The 990-PF is the tax return that private foundations are required to file each year with the Internal Revenue Service. This document provides financial information about the foundation's assets, its investments, expenses, the names and salaries of trustees and officers, and includes a complete list of grants awarded in a given year.
Form 990-PF
For more information about Form 990, click on the following link: Understanding the IRS Form 990, from Guidestar, a nonprofit organization that provides data on over 1.5 million organizations nationwide. In assessing whether a Foundation or the organizations it supports are effective, though, Form 990 isn't the whole story, as the Guidestar site correctly points out:
Although Forms 990 can provide a snapshot of the financial health and expenditures of an organization at a specific time, they are virtually useless in comparing one organization to another unless the organizations are of similar size, age, geography, and field of activity. Further, they tell us nothing about the ultimate or relative effectiveness of an organization with respect to meeting its objectives. This is the true bottom line of charity. Form 990 data are most useful for examining the evolving health and financial practices of an organization over a period of time.
2006 990-PF (with statements and attachments)
The chart below shows a key to the various documents as they refer to Form 990-PF. You may download each section by clicking on the highlighted link.