The NeoHouston blog has a great post this morning that works as a tutorial in how to use IRS form 990s -- and the privately run Web site Guidestar.org -- to find out basic financial information on nonprofit organizations. NeoHouston used it to run down some basic financials on some of Houston's most well known nonprofit institutions, including the Museum of Fine Arts, as well as the people who own the Beer Can House and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Form 990 can be a treasure trove of information for journalists, bloggers, citizen-journalists and anyone else who just plain out wants information. It includes a basic balance sheet on the group's financials, as well as listing the most highly paid employees and their salaries. And you can get 990s through free registration with Guidestar (though they also offer paid registration that is supposed to offer you more financial analysis data).

Keep in mind that Form 990 does have its limitations. Charities that bring in less than a certain amount in a given year -- I think it's $25,000 but I might be wrong on that -- don't have to file that year, so the very smallest charities may not have much data available through Guidestar.

(Hat tip to BlogHouston for pointing out this post to us.)

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