Collective Clean Energy Fund
Legal name: Colorado Clean Energy Fund Dba Collective Clean Energy Fund
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 320586861
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2021–2025
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2020
- Location
- Denver, CO, USA
- Phone
- +1 714-880-9198
- Rating
- 63
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Energy Resources Conservation and Development
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $34,801,464
- Expenses
- $4,051,020
- Assets
- $175,796,465
- Liabilities
- $112,581,532
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
12 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- PAUL SCHARFENBERGER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
- ANNA MOON (VICE PRESIDENT OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT)
Highest reported compensation
- PAUL SCHARFENBERGER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $308,070 total reported compensation
- DAVID HARRIS (CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER): $233,109 total reported compensation
- KAITLYN WYCKOFF (CHIEF PROGRAMS OFFICER): $173,454 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 accelerate the equitable adoption of clean energy across the state and advancing towards our vision of a just and equitable transition to a decarbonized economy.
What it reported doing in 2025
Ccef's residential programs are designed to help Colorado homeowners invest in energy efficiency upgrades that reduce utility costs, increase electrification, and increase clean, domestic energy production. During 2025, ccef closed 552 loans, serving 49 counties in Colorado mobilizing more than $15 million in investments. Through the electrify and save program, ccef funded 83 on-bill repayment loans, deploying more than $1 million in direct lending. These projects created 2.5 mw in domestic energy production. Not included in the revenue total above is $37,837 in government grants.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 92% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- 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
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 33
- Transparency & Controls: 70
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 78
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 10.9%; rating input score 11
- Program expense ratio: 81.7%; rating input score 82
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 88.4%; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 43.4; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.64; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 24.5%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 50.4% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 14.1% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 50.9% per year; rating input score 100; 98th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 3 programs and campaigns described on the official site
- Where the money goes: 10.9% of revenue deployed · 81.7% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $3.3M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $308K · 12 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $548K reported
- Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 5 filing years from 2021 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 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.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 11/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 3/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 17/100.