American Coalition for Ethanol

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
450407345
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Sioux Falls, SD, USA
Phone
6053343381
Rating confidence
Limited

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,577,959
Expenses
$2,438,466
Assets
$646,382
Liabilities
$447,221

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DAVE SOVEREIGN (PRESIDENT)
  • TROY KNECHT (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • BRIAN JENNINGS (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • BRIAN JENNINGS (CEO): $170,244 total reported compensation
  • RON LAMBERTY (CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER): $150,244 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

American coalition for ethanol (ace) was formed to bring together a wide range of groups in support of making u.s. Ethanol the consumer fuel of choice. Ace unites agricultural producers, commodity and farm organizations, ethanol producers, rural electric cooperatives, businesses, and individuals behind coalition initiatives to support and promote the production and use of ethanol in the u.s. A national, nonprofit, grassroots advocacy organization, ace delivers value to members through government relations, market development, public relations, and information strategies.

What it reported doing in 2024

Position producers as part of the climate solutionunlocking access to new markets and tax creditsusda approved $25 million in ace's historic regional conservation partnership program (rcpp) expansion with 13 ethanol partners which builds on the successful South Dakota-based project announced in 2021. Ace held meetings with over 700 farmers interested in the expanded 10-state rcpp and distributed financial assistance to farmers involved in ace's South Dakota rcpp implementing practices on nearly 30,000 acres. Improving rules for climate-smart agriculture ace actively engaged with the usda, offering feedback on the processes for quantifying, reporting and verifying the impact of climate-smart farming practices on greenhouse gas (ghg) emissions from u.s.-grown biofuel feedstock crops. In preparation for the treasury's release of its 40b greet model guidance, ace also urged the sustainable aviation fuel (saf) interagency working group to fully recognize the value of climate-smart agriculture and incorporate accurate real-world land use change estimates. Additionally, ace provided feedback to the California air resource board (carb) on the 2024 proposed amendments to the low carbon fuel standard (lcfs), advocating for improved sustainability criteria for crop-based biofuels and pressing carb to finally approve the use of e15 in California. Carbon topics top of mind at 2024 ace events gathered advocates in Washington dc for ace's 13th annual dc fly-in. A top focus was urging congress to support policies that unlock new markets and tax credits, and encouraging treasury to ensure ethanol qualifies for the 40b and 45z tax credits by applying the greet model and integrating climate-smart agriculture practices. Attendees met with members of congress and heard from notable speakers, including usda under secretary of rural development dr. Basil gooden, epa agriculture advisor rod snyder, and senator deb fischer (ne). At ace's 37th annual conference in omaha, themed "the gold standard," discussions centered on ensuring ethanol remains the premier clean fuel for years to come. Ace was honored to host u.s. Secretary of agriculture tom vilsack, who highlighted the administration's historic investments in clean energy.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent spending detail to tell whether the nonprofit works directly or through others.

The verdict

- The available evidence is not sufficient to produce an overall rating for this filing. This is not a warning sign.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: NotEnoughData
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 72
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: Limited
  • Program expense ratio: Limited
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • 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: 3 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 5.4%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.27; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.69; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.1%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: Financial trends and filed revenue, expense, asset, and liability detail
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 3 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments
  • Leadership: top reported pay $170K · 21 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $437K reported
  • Consistency: 11 of 11 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 9 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 8/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 52/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 22/100.