Biocomplexity Survival Alliance

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
881628390
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Scotts Valley, CA, USA
Phone
8312004277
Rating
62
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Protection of Endangered Species

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$807,907
Expenses
$573,678
Assets
$569,554
Liabilities
$2,138

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DAVID HAUSSLER (PRESIDENT)
  • KEOLU FOX (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • ANN PACE (TREASURER): $70,444 total reported compensation
  • KATRINA SLATER (SECRETARY): $16,765 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We aim to address the extinction crisis with biotechnology, indigenous science, traditional ecological knowledge, and unprecedented collaboration.

What it reported doing in 2025

Biocomplexity survival alliance - wise ancestors is committed to co-creating and developing species-specific research projects (ie. "conservation challenges") with indigenous peoples (ip) and local communities (lc) for the purpose of producing genomic information, strengthening ip and lc conservation efforts, and supporting indigenous data sovereignty. Our goal is to contribute to worldwide efforts to significantly slow the rate of biodiversity loss while uplifting ip and lc leadership. We are dedicated to building genuine relationships with indigenous peoples, local communities and researchers around the world to co-develop conservation challenges, raise funds, recruit collaborators and coordinate their work of sequencing and biobanking in a decentralized manner, while building a resource and education hub.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 98% 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 total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 63
  • Accountability: 72
  • Sustainability: 61
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 54.7%; rating input score 55
  • Program expense ratio: 76.2%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.8 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Pass
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 24.4%; rating input score 24; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 80%; rating input score 80; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: 29%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.99; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 15.2%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 40.8% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -14.3% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -24.8% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 54.7% of revenue deployed · 76.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 5 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $437K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $70K · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors and foreign activity
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2022 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 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.

Key Signals

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

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 55/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 24/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 5 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 38/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 43/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.