Citizens Against Government Waste
Donations deductibleCitizens Against Government Waste's network
5 people2 organisationsi5 people and 2 organisations on this map.The large node is the subject of this page. Solid lines are what the register itself records (5). Violet dotted lines (6) are likely: the same full name sits on the current board of another organisation in the same register and region. Form 990 filings give names without a person identifier; SEC insider filings carry a CIK. It may be a different person.The board
5 listediTime on the board is observed from the annual filings: the IRS files no appointment date, so the bar counts years from the first filing the person appears on - a lower bound, not a filed start date. Names are exactly as filed. The IRS publishes no person identifier, so this edition does not yet link a person across organisations in the tables. The network map shows same-name matches as likely links only, never as confirmed.Tenure and departures are observed across annual filings. Observed tenure is a lower bound - a member may have joined before the first year on record. The organisation reported 5 voting members of its governing body on its latest Form 990 Part VI, which matches the board listed here.| Name | Role as filed | Since | On the board |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Heckman Chair | Chairman | 2018 | 8 yrs |
| Elizabeth Wright | Director | 2022 | 4 yrs |
| Mike Rose | Director | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| Terry Grace Sears | Director | 2018 | 8 yrs |
| Thomas A Schatz | President & Secretary | 2018 | 8 yrs |
Under 5 years5 to 6 years6 years or more
Officers and senior leadership
6 listediNamed in Part VII as officers, key employees or highest-compensated staff - not board members, shown for completeness.| Name | Title as filed | On the filings |
|---|---|---|
| Ariane Sweeney | VP, Membership & Devpment | since 2018 |
| Deborah Collier | VP of Policy and Gov't Affairs | since 2020 |
| Elizabeth Wright | Director, Health & Science Division | 2021 |
| Leslie Page | VP, Policy & Communication | 2018 |
| Leslie Paige | VP, Policy & Communications | since 2019 |
| Mekdes Yifru | CFO | since 2020 |
Pay and hours
year to 31 December 2025iFrom Part VII of the Form 990: compensation reported for each officer, director, trustee, key employee and highest-paid staff member, and the average hours a week they report. Most board members are unpaid; a blank means nothing was reported. Pay from related organisations is shown separately.| Name | Title as filed | Hours a week | Pay from the organisation | Related organisations | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas A Schatz | President & Secretary | 39.5 | $350k | $4k | $39k |
| Mekdes Yifru | CFO | 39.5 | $118k | $1k | $936 |
| Deborah Collier | VP of Policy and Gov't Aff | 39.5 | $104k | $1k | $28k |
| Martin Rundle | Director of Development | 39.5 | $102k | $1k | $6k |
| Bob Heckman | Chairman | 0.5 | $0 | ||
| Mike Rose | Director | 0.5 | $0 | ||
| Terry Grace Sears | Director | 0.5 | $0 | ||
| Elizabeth Wright | Director | 0.5 | $0 |
Colorado roster
8 listediOfficers, directors and trustees from the latest filing with the Colorado Secretary of State (document 20263028786). Titles are as filed; some entries are registered agents or custodians of records rather than board members. Source: data.colorado.gov, public domain.| Name | Title as filed |
|---|---|
| Bob Heckman | Chairman |
| Thomas Schatz | President |
| Elizabeth Wright | Director |
| Mekdes Yifru | CFO |
| Terry Sears | Director |
| Mike Rose | Director |
| Thomas Schatz | |
| Toby Seay | VP of Policy |
About
- Legal name
- Citizens Against Government Waste
- EIN
- 521363952
- Address
- 317 Mass Ave Ne Ste 300, Washington, DC, 20002-5769
- State
- District of Columbia
- Mission
- Perform nonpartisan study, research and analysis on waste and inefficiency in government; publish and disseminate information and conduct educational activities regarding waste and inefficiency in government. (as filed on the Form 990)
- IRS classification
- 501(c)03 (tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) where shown)
- Size band
- 6 (IRS master file code)
- Formed
- 1984
- Principal officer
- Thomas A Schatz (as named on the Form 990)
- IRS ruling date
- 1 August 1984
- Status
- Code 01 (unconditional exemption)
- Form 990 filings on record
- 7, latest 2024
- IRS Publication 78
- PC (contributions deductible)
Most connected
Related organisations (Schedule R)
Longest observed on the filings
≥8years on the filingsBob Heckman
≥8years on the filingsTerry Grace Sears
≥8years on the filingsThomas A Schatz
≥6years on the filingsMike Rose
Latest return
year to 31 December 2025iFigures from the newest Form 990 or 990-EZ in the IRS e-file releases of 2025 and 2026, for the year ending 31 December 2025. US dollars, as filed.- Total assets
- $2.5m
- Total liabilities
- $1.9m
- Net assets or fund balances
- $580k
- Contributions and grants received
- $1.5m
- Program service revenue
- $0
- Employees
- 11
- Volunteers
- 4
Filed finances
1 yeariTotals as filed on the IRS Form 990 (revenue and expenses), by tax year.| Tax year | Total revenue | Total expenses | Surplus or deficit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1.9m | $2.2m | Deficit $292k |
As filed on the IRS Form 990. US dollars.
State registration
1 entityiBusiness-entity registers published by US states. These records are matched to this organisation by name and state, not by EIN, and are labelled as likely matches. Street addresses are not shown.Citizens Against Government Waste likely matchiMatched by exact name and state (and ZIP where shown). State registers do not publish EINs, so this is not a confirmed match. Source: DC Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP), corporate registrations (opendata.dc.gov). Licence: CC BY 4.0. Attribution: DC DLCP. Data last fetched 18 October 2026.
- State
- District of Columbia
- Entity type
- Domestic Nonprofit Corporation
- Status
- Active - In Good Standing
- Formed
- 5 July 1984
- Registered agent
- Thomas Schatz (city and state not held)