California Native Grass Association
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 680239825
- IRS 990-EZ coverage
- 2010–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990-EZ 2025
- Location
- Davis, CA, USA
- Phone
- 5309026009
- Rating
- 67
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Land Resources Conservation
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $131,455
- Expenses
- $120,224
- Assets
- $162,313
Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
17 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- CHAD AAKRE (Vice President)
- JULIA MICHAELS (President)
People named in this filing
- CHAD AAKRE (Vice President)
- SARAH GAFFNEY (Secretary)
- HAVEN KIERS (Director)
Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.
Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The mission of the California Native Grasslands Association is to promote, preserve, and restore the diversity of California's native grasses and grassland ecosystems through education, advocacy, research, and stewardship.
What it reported doing in 2025
EDUCATION AND OUTREACHWe provide information to the general public through our website and by responding to information requests. We received and answered over 32 requests for complex information on grassland restoration techniques, management, conservation, urban landscaping, propagation and other questions covering a wide range of conditions in different areas within the state.Directors and Advisory Committee Members made 2 site visit consultations. 2025 October 18 - With the help of Jim Hanson, Advisory Committee Member, we scheduled a fieldtrip/workday for a San Jose State University college class to the Fossil Hill project site in Walnut Creek, to illustrate the principles and approach that both Phil Johnson and Glen Schneider use to convert annual weedy grasslands to native plant community mosaics. 2025 November 19 CNGA Director JP Marie met Glide Ranch representative Lyle Wilen at the ranch to address their request for advice on planting low-stature, non-annual reseeding grass on 15 acres to control weeds.PODCAST INTERVIEW2025 January 12. Exploring the World with Da Potato Sisters interviewed CNGA Director and grassland researcher Brooke Wainwright for their episode titled, All About California Grasslands!!! https://open.spotify.com/episode/35x9SuKoOLRGUHXjr0n5k9https://www.instagram.com/dapotatosisters/WEBSITEWe continually update and add new information to our website covering a wide range of topics that support our mission to promote, preserve, and restore the diversity of California's grasses and grassland ecosystems through education, advocacy, research, and stewardship
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent revenue detail to tell how this nonprofit funds its work.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 89% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 39
- Transparency & Controls: 100
- Sustainability: 52
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 37.6%; rating input score 38
- Program expense ratio: 41.1%; rating input score 41
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 8.5%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.35; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 1.4% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 4.8% per year; rating input score 100; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 15.1% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 37.6% of revenue deployed · 41.1% of spending went to programs
- Governance: Filed governance answers
- Accomplishments: 5 filed program accomplishments · $49K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 17 people listed
- Consistency: 8 of 8 current checks pass
- Schedules: 3 filed schedules
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 38/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 41/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 52/100.