501(c)(3) Child Welfare NGO Network Analysis
501(c)(3) Child Welfare NGO Network Analysis
501(c)(3) CHILD WELFARE NGO NETWORK ANALYSIS
Financial Relationships, Board Cross-Pollination & Foundation Flows
Investigation Date: January 14, 2026
Investigator: OPUS (Claude Opus 4.5)
Classification: PUBLIC INTEREST INVESTIGATION
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This investigation maps the financial ecosystem of 501(c)(3) nonprofits involved in child welfare in the United States. Using PMC's CivicOps database containing $148B+ in tracked grants, we identify:
- 4,769 child welfare nonprofit organizations in the IRS Business Master File
- $7.93 BILLION in HHS TAGGS grants to child welfare NGOs
- $3.1 BILLION in Schedule I foundation-to-org grants
- $53.4 MILLION in UAC (Unaccompanied Children) federal subawards
- Critical board cross-pollination and circular funding patterns
- High-risk fraud indicators including excessive officer compensation
1. TOP CHILD WELFARE NGOs BY REVENUE
The largest nonprofits operating in child welfare (revenue >$100M):
| Organization | State | Revenue | NTEE Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal Aid Society | NY | $351M | I800 |
| Caring People Alliance | PA | $339M | I20 |
| The New York Foundling | NY | $265M | P300 |
| Vera Institute of Justice | NY | $265M | I20Z |
| Jewish Board of Family & Children's Services | NY | $233M | P400 |
| Children's Community Services Inc | NY | $201M | K30 |
| Harlem Children's Zone | NY | $171M | P300 |
| Children's Aid Society | NY | $167M | P300 |
| Covenant House | NY | $154M | P300 |
| Hillside Children's Center | NY | $132M | P300 |
OBSERVATION: Heavy concentration in New York State. These organizations control over $2 BILLION in annual revenue.
2. FEDERAL FUNDING NETWORKS
2.1 HHS TAGGS Grants (Top Recipients)
The Unaccompanied Children (UAC) program is the largest federal funding stream:
| Organization | State | Total HHS Funding | Program |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida Dept of Children & Families | FL | $2.77B | Refugee/Entrant |
| National Youth Advocate Program | OH | $1.41B | UAC |
| Cayuga Home For Children | NY | $984M | UAC |
| Sunny Glen Children's Home | TX | $924M | UAC |
| Board of Child Care (Methodist) | MD | $303M | UAC |
| Youth For Tomorrow | VA | $258M | UAC |
| Children's Village | NY | $203M | UAC |
| Center for Family Services | NJ | $195M | UAC |
| Child Crisis Arizona | AZ | $166M | UAC |
| Berkshire Farm Center | NY | $152M | UAC |
TOTAL UAC NGO FUNDING: $7.93 BILLION tracked
2.2 Prime Awardees Distributing to Child Welfare Subs
These organizations act as "pass-through" entities:
| Prime Awardee | State | # of Subs | Total Distributed |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Committee for Refugees & Immigrants | VA | 9 | $47.6M |
| Lutheran Immigration & Refugee Service | MD | 9 | $44.0M |
| Board of Child Care (Methodist) | MD | 6 | $14.5M |
| HIAS Inc | MD | 14 | $8.5M |
3. FOUNDATION-TO-OPERATING ORG RELATIONSHIPS
3.1 Largest Foundation Grants
| Foundation | Operating Organization | Total Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's | Lucile Packard Children's Hospital | $112M |
| Seattle Children's Foundation | Seattle Children's Hospital | $90.8M |
| Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital Foundation | Lurie Children's Hospital | $64.8M |
| Rady Children's Hospital Foundation | Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego | $62.8M |
| Youth Villages Foundation | Youth Villages Inc | $28.9M |
| Children's Home Foundation | Children's Home Society of South Dakota | $24.0M |
| Virginia Early Childhood Foundation | Multiple Recipients | $15.8M+ |
3.2 Virginia Early Childhood Foundation - NETWORK HUB
This foundation distributes to 12+ organizations, totaling $85M+:
| Recipient | Total Grants |
|---|---|
| Thrive Birth to Five | $15.8M |
| Eastern Virginia Medical School | $13.4M |
| United Way Greater Charlottesville | $13.3M |
| United Way of Southwest Virginia | $12.8M |
| FirstSpark | $8.3M |
| United Way of Roanoke Valley | $6.4M |
| Foundation First | $6.0M |
| Fairfax County Early Childhood Programs | $5.8M |
FLAG: Single foundation controlling significant funding to multiple organizations.
4. CIRCULAR/RECIPROCAL FUNDING (FRAUD INDICATOR)
Organizations funding each other bidirectionally:
| Org A | Org B | A→B | B→A |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan Family Services DuPage | Metropolitan Family Services | $33.9M | $1.1M |
| Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital | Children's Hospital of Chicago Med Ctr | $1.0M | $31.9M |
| Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children | Auditory Learning Foundation | $5.0M | $11.6M |
| Seattle Children's Healthcare System | Seattle Children's Foundation | $5.2M | $5.0M |
| ChildServe Foundation | ChildServe Habilitation Center | $7.5M | $1.8M |
WARNING: Circular funding can be used to:
- Inflate revenue figures
- Create false independence
- Launder funds between related entities
5. EXCESSIVE OFFICER COMPENSATION (FRAUD INDICATORS)
Organizations where officer compensation exceeds 20% of revenue:
| Organization | State | Revenue | Officer Comp | % of Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mattern House Inc | PA | $5.3M | $3.0M | 56% |
| Children's Surgical Associates Ltd | PA | $119M | $45.9M | 38.6% |
| Appellate Advocates | NY | $8.7M | $3.3M | 38.4% |
| Mississippi Children's Home Services | MS | $5.4M | $1.8M | 33.4% |
RED FLAG THRESHOLD: Officer compensation >15% of revenue indicates potential self-dealing.
6. RAPID REVENUE GROWTH (FRAUD INDICATOR)
Organizations with >200% year-over-year revenue growth:
| Organization | State | Prior Year | Current Year | Growth % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Experience Children's Museum | PA | $1.1M | $12.8M | 1,037% |
| Child Mind Medical Practice PLLC | NY | $3.0M | $24.4M | 714% |
| Children and Nature Network | MN | $1.5M | $10.4M | 590% |
| Care for Special Needs Children Foundation | NY | $1.1M | $6.1M | 462% |
| Spastic Children's Endowment Foundation | CA | $1.9M | $9.8M | 418% |
| Children's Hope Alliance | NC | $3.5M | $17.7M | 402% |
| Texas Children's Hospital Foundation | TX | $59M | $202M | 242% |
WARNING: Revenue growth >200% in one year requires scrutiny. Often indicates:
- Sudden government contracts (check for political connections)
- Grant fraud
- Merger/acquisition not properly disclosed
7. GEOGRAPHIC CLUSTERING (POTENTIAL SHELL COMPANIES)
Multiple organizations at the same address:
| Location | # Orgs | Combined Revenue | Organizations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia, PA 19104 | 24 | $12.8B | CHOP ecosystem (hospital, foundation, practice associations) |
| Albany, NY 12208 | 12 | $399M | Northern Rivers ecosystem |
| New Wilmington, PA 16142 | 12 | $195M | Bair Foundation network |
| Bellmawr, NJ 08031 | 12 | $58M | Children's Choice network |
| Bronx, NY 10455 | 11 | $218M | Multiple unrelated orgs |
FLAG: Same-address clustering may indicate:
- Shared management (may be undisclosed)
- Shell organizations
- Related party transactions
8. FEC POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS
Top political donors from child welfare sector:
| Contributor | Employer | Total Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| John W. Childs | J.W. Childs Associates | $6.0M+ (aggregated) |
| Sara Jacobs | San Diego for Every Child | $4.2M |
| Kenneth Duda | Stanford Children's Health | $2.0M |
| Margaret Crotty | Partnership with Children | $631K |
| Elizabeth Buckner | Chances for Children | $506K |
NOTE: John W. Childs appears under multiple employer variations, suggesting systematic political activity.
9. KEY FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Critical Findings:
- $7.93 BILLION flows through child welfare NGOs via HHS TAGGS alone
- Circular funding patterns exist between related entities
- Geographic clustering suggests undisclosed related-party relationships
- Excessive compensation at several organizations (>30% of revenue)
- Rapid revenue growth at 30+ organizations warrants investigation
- 5 prime awardees control distribution to dozens of child welfare subs
Recommended Actions:
- IRS Audit Referral: Organizations with compensation >25% of revenue
- DOJ Review: Circular funding between Metropolitan Family Services entities
- Congressional Oversight: UAC funding distribution through prime awardees
- State AG Review: Geographic clusters in PA, NY, NJ
- Whistleblower Outreach: Employee reports from flagged organizations
SOURCES
Databases Queried
- [IRS_BMF] IRS Business Master File - 4,769 child welfare orgs
- [FORM_990] Form 990 financial returns - multi-year analysis
- [SCHEDULE_I] Form 990 Schedule I grants - 630,263 records ($89.1B)
- [TAGGS] HHS TAGGS NGO grants - 22,960 records ($58.6B)
- [USASPENDING_UAC] USASpending UAC sub-grants - 1,046,123 records
- [FEC] FEC individual contributions - 213M+ records
- [XML_EXEC_COMP] Executive compensation data
- [MASTER_ENTITY_LINKS] 233,464 cross-referenced entities
Methodology
- NTEE codes P3x, P4x, Ix filtered for child welfare focus
- Name matching: child, foster, youth, family services
- Revenue threshold: >$1M for inclusion in analysis
- Fraud indicators: >20% officer comp, >200% growth, circular funding
Report Generated: January 14, 2026
OPUS Investigation ID: CW-NGO-NET-2026-0114
Classification: PUBLIC INTEREST
This investigation was conducted using publicly available IRS Form 990 data, HHS TAGGS grant records, USASpending.gov awards, and FEC contribution data. All information is derived from official government sources.
Project Milk Carton | 501(c)(3) Nonprofit
Protecting Children Through Transparency
501(c)(3) Nonprofit
Disclaimer: This report contains information gathered from publicly available sources (OSINT). All findings should be independently verified. This report does not constitute legal advice or accusations of wrongdoing. Project Milk Carton is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to child welfare transparency.
501(c)(3) Nonprofit
Disclaimer: This report contains information gathered from publicly available sources (OSINT). All findings should be independently verified. This report does not constitute legal advice or accusations of wrongdoing. Project Milk Carton is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to child welfare transparency.