Study on Grants by Conservative Foundations Published by NCRP

The National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy has published Axis of Ideology: Conservative Foundations and Public Policy, a follow up to its 1997 report on conservative philanthropy. The research showed that conservative foundations continue to be more likely to provide flexible core operating and long-term support to their grantees than other foundations. In a March 3 press release, NCRP deputy director Jeff Krehely said these foundations “focus their grantmaking on a small number of grantees with an eye toward investing in and sustaining existing politically conservative policy centers, and they fearlessly support and promote organizations that lobby their conservative ideas aggressively in state capitals and in Washington.” The report looked at 79 conservative foundations that made more than $252 million in grants between 1999 and 2001. The largest segment of grants went to multi-issue policy centers (46 percent), while legal advocacy and education oriented groups each received 10 percent of the funds. The ten largest recipients of these grants were the Heritage Foundation; the Intercollegiate Studies Institute; George Mason University (the Mercatus Center); the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research; Hillsdale College; Citizens for a Sound Economy Foundation; Judicial Watch; the Free Congress Research and Education Foundation; the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace; and the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. A copy of the study can be requested from NCRP by contacting Elly Kugler at elly@ncrp.org or calling 202/387-9177 x 18.
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