Report: Russell Wilson's Foundation Under Scrutiny for Limited Charitable Spending

The nonprofit co-founded by Denver Broncos star Russell Wilson spent nearly twice as much on employee salaries as it did toward charitable causes between 2020 and 2021, according to the Arizona Republic's Jason Wolf (h/t Yahoo Sports).

Wolf reported the Why Not You Foundation said in federal tax records that $1.1 million had gone toward salaries and benefits, with $600,000 set aside for philanthropic aims.

Scott Pickett, the foundation's chief financial officer, told Wolf the Why Not You Foundation works with third parties and that the results of those partnerships aren't reflected in tax returns.

"Millions of dollars in funds raised by the Why Not You Foundation go through our partners who can deliver that money where it is needed more directly," Pickett said. "Those funds were raised, in large part, through the work of the foundation, but you would not see all of those dollars in the foundation's tax documents."

As one example of the discrepancy between perception and reality, the Why Not You Foundation celebrated a charitable effort in 2019 that helped raise more than $2.6 million for Seattle Children's Hospital. Included in the release is Wilson, then with the Seattle Seahawks, presenting a novelty check for $2,616,625.

According to Wolf, the Why Not You Foundation directly donated just $78,000 to Seattle Children's Hospital in 2019 and an overall total of $836,000.

Wilson was honored as the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2020. The award honors players who have made a significant impact off the field. In the NFL's press release, Wilson's role with the Why Not You Foundation is cited along with how the foundation helped address food scarcity.

Wolf cited details directly from the Why Not You Foundation's Form 990 federal tax returns, including from the year Wilson was named Man of the Year. In 2020, the foundation said it had expenses of $1.2 million and revenue of $838,000, with only $257,000 set aside for "program services."

Among the expenses was $209,000 for chief strategy officer Ryan Tarpley and $166,000 for executive director Carly Young. Their salaries climbed to $222,500 and $176,000, respectively, in 2021.

Wolf provided some additional context for those figures:

"Both six-figure salaries were exorbitant for top leadership positions at Seattle-based human services nonprofits with $1 million to $5 million in annual expenses, according to empirical data collected by the charity watchdog group Candid, formerly known as Guidestar, in its 2021 nonprofit compensation report.

"Tarpley was paid more than double the median for a CEO or executive director ($107,000) and both Tarpley and Young exceeded the 90th percentile ($139,000) by tens of thousands of dollars."

In the case of Tarpley, he had also been employed as the chief strategy officer for the family office of Wilson and his wife, Ciara.

Andrew Morton, a lawyer and expert in philanthropic law, told Wolf it is "absolutely, categorically illegal to have a nonprofit pay you to do work outside of supporting its charitable purposes."

Morton went on to question whether Tarpley maintained the necessary firewall between his work for the Why Not You Foundation and the Wilsons' family office.

"If he's not spending 40 hours a week for the foundation and he's doing work for the family office, then the foundation is paying for him to work for the family office," Morton said.