Freedom House Inc.

“At its meeting in february 2020, the board of trustees adopted a new governance structure and by-laws. The organization is now governed by an executive board, consisting of no less than seven directors, who shall also be members of the board of trustees. The board of trustees shall consist of members who serve as ambassadors of the organization and advisors to the president and executive board.”

“A copy of the 990 is sent to all members of the governing body (the executive board). In addition, management provides a cover memo explaining the content of the filing, highlighting governance matters and other key disclosures, along with significant changes or variances from the prior year's filing. They are provided at least 2 weeks to review it and contact the management team with any questions or comments prior to the submission.”

“All employees are provided a copy of the conflict of interest policy when they are hired, as part of onboarding. The policy is contained in the employee handbook. Employees sign a statement annually in which they either disclose any conflicts or certify that there are no conflicts that need to be brought to the attention of the organization. All board of trustees members are given a copy of the conflict of interest policy when they join the board, as part of their orientation. They are asked to sign the statement and disclose any conflicts. Following the initial signing and vetting of any disclosures, the trustees are on notice to bring forth any new conflicts to the attention of the board's governance and ethics officer, who will review the matter and recommend a course of action to the executive board.”

“Based on a recommendation from the board committee on governance and ethics, the executive board acts annually to determine the compensation of the president. Further, as part of the annual evaluation process for the president, and to ensure compliance with section 4958 of the internal revenue code (which imposes penalties on ngos that provide excessive compensation to ceos), freedom house is obligated to examine salaries of chief executives of similar organizations. Compensation for other senior officials is determined by the president, as part of an annual performance review process conducted for all employees. The process for this review is overseen by the board's committee on governance and ethics.”

“Freedom house's financial statements are posted on our website. However, governing documents and the conflict of interest policy are internal documents and are not available to the public.”

“Freedom house has an audit committee that oversees the audit and the selection of the audit firm. The process has not changed from the prior year.”