Smithsonian Institution

“The bylaws of the organization delegate authority to the executive committee to act on behalf of the board of regents when the board of regents is not in session. The board of regents elects from its members an executive committee consisting of three members. The executive committee has and may exercise all powers of the board of regents when the board of regents is not in session, except those expressly reserved to itself by the board of regents, provided that all such proceedings are reported to the governance and nominating committee and the board of regents on a regular basis. The chair of the board serves as chair of the executive committee. The vice chair of the board serves as a member of the executive committee.”

“Pursuant to federal statute, the board of regents consists of the vice president of the united states, the chief justice of the united states, three members of the u.s. Senate, three members of the u.s. House of representatives, and nine additional citizen regents. The three senators are appointed by the president pro tempore of the u.s. Senate, and the three members of the house of representatives are appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives. Their appointment terms coincide with the terms for which they are elected, and they may be reappointed if re-elected. The citizen regents are nominated by the board of regents, and appointed by a joint resolution of congress which is signed by the president of the united states.”

“The form 990 is prepared by an independent accounting firm and is reviewed by the office of general counsel, the office of the under secretary for finance and administration, and by an independent outside counsel firm. After this review process, the 990 is reviewed and affirmed by the audit and review committee of the board of regents. The 990 is then made available to the full board of regents for review and comment prior to its filing.”

“All officers, key employees, and certain other employees are required to complete and file annually a confidential financial disclosure report. These reports - which require disclosure of certain assets, earned income, liabilities, outside positions, outside contracts and agreements, gifts, hospitality, reimbursements, and other interests related to the employee's smithsonian position - are reviewed by the institution's office of general counsel for compliance with applicable conflict of interest policies and laws. In addition to this required reporting, all key employees are required to comply with the institution's standards of conduct, which, among other things, requires that employees not engage in private or personal activities that might conflict or appear to conflict with smithsonian interests, requires that employees obtain office of general counsel approval before engaging in an outside activity for compensation, and requires employees to consult with the office of general counsel whenever a doubt exists as to whether an activity or planned activity violates the standards. All members of the smithsonian's governing body are required to complete and file annually the board of regents annual disclosure statement. These statements - which require reporting by members (including any reportable interests held by immediate family members) on outside positions and substantial shareholding in for-profit business entities, outside positions in non-profit entities, and interests and affiliations of the member that have or sought to have a relationship to the smithsonian - are reviewed by the institution's general counsel for compliance with applicable conflict of interest policies and laws. In addition to this required reporting, all members of the smithsonian's governing body are required to comply with the board of regents ethics guidelines, which, among other things, define conflicts of interest and establish procedures for disclosing and reporting of conflicts and recusal from decision-making.”

“The smithsonian ensures that compensation paid to officers and other key employees is reasonable and comparable to similar organizations. Employees of the smithsonian may be paid with federally appropriated funds or with nonfederal ("trust") funds. Most trust funded (nonfederal) officer and key employee positions are subject to market-based compensation, and the board of regents' committee on compensation and human resources engages an independent consultant to develop and assemble comparability data for its consideration and to inform its decisions. The committee's annual deliberations and decisions are documented as part of the final recommendation materials submitted to the board of regents. Salaries for federal employees are determined by statutorily established pay ranges for civil service employees. As a matter of policy, the smithsonian has established similar ranges for certain trust funded officer and key employee positions and maintains those ranges in proportion to the appropriate federal pay ranges.”

“The smithsonian makes its governing documents, statement of values and code of ethics, and audited financial statements available on its public website (www.si.edu). Documents may also be viewed at the office of finance and accounting or mailed.”

“The smithsonian institution is a trust instrumentality of the u.s., created by congress; organized pursuant to 20 u.s.c. Sec. 41 et seq. Form 990, page 1, line m state of legal domicile: as a trust instrumentality of the united states, the smithsonian institution is a federal entity that is not domiciled in any state.”

“Education, public programs and exhibitions: in april 2024, the national air and space museum served as a major source of information, educational activities and experiences on the total solar eclipse that crossed the contiguous united states. Co-hosted with other smithsonian museums, nasa, noaa, nsf and the national radio astronomy observatory, the museum hosted the "solar eclipse festival on the national mall." visitors to the festival could grab a pair of solar eclipse glasses, peer through safe solar telescopes and participate at many activity stations. The smithsonian folklife festival was held at the end of july 2024, offering five days of free public programming on the national mall. The theme for 2024, "indigenous voices of the americas: celebrating the national museum of the american indian," was in partnership with the museum, which marked its 20th anniversary. Festival offerings featured over 250 participants from 60 indigenous communities from nine north american countries. Programs included music and sports performances, traditional craft demonstrations, storytelling, and cooking demos. In march 2024, the smithsonian american women's history museum launched its first digital exhibition "becoming visible: bringing american women's history into focus." the interactive online exhibition includes introductory remarks by lynda carter and shares the stories of five women's lives, like seamstress of the apollo space suits hazel fellows, narrated by curators from across the smithsonian. The hirshhorn museum and sculpture garden inaugurated its 50th anniversary year with the opening of "revolutions: art from the hirshhorn collection, 1860 - 1960." the full-floor survey showcased 270 artworks by 126 artists in the museum's permanent collection, including edward hopper, willem de kooning, john singer sargent and helen frankenthaler. In september 2024, the hirshhorn also opened "osgemeos: endless story," the first u.s. Museum survey and largest u.s. Exhibit of artwork by the brazilian twin artists. This milestone exhibit included the installation of almost 1,000 artworks, including site-specific paintings and immersive artworks. That same month, the "basquiat x banksy" exhibit brought together two large paintings by the major artists jean-michel basquiat and banksy, illuminating how artists are connected across time and geography. The national portrait gallery presented "brilliant exiles: american women in paris, 1900-1939," in april 2024. Through portraiture and biography, it highlighted the accomplishments of more than 60 women who crossed the atlantic to pursue professional goals in a variety of fields. The smithsonian asian pacific american center introduced its first museum exhibition in over a decade with "sightlines: chinatown and beyond" in september 2024. Hosted at the smithsonian american art museum, the gallery considers washington d.c.'s chinatown through a historical and cultural perspective, through photographs, architectural drawings, sketchbooks and ephemera. In november 2023, the cooper hewitt, smithsonian design museum opened "making home - smithsonian design triennial," featuring 25 site-specific, newly commissioned installations. This is the seventh design triennial, and the three-floor exhibit explores design's role in shaping experiences of home. Through digital programs and educational materials, in-person lectures and classroom discussions, the smithsonian's office of the under secretary for education advanced the institution's strategic goal to engage with classrooms nationwide through new technology and an annual education summit. In april 2024, the smithsonian created interactive instagram experiences using 3d augmented reality models of celestial objects from the smithsonian astrophysical observatory that could be used by audiences across the country. Similarly, the smithsonian american art museum produced the "temple of invention augmented reality experience" so that visitors, especially families a”

“Research and collections: the smithsonian's collections of 157.3 million objects (art, artifacts and scientific specimens) are the heart of the institution. Research, public programs and exhibitions are based on these collections, which additionally include more than 36 million digital records of online material. Care of the collections involves the work of registrars, conservators, museum specialists, designers, curators and editors. Approximately 148 million objects and specimens are part of the national museum of natural history collections and are primarily used for research by both smithsonian scientists and researchers from around the world. In some cases, the museum has the definitive, irreplaceable collection of a certain species which is essential for comparative studies. Researchers at the national museum of natural history contributed noteworthy discoveries and studies across multiple fields, including anthropology, molecular biology and planetary sciences. At the end of october 2023, the museum unveiled the first public sample of the bennu asteroid in partnership with nasa. In december 2023, researchers sequenced the genetic code of the culturally significant coast salish woolly dog from one of the few remaining pelts in existence, stored in the smithsonian's collection, which lent insights to the ancestry and genetics of the now extinct animal. In another collaborative study with museums and universities around the world, five new species of soft-furred hedgehogs were identified, using museum specimens. In march 2024, scientists identified the fossilized skull of an ancient amphibian ancestor in the museum's collection, naming it kermitops after the iconic muppet which is housed in the national museum of american history. Scientists and keepers at nzcbi continued to play a leading role in the smithsonian's global efforts to save wildlife species from extinction and train future generations of conservationists. In november 2023, the giant panda conservation program oversaw the successful departure and return to china of tian tian, mei xiang and xiao qi ji. The panda habitat on asia trail was then renovated, and the arrival of two more pandas was announced in may 2024, marking a crucial continuation of conservation research for this vulnerable species. Nzcbi also welcomed the birth of a litter of black-footed ferrets under the association of zoos and aquariums' saving animals from extinction program and the birth of two pygmy slow lorises, an endangered species. A collaborative study led by nzcbi with the national air and space museum and the national museum of natural history resulted in a paper demonstrating successful cryopreservation and outlining how to create a lunar biorepository. Also in 2024, the national air and space museum's center for earth and planetary studies published findings on moonquakes and the contraction of the moon's south pole, which can inform future moon landing sites. In november 2023, the national portrait gallery premiered more than 20 newly acquired portraits including entrepreneur and philanthropist madame c.j. Walker, artist ruth asawa, supreme court justice ruth bader ginsburg and rabbi sally priesand. In december 2023, a newly commissioned portrait of oprah winfrey was unveiled. The museum also debuted its first joint acquisition with the smithsonian american art museumthe film installation "lessons of the hour" by sir isaac julien, which expands both museums' time-based media collections. In july 2024, the portrait gallery acquired the earliest known photograph of a u.s first ladyan 1843 daguerreotype of dolley madison. Beginning in january 2024, the national museum of american history began collecting presidential campaign memorabilia to document the election cycle through materials that captured the atmosphere of the primaries and party conventions.”

“Membership: the national associate program is the institution's largest and most basic membership program. The program provides members with smithsonian magazine, which is published 11 times a year. The print and online publication provides in-depth coverage of history, science, nature, art and world cultures. "friends of the smithsonian" is a higher-level membership program for people interested in a deep philanthropic connection to the smithsonian. Friends receive smithsonian magazine, plus they are invited to various events and are given the opportunity to learn about and support the institution's exhibitions and research. The smithsonian associates is a self-supporting membership program which produces informative, enlightening, entertaining, and insightful programs inspired by and going beyond smithsonian research, collections and exhibitions. Programs engage audiences from pre-k to post-retirement who have keen interest in furthering their understanding of the arts and sciences, the past, present, and future of world cultures. The largest museum-based educational program in the world, smithsonian associates annually produces more than 1,000 online and in-person seminars and lectures, multi-part courses, studio arts classes, study tours, concerts and children's programs. Notable guests included television presenter al roker and his daughter and trained chef courtney roker laga; actor and recipient of the smithsonian associates john p. Mcgovern award henry winkler; award-winning celebrity chef bobby flay; pbs "revolutionary road trip" television host darley newman; former u.s. Supreme court justice stephen breyer; and, best-selling author erik larson.”

“The smithsonian's audited financial statements are included in the united states government's consolidated audited financial statements.”

“Advsry & assistnc srvcs psc: program service expenses 168,114. Management and general expenses 64,481. Fundraising expenses 431. Total expenses 233,026. Advisory and asst svcs non psc: program service expenses 2,191,692. Management and general expenses 629,118. Fundraising expenses 301,230. Total expenses 3,122,040. Central engineering services: program service expenses 13,792,837. Management and general expenses 1,201. Fundraising expenses 4,402. Total expenses 13,798,440. Tech/admin svcs - 1099 vendors: program service expenses -49,226. Management and general expenses 6,850. Fundraising expenses -267. Total expenses -42,643. Non-benefit pool tuition: program service expenses 47,573. Management and general expenses 476. Fundraising expenses 6,717. Total expenses 54,766. Sao machine shop services: program service expenses 145,685. Management and general expenses 86. Fundraising expenses 2,410. Total expenses 148,181. Institutional membership & fees: program service expenses 1,009,222. Management and general expenses 236,368. Fundraising expenses 57,814. Total expenses 1,303,404. Support external organizations: program service expenses 235,067. Management and general expenses 17,754. Fundraising expenses 29,590. Total expenses 282,411. Temp employment svcs: program service expenses 4,718,072. Management and general expenses 2,708,184. Fundraising expenses 439,618. Total expenses 7,865,874. Other professional services: program service expenses 84,768,494. Management and general expenses 12,990,504. Fundraising expenses 13,860,594. Total expenses 111,619,592. Audio visual services: program service expenses 3,723,067. Management and general expenses -448,063. Fundraising expenses 744,970. Total expenses 4,019,974. Lectures honoraria: program service expenses 2,555,685. Management and general expenses 36,302. Fundraising expenses 53,235. Total expenses 2,645,222. Exhibit services: program service expenses 10,265,489. Management and general expenses 20,045. Fundraising expenses 100,745. Total expenses 10,386,279. Other purch g&s govt: program service expenses 411,025. Management and general expenses -203,390. Fundraising expenses 1,528. Total expenses 209,163. Iat in-house consultant: program service expenses 106,332. Management and general expenses -59,260. Fundraising expenses -28. Total expenses 47,044. Sao central eng. Serv-accr: program service expenses -346,674. Management and general expenses 0. Fundraising expenses -10. Total expenses -346,684. Sao machine shop serv-accr: program service expenses -5,741. Management and general expenses 0. Fundraising expenses 0. Total expenses -5,741. Reimb government agencies: program service expenses -11,540. Management and general expenses -2,787. Fundraising expenses -30. Total expenses -14,357. Operation & maint facilities: program service expenses 30,441,308. Management and general expenses 22,648,237. Fundraising expenses 70,687. Total expenses 53,160,232. Waste removal: program service expenses 254,406. Management and general expenses 53,237. Fundraising expenses 590. Total expenses 308,233. Guard services: program service expenses 30,655,353. Management and general expenses 7,084,078. Fundraising expenses 618,487. Total expenses 38,357,918. Custodial services: program service expenses 3,967,087. Management and general expenses 890,941. Fundraising expenses 356,536. Total expenses 5,214,564. Medical care: program service expenses 244,575. Management and general expenses 16,773. Fundraising expenses 64. Total expenses 261,412. Equip. Non it maint & repair: program service expenses 8,597,447. Management and general expenses 1,539,703. Fundraising expenses 20,553. Total expenses 10,157,703. Catering: program service expenses 6,514,444. Management and general expenses 463,622. Fundraising expenses 3,133,757. Total expenses 10,111,823. Cost of sharing expense: program service expenses 4,103,859. Management and general expenses 13. Fundraising expenses 469,016. Total expenses 4,572,888. Co”

“Sales of collections 194,368.”

“The smithsonian institution is separately audited. The smithsonian institution's audited financial statements are included in the united states government's consolidated audited financial statements.”