Center for International Environmental Law Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 521633220
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Washington, DC, USA
- Phone
- 2027425803
- Rating
- 76
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $14,374,319
- Expenses
- $11,685,086
- Assets
- $12,501,058
- Liabilities
- $969,163
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
17 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- AMANDA KISTLER (VP/INTERIM PRESIDENT & CEO)
- WILLIAM MUFFETT (PRESIDENT & CEO (UNTIL 9/2024))
Highest reported compensation
- AMANDA KISTLER (VP/INTERIM PRESIDENT & CEO): $217,379 total reported compensation
- ALEXANDRE AZOULAY (DIRECTOR, ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH): $208,769 total reported compensation
- MICHELLE WILLIAMS (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $206,276 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To investigate, research, write, publish, present conferences and teach with respect to global, regional, transboundary, and comparative environmental issues and to make the findings from such activities available to the general public; to conduct case investigation and advocacy, including mediation, arbitration and litigation in matters involving international environmental issues, the outcome of which is important to the general public; and to perform such other charitable and educational activities as may be necessary and appropriate in order to accomplish the foregoing purposes.
What it reported doing in 2024
Fossil economy program: ciel's fossil economy program works to address the climate and health impacts of our dependence on fossil fuels. Ciel works with a wide range of partners and allies across thematic issues and geographies, providing research and analysis, and strengthening policies.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 92% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 94% 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 available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 72
- Transparency & Controls: 70
- Accountability: 91
- Sustainability: 60
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 64.6%; rating input score 65
- Program expense ratio: 79.2%; rating input score 79
- Fundraising efficiency: $206.77 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 20th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
- Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
- Requires narrative reports: Limited
- Conducts field audits: Limited
- May suspend future funding: Limited
- Requires financial reports: Pass
- Conducts site visits: Limited
- Requires grant agreements: Pass
- May require repayment: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 99.3%; rating input score 99; 33rd 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: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 18.7%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.07; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.08; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 12.8%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 15.6% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 15.9% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 19.8% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 64.6% of revenue deployed · 79.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $9.3M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $217K · 17 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 10 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
- 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 38/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 12/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.