Sen. Charles Grassley has asked the Smithsonian Institution's Inspector General to investigate executive pay throughout the museum. According to the Chronicle of Philanthropy: The Smithsonian, which has legal status as a tax-exempt charity, receives nearly 80 percent of its funds from federal sources. It has requested more than $600-million in federal appropriations this year. In 2004, the most recent year for which figures are available, it raised $122-million from private sources, placing it among the top 400 charities in fund raising, according to The Chronicle's annual survey of the charities that raise the most money.