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BALSA POLICY INSTITUTE INC
NEW YORK, NY · EIN 920966448 · Form 990EZ · FY2025 · NTEE W05 · Public & Societal Benefit · Micro (<$100K) · balsaresearch.com
revenue
$49K
expenses
$144K
net assets
$134K
employees
—
mission · from form 990

BALSA RESEARCH IDENTIFIES OPPORTUNITIES FOR BIPARTISAN POLICY REFORM AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL FOCUSING ON AREAS WITH CLEAR ECONOMIC BENEFITS BUT INADEQUATE RESEARCH OUR WORK INCLUDES FUNDING ACADEMIC STUDIES TO QUANTIFY POLICY IMPACTS DRAFTING MODEL LEGISLATION AND CREATING COMPREHENSIVE POLICY MATERIALS TO FACILITATE EVIDENCE-BASED REFORM

profile · synthesized from sources

Balsa Policy Institute Inc, operating as Balsa Research, is a nonprofit think tank focused on bipartisan federal policy reform with clear economic benefits. The organization funds academic research to quantify policy impacts, drafts model legislation, and produces policy analysis on issues such as maritime transport and the Jones Act. It emphasizes evidence-based approaches to inform legislative and regulatory decisions.

named programs · 2 · from sources

What they call their work

Jones Act Research Funding Initiative
Grants program supporting economists and research teams in conducting counterfactual economic modeling of the Jones Act’s impact on GDP, CPI, and other economic indicators
U.S.-Flag Fleet Capacity Analysis
Policy analysis assessing the feasibility of using U.S.-flag vessels for transporting Venezuelan crude oil, examining fleet composition, workforce availability, and infrastructure constraints
activities · 5 groups

What they do

  • Environmental Policy Advocacy & Litigation 1 activity
    • Advocating for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reform
      Develops and promotes policy proposals to reform NEPA by replacing litigation-based enforcement with time-limited cost-benefit analysis and stakeholder collaboration to accelerate project approvals while protecting environmental and community interests.
  • AI Governance and Ethical Research 1 activity
    • Conducting research on AI policy to mitigate catastrophic risks
      Studies regulatory approaches focused on controlling access to high-end AI computing hardware and data centers to prevent catastrophic risks from advanced artificial intelligence systems.
  • Economic and Financial Research 1 activity
    • Producing policy research reports on maritime and regulatory policy
      Authors and publishes research reports such as the Jones Act Index, analyses of U.S.-flag fleet capacity for Venezuelan crude transport, and operational assessments of Jones Act vessel movements to inform policymakers and the public.
  • Housing Policy Advocacy & Tenant Organizing 1 activity
    • Researching federal policy solutions for housing shortages
      Investigates regulatory barriers such as restrictive zoning, local veto points, and outdated building codes that contribute to housing shortages and rising costs. Explores federal levers including conditional subsidies and potential revisions to the International Building Code to increase housing supply in high-demand areas.
  • Uncategorized 8 activities
    • Advocating for Jones Act repeal to improve freight efficiency and reduce emissions
      Conducts research and public advocacy for repeal of the Jones Act to shift coastal freight from trucking to shipping, aiming to reduce transportation costs, traffic congestion, and carbon emissions while enhancing economic competitiveness.
    • Conducting original research on Jones Act fleet operations and economic dynamics
      Conducts in-depth analysis of the 93 Jones Act-eligible oceangoing vessels, tracking port calls, trading patterns, fleet composition, and workforce trends. Documents structural constraints such as shipyard backlogs and mariner shortages affecting domestic maritime capacity.
    • Developing economic models to assess Jones Act reform impacts
      Builds and validates economic models to quantify the effects of the Jones Act and potential reforms on macroeconomic indicators including GDP, CPI, employment, wages, and labor market dynamics, with a focus on union employment outcomes.
    • Drafting model legislation for policy reform
      Prepares draft model legislation for Jones Act and NEPA reform to support policymakers when political conditions allow, based on rigorous research and economic modeling.
    • Funding academic research on maritime policy and economic impacts of the Jones Act
      Funds academic studies to analyze the Jones Act, Dredge Act, and maritime security policies, including economic modeling of GDP, CPI, and CBO impacts, labor market effects, and fleet capacity constraints. Supports research on reform pathways with clear economic benefits but limited existing analysis.
    • Funding research on secondary impacts of Jones Act reform
      Finances studies on environmental and emissions effects, regional economic variations, and inter-port trade volume changes associated with Jones Act reform to build a comprehensive evidence base for policy change.
    • Reimbursing publication costs for peer-reviewed research on maritime policy
      Provides up to $5,000 in reimbursement for article-processing charges for one peer-reviewed journal article resulting from funded research, ensuring dissemination of findings in academic venues.
    • Submitting expert testimony and public comments on trade and maritime policy
      Engages in advocacy by submitting public comments and testimony to federal agencies such as the U.S. Trade Representative on issues including China's maritime dominance and proposed trade restrictions, influencing policy revisions.
financials · form 990EZ · fy2025
revenue
Total revenue$49K
Contributions & grants$49K100%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$00%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$144K
Program expenses—
Admin / overhead—
Fundraising—
Salaries & benefits$0
Grants paid out$45K
balance sheet
Total assets$134K
Cash—
Investments—
Liabilities—
Net assets$134K
1 years on record · 2025–2025
relationships · 8

Who they work with

  • CBS News Partner — Cited as a source for updates on Jones Act waiver extensions.
  • Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration Government — Utilized MARAD's dataset of commercial U.S.-flag vessels for identifying Jones Act-eligible fleet.
  • Don’t Worry About the Vase Funder — Blog by CEO Zvi Mowshowitz whose readers form the primary base of individual donors supporting Balsa Research.
  • Jennifer Chen Partner — Point of contact for inquiries regarding the Jones Act RFA
  • Maritime Administration Government — Uses data from the Maritime Administration's fleet reports to analyze U.S.-flag vessel capacity.
  • U.S. college or university Network — Requires research teams to include at least one investigator affiliated with a U.S. college or university
  • VesselFinder Partner — Used VesselFinder's maritime tracking database to identify port calls and vessel movements.
  • hello@balsaresearch.com Partner — Contact point for maritime industry stakeholders to engage in reform discussions.
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Dynamic, Evidence-Updating Policy Development
    methodology: evidence-updating_policy_development
    By committing to revise policy positions in response to new data and analysis, we produce more accurate and durable reforms because this iterative process prioritizes truth over advocacy and maintains long-term credibility with policymakers.
  • Federally-Driven Housing Supply Expansion
    methodology: federal_leverage_for_housing
    By leveraging federal incentives and regulatory authority to override local housing restrictions, we increase supply in high-productivity cities because expanding housing unlocks economic growth and improves labor market outcomes.
  • High-Leverage, Evidence-Based Policy Research
    methodology: high-leverage_policy_research
    By focusing on neglected, high-impact policy areas and funding rigorous, nonpartisan research, we produce actionable policy solutions because this approach avoids political incentives and builds credible, objective groundwork for future reform.
  • Stakeholder-Integrated Cost-Benefit Reform
    methodology: cost-benefit_reform_with_stakeholder_negotiation
    By replacing adversarial regulatory processes with time-bound, negotiated cost-benefit analyses, we enable environmental and infrastructure progress because structured stakeholder engagement reduces delay while preserving accountability.
  • Structural Reform via Economic Modeling and Feasibility Analysis
    methodology: economic_modeling_for_policy_analysis
    By using objective economic modeling and operational feasibility assessments, we identify viable pathways for policy change in stagnant areas because rigorous analysis reveals overlooked opportunities and builds consensus around practical solutions.