Ayuda Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
520971440
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2023874848
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Ethnic, Immigrant Centers

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$14,232,473
Expenses
$12,497,089
Assets
$7,051,369
Liabilities
$1,364,676

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

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PAULA FITZGERALD (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • PAULA FITZGERALD (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $209,880 total reported compensation
  • ELSY VASQUEZ (DIRECTOR OF FINANCE): $137,272 total reported compensation
  • LAURA TRASK (DIR. OF DEVEL. AND COMM.): $133,406 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Ayuda's mission is to advocate for low-income immigrants through direct legal, social and language services, training and outreach in Washington, d.c., Maryland, and Virginia. We envision a community where all immigrants succeed and thrive in the united states.

What it reported doing in 2024

Ayuda provided legal advice and representation to foreign-born people in immigration cases, which included humanitarian applications for crime victims, vawa petitions, temporary protected status, asylum, citizenship, removal defense, daca and family-based immigration applications. Through project end, ayuda provided legal advice, counsel and representation to victims of notario or immigration legal services fraud. Ayuda provided family law, protection order, and crime victims' rights legal services to immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Ayuda also provided holistic social services to the immigrant community, with a specialized focus on survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking. Services provided included case management, safety planning and crisis intervention, emotional support and therapy, information and referrals, and provision of basic need items. Additionally, ayuda provided interpretation and translation services to individuals who are limited english proficient (lep), deaf, or hard of hearing, so they can access legal representation and victim services in their preferred language. Ayuda also provided specialized training to interpreters on working in the legal and/or victim services settings and offered training to the community, service providers, and other partners.

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 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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 50
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 73.4%; rating input score 73
  • Program expense ratio: 83.4%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $28.85 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd 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: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: 12.2%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.56; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 13.5% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 14.6% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 20% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 73.4% of revenue deployed · 83.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $10.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $210K · 21 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $282K reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 38 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.

  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 18/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 36/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 59/100.