American Planning Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521134021
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024, Form 990-N 2015
Location
Chicago, IL, USA
Phone
3124319100
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Professional Societies, Associations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$19,898,169
Expenses
$20,990,422
Assets
$34,975,568
Liabilities
$16,353,406

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

Leadership & pay

30 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Sue Schwartz FAICP (President)
  • Angela D Brooks FAICP (Immediate Past President)
  • Joel D Albizo FASAE CAE (Chief Executive Officer)

Highest reported compensation

  • Joel D Albizo FASAE CAE (Chief Executive Officer): $512,805 total reported compensation
  • Alejandro Fuentes Encinas (Chief Financial & Member Eng Officer): $387,796 total reported compensation
  • Mark Ferguson (Chief Information Officer): $345,228 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

See Schedule O"Creating great communities for all." The American Planning Association (APA) provides leadership in the development of vital communities by advocating excellence in community planning, promoting education and citizen empowerment and providing the tools and support necessary to meet the challenges of growth and change.

What it reported doing in 2024

APA advances sound planning practices through applied research, advocacy, and public education. APA's Government Affairs team advocates for planning-supportive policies at all levels of government, while its communications and outreach programs educate the public and media about the importance of planning in building vibrant communities. Applied research activities, supported by grants and partnerships, translate best practices and academic findings into practical guidance for planners. APA also recognizes planning excellence through its national awards program and promotes awareness through initiatives like the Housing Initiative and Planning Research Fund.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 85% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 63
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 28
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 73.9%; rating input score 74
  • Program expense ratio: 63.6%; rating input score 64
  • Fundraising efficiency: $2.49 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 87.5%; rating input score 88; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 76.8%; rating input score 77; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • 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: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5.5%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.67; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.47; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 15.6%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -4.3% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.6% per year; rating input score 100; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.4% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 73.9% of revenue deployed · 63.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 16 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $13.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $513K · 30 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.5M reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 40 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 18 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 9/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 16/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 55/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 7/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.