit)
  128. Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) (Non-profit)
  129. State Voices (Non-profit)
  130. Sundance Institute (Non-profit)
  131. Swanee Hunt Alternatives (Non-profit)
  132. Teaching for Change (Non-profit)
  133. Telos Group (Non-profit)
  134. TGI Justice Project (TGIJP) (Non-profit)
  135. The Heartland Fund (Non-profit)
  136. TYPE Media Center (Non-profit)
  137. The Workers Lab (Non-profit)
  138. Tides Center (Non-profit)
  139. Tides Foundation (Non-profit)
  140. Transparency and Accountability Initiative (TAI) (Non-profit)
  141. UnidosUS (formerly National Council of La Raza) (Non-profit)
  142. UnidosUS (formerly National Council of La Raza) Action Fund (Non-profit)
  143. United Vision for Idaho (Non-profit)
  144. United Workers Association (Non-profit)
  145. Urban Institute (Non-profit)
  146. Urban Justice Center (Non-profit)
  147. USAction Education Fund (Non-profit)
  148. Vera Institute of Justice (VIJ) (Non-profit)
  149. Violence Policy Center (VPC) (Non-profit)
  150. Voter Engagement Evaluation Project (VEEP) (Non-profit)
  151. WESPAC Foundation (Non-profit)
  152. William J. Brennan Center for Justice (Non-profit)
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: November 1, 1994

  • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2020 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $3,969,456,779 $775,049,895 $0 $0 $0 $0
    2019 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $3,477,908,960 $705,785,660 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2015 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $2,616,062,988 $195,305,160 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2014 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $1,757,161,818 $158,486,417 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2013 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $1,590,570,302 $636,876,360 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2012 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $685,871,435 $193,233,601 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2011 Dec Form PF $0 $0 $1,007,665,737 $198,180,851 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Open Society Foundations (Open Society Institute)

    224 WEST 57TH STREET
    NEW YORK, NY 10019-3212