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Michigan · Nonprofit

MACKINAC CENTER

MACKINAC CENTER (Michigan) receives grants from 155 organizations whose IRS filings report $41,799,316 to it, the largest being Donors Trust Inc ($10,385,200). 105 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 54% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.

Revenue FY2024
$11M
Funders on record
155
Grants received
$42M
Net assets
$14M
105/155 repeat funderspeak grant-dependency 78%
01What it does

What Mackinac Center does

Mission

Our mission is to be the most respected and influential source of public policy research, analysis and education in michigan. The Mackinac Center for public policy is committed to providing the free-market perspective, resulting in superior opportunities and choices for michigan citizens.

As stated on its FY2024 Form 990.

Programs

  1. Conduct scholarly research and analysis of the state of michigan public policy issues to improve the quality of life for all michigan citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited government and respect for private property.

    $5,153,439 spentof which $110,000 as grants$44,956 earned by the program
    48% of program spending
  2. Conduct scholarly research and analysis of public policy issues related to state labor policies, and communicate the results of that research and analysis to citizens, in order to improve the quality of life for all citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited government and respect for private property.

    $4,613,000 spent
    43% of program spending
  3. Conduct scholarly research and analysis of state of michigan public policy issues related to the state's educational systems, and communicate the results of that research and analysis to michigan citizens, in order to improve the quality of life for all michigan citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited government and respect for private property.

    $533,939 spent
    5% of program spending
  4. Public interest law firm that advances individual freedom and the rule of law through strategic litigation and education of the public to secure the liberties of residents, workers, students and entrepreneurs.conduct scholarly research and analylsis of public policy issues related to the rule of law and litigation, and communicate the results of that research and analysis in order to improve the quality of life for all citizens by advancing the principles of a free-market economy, limited government and respect for private property.

    $522,363 spent
    5% of program spending

The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $10,822,741.

02The organization over time

The organization over time

Each line starts at 100 in 2020, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2020, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.

100 = 20202020 Revenue 100 ($7.0M) Expenses 100 ($9.4M) Net assets 100 ($11M)2021 Revenue 223 ($16M) Expenses 107 ($10M) Net assets 153 ($17M)2022 Revenue 164 ($11M) Expenses 122 ($11M) Net assets 150 ($16M)2023 Revenue 158 ($11M) Expenses 134 ($13M) Net assets 137 ($15M)2024 Revenue 164 ($11M) Expenses 137 ($13M) Net assets 127 ($14M)
20202021202220232024
Revenue (164)Expenses (137)Net assets (127)Peer revenue range

Balance sheet

Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2020 to 2021, from $11M to $17M (+51%).

$11M
$17M
$17M
$16M
$14M
20202021202220232024
Total assetsTotal liabilities

How it's funded, over time

Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.

2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
ContributionsProgram revenueInvestmentOther

97% of MACKINAC CENTER’s revenue is contributions — more reliant on donations than three-quarters of its peers (23% for the typical peer).

This organization
Typical peer · 287 orgs

Surplus & reserves

Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 4 of the last 5 reported years ran a deficit.

−$2.4M
’20
$5.4M
’21
−$32k
’22
−$1.6M
’23
−$1.5M
’24
6.6
months of
reserve

Leadership and staff

The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.

Board chair

Rodney M Lockwood Jr

Chairman

As listed on its FY2024 Form 990.

20202021202220232024
Listed1717171818
Joined·+1+1+14+0
No longer listed·11130
03Who funds it

Who funds it, year by year

2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 34 funders to 79 funders, grant income rose $881k → $8.6M.

24 of 155 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 54% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.

From the IRS filings of MACKINAC CENTER’s funders (the co-funder graph). Top 30 of 155 funders by total. Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

How concentrated its funding is

MACKINAC CENTER has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 25% of grant income, and it takes 5 funders to reach half.

the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 5 funders to its left

60% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund MACKINAC CENTER.

25%
largest funder
40%
top three
~11
effective funders

Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 46% · 2018 39% · 2019 16% · 2020 20% · 2021 43% · 2022 27% · 2023 25% — diversifying over time.

“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

How long its funders stay

57% of MACKINAC CENTER's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 68% give in more than one year at all.

first grant+1y+2y+3y+4y+5y+6y

Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.

Where its funders are

54% of MACKINAC CENTER's grant income arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors, whose addresses record where the money is held rather than where the donor is. Of the $19M that is directly attributable, 61% of it comes from funders outside Michigan, across 28 states.

WA
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
IA
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
CA
UT
CO
MO
KY
VA
DE
AZ
KS
TN
NC
SC
DC
OK
TX
FL

In-state vs out-of-state, by year

’17
’18
’19
’20
’21
’22
’23
Michigan out of state home

Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $22M arriving through sponsors registered in 14 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

04Its place in the field

Against its field

MACKINAC CENTER is better cushioned than half of the 270 public benefit nonprofits its size.

Operating margin−13% · bottom quartile
Months of reserve6.6mo · above the median
Revenue growth (annualized)13% · above the median

this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 270 public benefit nonprofits $10M–$100M, FY2024

Organizations like MACKINAC CENTER

Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.

In Michigan

Nationally

05Profile & governance

Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.

Where the money goes

84% of spending goes to programs.

Program 84%Management 5%Fundraising 11%

Governance

11
board members
91%
independent
✓Conflict-of-interest policy✓Whistleblower policy✓Document retention✓Board reviewed the 990✓Audited financials

Public support

89%

Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.

Footprint & structure

Files a return copy in 49 states

AK
ME
VT
NH
WA
ID
MT
ND
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
NV
WY
SD
IA
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
UT
CO
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
AZ
NM
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
TX
FL

Part of a family of 2 related entities

  • Mackinac Center Charitable Foundation · exempt
  • Mackinac Center Action · exempt

Screen this organization

A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for MACKINAC CENTER: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.

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Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf

Questions and answers

Who funds MACKINAC CENTER?
MACKINAC CENTER (Michigan) receives grants from 155 organizations whose IRS filings report $41,799,316 to it, the largest being Donors Trust Inc ($10,385,200). 105 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 54% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
How many funders does MACKINAC CENTER have?
IRS filings report 155 organizations giving $41,799,316 in grants to MACKINAC CENTER, 105 of which have funded it in more than one year.
Who is the largest funder of MACKINAC CENTER?
Donors Trust Inc is the largest funder on record, with $10,385,200 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
How can an organization like MACKINAC CENTER find more funders?
Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Michigan. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.

These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2024 (financials across 2020–2024), and the filings of 155 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 22, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing