Step 3: Evaluate Before You Give

Make the best decision you can.

Now that you've found organizations that you may want to support, it's worth looking into these organizations and performing a little research.

1. Check out if the organizations are legitimate. Go to the IRS’ database to find out whether they are formally registered as a charity or nonprofit. For political organizations (PACs and 527s) go to the Federal Election Commission’s database.

2. Take a look at the financials. You can find their information in Guidestar, where most nonprofits organizations publish their tax forms, or 990s. For PACs and candidates, you can also find this in the FEC’s database.

Most online directories already include this information, which ensures that the organizations are legitimate. At NPC, we take it a step further so that you can understand the impact they are having.

We understand that financial ratios don’t tell an organization’s whole story and that numbers don’t communicate how innovative an organization can be.

NPC’s Analysis seeks to provide a trustworthy, accurate picture of the organization’s work, its performance relative to its peers, and its impact. NPC Analysis uses self-reported Political Return on Investment (PROI)™ data, taking into consideration questions such as:

1. Does the team have the experience and capacity to succeed?
2. Are the programs growing or being replicated elsewhere?
3. What kind of reputation do they have?
4. How effective are they in doing similar work when compared to others?
5. How much "gamechanger” potential do they have?

Click on an organization’s name in one of our “Political Mutual Funds” or check out the “NPC Analysis” tab in the Organization Directory to view its analysis.

Next steps: Now that you have evaluated some organizations, you are ready to contribute.