
How Membership Dues are Spent at the American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a non-profit 501 (c) (6) whose purpose is to serve the members of the legal profession in a variety of ways including education. Based in Chicago, Illinois, the ABA has more than 400,000 members who pay $75-$450 in dues annually (depending on their years as a lawyer and type of practice which equates to about $67 million annually (in 2018). To put this number in perspective, the ABA reported total revenue of $149 million in 2018, so about 45% of revenue was from dues. The remaining revenue was from meeting fees ($27 million), gains on the sale of assets ($20 million), royalties ($9 million), publication revenue ($8 million), contributions, gifts, and grants ($8 million), accreditation fees ($5 million), and advertising and other program revenue ($5 million). Read more

Executive Compensation at the American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a Chicago-based non-profit 501 (c) (6) that serves the members of the legal profession. Established in 1878, the ABA has grown to more than 400,000 members, raises about $150 million annually (membership dues, meeting fees, gains on the sale of assets, royalties, publications, accreditation fees, contributions, advertising, etc), and has more than $150 million in net fund assets (which some people refer to as an endowment).
The most recent IRS Form 990 (2017 for the year ending August 31, 2018) reports the organization employed 751 individuals who were compensated nearly $79 million (about 53% of total revenue), which equates to an average compensation of $105,200. However, only 114 employees received more than $100,000 in compensation which means there were some very highly compensated employees. Specifically, the 16 most highly compensated employees were reported to be: Read more

Executive Compensation at the American Beverage Association
The American Beverage Association is a Washington, DC-based non-profit 501 (c) (6) trade association representing America’s non-alcoholic beverage industry. Originally established in 1919 as the American Bottlers of Carbonated Beverages, the organization was renamed the National Soft Drink Association in 1966, when the soft drink market began growing rapidly in the USA.
In 2004, the organization’s name was changed to the American Beverage Association (ABA), which coincidently was about the time negative press was on the upswing calling out the soft drink industry for the copious amount of sugar and high fructose corn syrup in soft drinks. In subsequent years, as the government imposed taxes on these beverages siting the lack of nutritional benefits and the great cost to the consumer and the health care industry, the ABA has fought attempts by stepping up their lobbying efforts. Read more