How Revenue is Spent at the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (2021)

The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (also known as “The Joint” or the JDC) is a tax-exempt, non-profit 501 (c) (3) with about 135 employees in New York City, NY. The governing board – 154 independent board members although 161 board members are listed on the Form 990 (the difference appears to be due to timing issues and is comprised of 83 males and 78 females.  That there are more board members than employees is interesting to note.

As one of the leading humanitarian organizations that works in 70 countries, the JDC works to rescue and provide aid to Jews in the advancement of Jewish life across the globe, primarily through awarding grants:  in 2021, $219 million, or 55% of revenue was used for grants (primarily to foreign organizations).

So, if you made a $100 donation to the JDC in 2021, $55 was allocated to grants, $30 was used for organization expenses and $15 was allocated to savings.

The JDC has $602 million in net assets – a nearly $100 million increase over the past year due to not spending as much as the organization raised and net unrealized gains on investments.

In 2021, the JDC reported total revenue of $398 million (compared to $396 million in 2020, $334 million in 2019 and $357 million in 2018) most of which came from contributions and gifts ($286 million), government grants ($69 million), and investment income/gains on the sale of assets ($40 million).

Expenses totaled $337 million (including $2 million in depreciation) and can be categorized as follows:

• $219 million (55% of revenue):  Grants
• $ 77  million (20% of revenue):  Compensation
• $  16 million (4% of revenue):  Fees for Services
• $ 12 million (3% of revenue):  Office-Related Expenses
• $   8 million (2% of revenue):  Advertising, Interest, and Other Expenses
• $   5 million (1% of revenue):  Travel and Conferences

As illustrated above, $219 million or 55% of revenue was awarded in grants, primarily to Russia and neighboring states ($140 million), and the Middle East and North Africa ($67 million). The Form 990 does not require non-profits to disclose the specific of grants made overseas.

$118 million, or 30% of revenue was spent on organizational expenses (compensation, fees, travel and conferences, office expenses, etc).

The unspent revenue – about $62 million – was added to the general fund. The JDC recognized $28 million in unrealized gains on investments along with $3 million in other changes (primarily changes in the pension plan offset by currency losses)  resulting in $602 million in net assets (compared to0 $509 million in 2020).

Using the above revenue, every $100 in revenue was spent as follows:

$100:  Revenue

-$ 20:  Compensation

-$  4:  Fees For Services

-$  1:  Travel and Conferences

-$  3:  Office-Related Expenses

-$  2:  Advertising, Interest, and Other Expense

-$ 30: Subtotal: Organization Expenses

 $ 70:  Revenue Remaining

-$ 55:  Grants

$  15:  Revenue Remaining:  To General Fund

As illustrated above and in the most general terms, The JDC spent $30 of of every $100 on organization expenses and $55 out of every $100 on grants – primarily overseas.  $15 out of every $100 went to the general fund.

To read the IRS Form 990 (2021), click here.