Celebrating 30 years of helping you give wisely
America's most independent,
assertive charity watchdog
Top Rated

American Red Cross

CharityWatch report issued
October 2022

Top-Rated Charity
A-
CharityWatch Grade
Our independent grade based
on a number of factors.
 
91%
Program Percentage
Amount spent on programs
relative to overhead.
 
$25
Cost to Raise $100
Amount spent to raise
$100 of contributions.

Contact Information

American Red Cross
431 18th Street, NW
Washington , DC 20006-5009

Other Names

American National Red Cross
Red Cross

Tax Status

501(c)3

Stated Mission

Prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.

View similar charities
Data based on Fiscal Year Ended 06/30/2021

Program Percentage: 91%

The percentage of American Red Cross's cash budget it spends on programs relative to overhead (fundraising, management, and general expenses).

$2,784,000,000

Calculated Total Expenses

(rounded)

 

Cost to Raise $100: $25

How many dollars American Red Cross spends on fundraising to raise each $100 of contributions.

$665,000,000

Calculated Total Contributions

(rounded)

Government Funding

0% to 24%

Percentage of cash revenue
coming from government sources

 

Financial Documents

Entity Document Type Tax ID
American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters & Branches IRS Form 990 53-0196605
The American National Red Cross Audited Consolidated Financial Statements multiple
Entity: American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters & Branches
Document Type: IRS Form 990
Tax ID: 53-0196605
Entity: The American National Red Cross
Document Type: Audited Consolidated Financial Statements
Tax ID: multiple

Governance & Transparency

CharityWatch evaluates certain criteria related to a charity's Governance and Transparency. Donors may want to consider a charity's willingness to be open and transparent with CharityWatch to be a good litmus test for determining its commitment to public accountability.
This charity is Top-Rated
What does it mean to be Top-Rated?
 
American Red Cross
meets governance benchmarks.
 
American Red Cross
meets transparency benchmarks.
Transparency
Provides Financial Information
Audit Accessibility
Governance: Policies
Reports regularly & consistently monitoring & enforcing compliance with a written Conflict of Interest Policy
Reports required, annual disclosure by officers, directors, and key staff of interests that could give rise to conflicts
Reports having a written Whistleblower Policy
Reports having a written Document Retention and Destruction Policy
Governance: Financials
Reports providing copy of tax form to all board members prior to filing it with IRS
Reports that financial statements were audited by an independent accountant
Governance: Board of Directors
Reports at least 5 voting board members
51% or more of voting board members reported as independent
Reports documenting minutes of board and board committee meetings
Privacy Policy
Privacy Policy Opt-In Policy  

  Name Title Compensation
1 Clifford Holtz COO $781,120
2 Chris Hrouda President, Biomedical Services $751,789
3 Shaun Gilmore Chief Transformation Officer $723,696
1
Name: Clifford Holtz
Title: COO
Compensation: $781,120
2
Name: Chris Hrouda
Title: President, Biomedical Services
Compensation: $751,789
3
Name: Shaun Gilmore
Title: Chief Transformation Officer
Compensation: $723,696

CharityWatch Analysts perform an in-depth analysis of charities' audited financial statements and IRS tax filings, and often review other documents such as state filings, annual reports, and fundraising contracts during their evaluations. Below are select notes that CharityWatch believes may be of interest to donors.

CharityWatch's rating of the American Red Cross includes the financial activities of the entities consolidated in the Red Cross audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended of June 30, 2021. These entities are described in the fiscal 2021 consolidated audit (Note 1(a) re: Organization and Basis of Presentation) as follows:

"...The Organization has national and international programs that are conducted by its headquarters, biomedical services, and chartered local chapters. Also, included in the consolidated financial statements are the net assets and operations of Boardman Indemnity Ltd., a 100% owned captive insurance subsidiary (through June 30, 2021) and ARC Receivables Company, LLC, a wholly owned bankruptcy-remote special purpose entity. All significant intra-organizational accounts and transactions have been eliminated [in the consolidated audit]."

According to The American National Red Cross audited Consolidated Statement of Activities for the year ended June 30, 2021, the Red Cross received donated in-kind services and materials on which it placed a total value of approximately $55,096,000.

According to the Red Cross consolidated audit of June 30, 2021 (Note 1(o) re: Contributed Services and Materials):

"...Contributed services for the year ended June 30, 2021 include the services of approximately 9,562 volunteers. The Organization recorded contributed services revenue and related expense of approximately $38 million. The $38 million and $34 million recorded in 2021 and 2020, respectively, represent primarily volunteer efforts in support of disaster services and services to the Armed Forces."

[Note: CharityWatch generally excludes the value of in-kind (non-cash) donations of goods and services from its calculations of Program % and Cost to Raise $100. More information on how grades are calculated and the treatment of in-kind donations can be found on the Our Process page.]

According to The American National Red Cross consolidated audit of June 30, 2021 (Note 1(a) re: Organization and Basis of Presentation):

"In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) a pandemic impacting social interaction, travel, economies, and financial markets. The Organization has implemented extensive measures to protect the health and safety of its employees, volunteers, clients and communities and continues to adapt day to day operations and processes to safely carry out its mission. The American National Red Cross continues to monitor and assess the implications to its business, and take necessary actions to mitigate potential adverse consequences."

According to the American National Red Cross tax filing for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021 re: Compensation, Supplemental Information (IRS Form 990, Schedule J, Part III):

Regarding nonfixed payments to officers, directors, trustees, key employees and highest compensated employees (Schedule J, Part I, line 7):

"Ms. McGovern [President & CEO] elected to not take incentive bonus for calendar year 2020 to enable the Red Cross to put additional funds to use for other charitable purposes in light of the global pandemic and its impact on the country and world.

"The amounts shown in Part II, Column B (ii) ['Bonus & incentive compensation'] for the Chief Operating Officer, the President Biomedical Services, the Chief Transformation Officer, the Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, the Chief Human Resources Officer, the Chief Development Officer and the President [of] Humanitarian Services were paid based on written variable incentive plans, prior fiscal year performance and were approved by the compensation and management development committee of the board.

"The amount shown in Part II, Column B (ii) for the President, Training Services was paid based on a written incentive plan, prior fiscal year performance and was approved by the Chief Operating Officer. The amount shown in Part II, Column B (ii) for the SVP Donor Services and the SVP Biomed Sales & Marketing were based on a written incentive plan, prior fiscal year performance and was approved by the President Biomedical Services.

"The amounts shown in Part II, Column B (ii) for the Chief Information Officer and the Corporate Secretary & Chief of Staff were paid based on a written variable incentive plan, prior fiscal year performance and were approved by the President and CEO.

"All variable incentive plan payouts were reviewed by an outside independent compensation consultant and were documented in the minutes of the committee, all in accordance with the requirements for the rebuttable presumption of reasonableness under IRC Section 4958."


The reported "Bonus & incentive compensation" amounts by the Red Cross range from a high of $165,050 to a low of $43,739 for 13 total individuals in calendar year 2020. The $165,050 was paid to the Chief Operating Officer, Clifford Holtz, with reported total compensation of $781,120 in 2020. The reported total compensation for the other 12 individuals in 2020 ranges from $751,789 to $326,631 (IRS Form 990, Schedule J, Part II).


Related External Articles