Ananda Valley Farm

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
463314842
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2013
Location
Palo Alto, CA, USA
Phone
6503233363
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations

Reported finances

Revenue
$207,786
Expenses
$166,783
Assets
$443,336
Liabilities
$25,669

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • David Praver (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Saiganesh Sairaman (Treasurer and Secretary): $54,607 total reported compensation
  • James Noh-Kuhn (Director): $54,257 total reported compensation
  • David Praver (President): $42,583 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 Attached Schedule

What it reported doing in 2024

AVF is developing its cooperative-based, self-sustaining organic farming communtiy based upon the sustainable methods of agriculture and cooperative lifestyle taught by Paramhansa Yogananda (1893-1952) and Swami Kriyanana (1926-2013).

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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 37
  • Sustainability: 58
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 81.2%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 40%; rating input score 40; 15th 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: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 19.7%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.66; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 91.4%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.1% per year; rating input score 0; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -3.6% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.2% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 81.2% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 5 board members independent · 3 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $167K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $55K · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2014 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.

Key Signals

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

  • Moderate — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 40/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 1/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.