What are the compensation and benefits reported for Turning Point USA's top executives over time?
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Executive summary
Turning Point USA reported $85 million in revenue and $81 million in expenses for 2024, with compensation and travel among the largest line items; 454 employees received $21 million in compensation in the 2024 filing (average ~$46,000) and the organization reported executives and contractors with six-figure payments across years (e.g., Joshua Thifault listed at $444,316 in 2022 filings) [1] [2] [3]. Public compilations and databases (Paddock Post, ProPublica, Comparably, Glassdoor) show varying snapshots of senior pay — from media reporting that Charlie Kirk’s salary was about $285,929 (per ProPublica reporting cited by Legit.ng) to third‑party aggregators listing other top executives above $600,000 — but those figures come from different documents and methodologies and are summarized unevenly in available reporting [4] [5] [1].
1. What the filings show: totals, staff counts and headline payroll figures
Turning Point’s most recently reported nonprofit filings summarized by Paddock Post list total revenues of about $85 million and expenses of $81 million for 2024, with compensation and travel among the largest expense categories; Paddock notes 454 employees received $21 million in compensation for that year, an average near $46,000 per reported employee [1] [2]. Earlier Paddock analysis of the 2022 return showed 709 employees receiving $17 million in compensation and identified six employees paid over $100,000 that year, including a top figure of $444,316 [3].
2. Executive pay: multiple sources, different numbers
Available sources present different portraits of top executives’ pay because they draw on different years, affiliates, and disclosures. Paddock Post lists the highest‑compensated employees in each filing it analyzed and highlights that several executives and contractors received six‑figure sums [1] [3]. ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer holds the IRS returns underlying these summaries and is cited by other outlets for specific salaries [6]. Comparably shows estimated “total compensation” figures that place some named executives well above $600,000, but that is an independent aggregation with its own method and is not the IRS return itself [5]. Media reports have cited ProPublica when listing Charlie Kirk’s reported salary at about $285,929 for the most recent year covered in that reporting [4].
3. Why numbers diverge: compensation vs. related entities, contractors, and perks
Paddock Post and other analyses flag that Turning Point’s filings show payments made through related or affiliated entities and that some “compensation” lines include travel, lodging, and contractor fees — categories that can inflate headline figures if readers expect pure base salary [7] [3]. Paddock explicitly warns that the filings don’t always disentangle salary from reimbursed travel or contractor payments, and that affiliated organizations sharing the same office sometimes pay portions of executive compensation [7] [3]. Comparably and Glassdoor use estimates or self‑reported staff submissions and thus can differ from IRS‑filed amounts [5] [8].
4. Context: how TPUSA’s spending profile compares internally and why that matters
Paddock Post’s breakdown shows travel, conventions and compensation as major expense centers — in 2024 travel and conventions were about $21 million and compensation about $21 million — signaling an organizational model focused on events and field staff rather than program‑level grants [1]. That allocation matters when assessing executive pay because high event costs correlate with travel‑heavy roles for senior staff; donors and watchdogs often weigh whether executive pay aligns with mission‑related spending [1] [2].
5. Public reporting limitations and divergent narratives
Available sources do not present a single, reconciled table of every top executive’s year‑by‑year pay; instead they offer snapshots (Paddock Post summaries of 990s, ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer, third‑party aggregators and media reports) that require reading the underlying Form 990s to reconcile differences [1] [6] [5] [4]. Paddock encourages readers to “do your homework” and read the charity’s Form 990 directly because related‑entity payments and reimbursed expenses complicate headline salary figures [7].
6. What to read next if you want a definitive ledger
For definitive, year‑by‑year executive compensation figures, consult the IRS Form 990 filings available via ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer and compare the specific Schedule J (reporting compensation and related party transactions) to Paddock’s narrative summaries; Paddock’s pieces provide curated highlights but note where affiliates share costs and where travel and contractor payments appear in the filings [6] [1] [7].
Limitations: this analysis relies only on the sources you supplied; available reporting summarizes but does not publish a single reconciled, longitudinal table of each named executive’s compensation across multiple years, and “not found in current reporting” applies where the filings do not clearly separate salary from reimbursements [1] [7] [6].