Blue Water Baltimore

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521420138
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Baltimore, MD, USA
Phone
4102541577
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Alliance/Advocacy Organizations

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,610,893
Expenses
$4,030,761
Assets
$1,399,242
Liabilities
$326,932

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

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SYDNEE WILSON RUFF (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JILL CECIL (DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND AD): $132,569 total reported compensation
  • SYDNEE WILSON RUFF (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $125,957 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To restore the quality of baltimore's rivers, streams and harbor to foster a healthy environment, a strong economy, and thriving communities.

What it reported doing in 2025

Waterkeeper: blue water baltimore maintains a rigorous long-term water quality monitoring program in baltimore's streams, rivers, and harbor in order to characterize the health of our localwaterways, hold polluters accountable, and advocate for stronger laws for clean water. In 2025, we collected thousands of individual measurements of water health which we used to develop regional water quality scores for our annual report card. The report card and all of the data we generate are available online at baltimorewaterwatch.org. Our data-mapping website is an invaluable tool for residents and visitors that helps them make informed decisions about how and when they can safely fish, paddle, and wade in our local waterways. Our waterkeeper team received and responded to 84 pollution reports from community members through various channels including social media, email, our pollution reporting hotline, and our online pollution reporting tool. These reports ranged from issues such as erosion and sediment control violations at construction sites, to sewage overflows and water main breaks. In 2025 we successfully concluded the consent decree in our clean water act lawsuit against fleischmann's vinegar company inc., kerry inc., and kerry holding co. Outreach and education in 2025 we had 47 different outreach and education activities across the organization and reached 1,130 individuals in our community at community events, workshops, through door knocking and community meetings as well as delivering education programming like how's the water hon?, bug hunts, and walk & talks.

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

STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 16
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 81.1%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 66.2%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: -11.6%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.35; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.23; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.4%; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -2.6% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.2% per year; rating input score 100; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.3% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 81.1% of revenue deployed · 66.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 16 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $133K · 21 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $145K reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2025
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 35/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 8/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 11/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 32/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 48/100.