Butterfly House & Aquarium Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
522370420
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2022
Forms available
Form 990 2022
Location
Sioux Falls, SD, USA
Phone
6053349466
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Botanical Gardens, Arboreta and Botanical Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$840,656
Expenses
$4,755,939
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2022. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • AUDREY OTTO-PEPPER (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • AUDREY OTTO-PEPPER (CEO): $90,478 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2022. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Inspiring conservation of the vital building blocks of sea, sky, and land.

What it reported doing in 2022

The butterfly house & aquarium had 40,546 visitors during the july 1 - december 31, 2022, timeframe. Opportunities to experience tropical ecosystems are minimal to nonexistent for most residents in the landlocked, all-season midwest. A reprieve from the cold, encounters with colorful butterflies and fish, and the tranquility of the exhibits establish our facility as a one-of-a-kind destination in the dakotas. With over 800 tropical butterflies in a year round 80-degree oasis, and twelve saltwater aquariums, we strive to leave an impact on every guest through interactive learning and healing experiences with nature. In addition, free admission is provided to various social service nonprofit partners to provide the opportunity to heal and relax year round surrounded by beautiful butterflies and aquariums. Throughout the july 1 - december 31, 2022, timeframe, 132 volunteers gave 2,784 hours of their time.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 67% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 87% of its reported program spending out as grants.

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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 7
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 96.4%; rating input score 96
  • Fundraising efficiency: $4.18 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 13; 13th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -465.7%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.9%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 22.6% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.1% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 96.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $90K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2010 to 2022
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 13/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 0/100.