Public.Resource.Org, Inc.
Making Government Better
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Access to knowledge is a human right and the bedrock to an informed citizenry and the rule of law.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Public Safety Codes
We make legally-mandated public safety codes available for people to read so that we may all know the laws by which we govern ourselves.
Government Videos
Over 6,000 videos have been converted and uploaded to the Internet Archive and YouTube.
IRS Filings
Over 6.9 million Form 990 filings of nonprofit corporations have been converted and made available for bulk access on the Internet.
Where we work
Awards
AALL Public Access to Government Information Award 2019
American Association of Law Libraries
External reviews

Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of books distributed
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People of South Asian descent
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
We make over 650,000 books from and about India available on the Internet Archive.
Number of arrests, court proceedings, and/or sentences that are covered by at least one national media
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
A U.S. Supreme Court victory by Public Resource resulted in a strong reaffirmation of the edicts of government doctrine: the principle that the law must be available.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Justice Stephen Breyer once said "if a law isn't public, it isn't a law." We would like to see the raw materials of our democracy, the Edicts of Government, all available on the Internet so that people may read and speak the laws by which we choose to govern ourselves.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Our strategy is to make Edicts of Government available on our servers as a model that the government may emulate. We always try to get the government to take over that function from us. Our strategy is to show by doing.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We spin 500 terabytes of disk and have extensive experience putting large government databases on the Internet and then working to convince the government to emulate our efforts.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We've made substantial progress in getting the government to do a better job of making legally-mandated Edicts of Government available. For example, most states now have a link to an online version of their compulsory building codes.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
We serve the general public in two fields: access to knowledge in India and access to Edicts of Government worldwide.
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Suggestion box/email,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve,
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What significant change resulted from feedback?
We substantially increased the size of the Public Library of India in response to user feedback.
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
Our board, Our funders, Our community partners,
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Public.Resource.Org, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 02/22/2022
Tim Stanley
Justia
Tim Stanley
Justia
Carl Malamud
Public.Resource.Org
Ed Walters
Fastcase
Pamela Samuelson
U.C. Berkeley
Heather Joseph
SPARC
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data