Hi Jaime, Thanks!
One quick question: In the Form 990, you answered "No" to the question, "Did the organization, directly or through a related organization, hold assets in donor-restricted endowments or in quasi endowments?", and Schedule, Part V, "Endowment Funds", is left blank. Could you explain why the WMF is not required to report the – otherwise much-publicised – Wikimedia Endowment in the Form 990? Best, Andreas On Tue, Jul 20, 2021 at 4:42 AM Jaime Villagomez <jvillago...@wikimedia.org> wrote: > Hello everyone, > > > The Wikimedia Foundation has submitted our annual Form 990 for the Fiscal > Year 2019-20 to the US Internal Revenue Service > <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_Revenue_Service> (IRS) and posted > on-wiki[1]. The Form 990 is the annual financial reporting, known as an > “information return,” which the IRS requires nonprofit organizations in the > United States to file. > > > > In addition to posting the Form 990 on-wiki, we have also posted an > accompanying page with answers to frequently asked questions related to the > form and information we reported.[2] > > > > Here are a few key highlights on this year’s Form 990: > > > > - The Wikimedia Foundation's total revenue for fiscal year > 2019-2020 was US $124.6 million. Our total expenses during this period were > US $112.2 million and our total net assets at the end of the fiscal year > were US $180.3 million. > > - At the end of our fiscal year 2019-2020, our revenue exceeded our > expenses by US $12.5 million, which increased our operating reserve to > $179.7 million, or the equivalent of 19-20 months of expenses per the > fiscal year 2020-2021 annual plan > <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Medium-term_plan_2019/Annual_Plan_2020-2021>. > As reported under our prior Form 990, we have been maintaining the > operating reserve at 17-18 months. Our goal is to have sufficient reserve > funds to conservatively provide at least 12-18 months of operating expenses > in order to mitigate against unforeseen risk, secure operational stability, > and ensure the overall financial health of the organization, in particular, > with the COVID-19 pandemic which brings a significant amount of volatility > and uncertainty for a majority of businesses, including non-profit > organizations. This principle is consistent with many other financially > stable, non-profit organizations that are rated by Charity Navigator > <https://www.charitynavigator.org/>. With a stable and secure reserve, we > have the ability to fund specific Wikimedia Movement investment > opportunities that may arise. > > - During the fiscal year 2019-2020, we continued to experience > growth in our fundraising revenue and success that was attributed to our > fundraising campaigns. > > - We continue to invest in programmatic activities and evaluate > to ensure that our allocation percentage is at or above the standard > benchmark of 65%. During the fiscal year 2019-2020, we invested 75% in > programmatic activities, 14% in Management & General activities, and 11% in > fundraising activities. For fiscal year 2020-2021, we continued to maintain > our commitment to our programmatic activities and projected to invest above > the standard benchmark in our total spending. > > - Our expenses increased due to the investment to support our > medium term plan and priorities, that are outlined in the Annual Plan > <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Medium-term_plan_2019/Annual_Plan_2019-2020>. > The major programmatic areas are to evolve our systems and structures and > to grow new contributors and content along with supporting a thriving > movement and global advocacy. > > - Our Governance, Management, and Disclosure practices are > committed to maintaining best practices for non-profit charitable > organizations, we’ve achieved a score of 100% from Charity Navigator for > our accountability and transparency and meet the IRS requirements as > applicable. > > > > Through reports and discussions like these, the Wikimedia Foundation will > continue to strive to provide a responsible level of transparency and > accountability. I imagine there are other questions, and I invite you to > review the on-wiki FAQ[2], or post your questions on the discussion page > should you have any. > > > > Thank you to the Foundation's Audit Committee for their oversight and our > Staff for their work in developing this year's Form 990 and related > communications for filing and public disclosure. > > > > Best Regards and Be Well, > > Jaime > > > > > > [1] - https://wikimediafoundation.org/about/financial-reports/ > > [2] - > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/IRS_tax_related_information/2019_Wikimedia_Foundation_Form_990_Frequently_Asked_Questions > > > Jaime Villagomez > > Chief Financial Officer > > Wikimedia Foundation <https://wikimediafoundation.org/> > > *Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the > sum of all knowledge. That's our commitment. 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