Urban Green Council

Overview

Mission

The mission of the organization is to transform buildings for a sustainable future in New York city and around the world.

What it reported doing in 2024

Urban green advances sustainability in New York city by educating over 5,000 area professionals on green building issues and strategies each year; developing cutting-edge research on green building topics applicable to dense cities; and working with a range of public and private stakeholders in New York city to make buildings more efficient and resilient.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
010601798
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Headquarters
New York, NY, USA
Phone
2125149385
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Management & Technical Assistance

Official website

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 65
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 19
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 70.9%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 69.4%; rating input score 69
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.23 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2.2%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.4; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.5; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 24.6%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.7% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 70.9% of revenue deployed · 69.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 24 of 24 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.8M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $270K · 28 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 annual filings from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Leadership & pay

28 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • JOHN MANDYCK (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $269,894 total reported compensation
  • ELLEN HONGSTOCK (SENIOR DIRECTOR, EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT): $156,171 total reported compensation
  • SHEENA MCDERMOOT (SENIOR DIRECTOR, COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT): $124,448 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: FY2024.