Common Ground Outdoor Adventures

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
841385181
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2009
Location
Logan, UT, USA
Phone
4357130288
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Centers to Support the Independence of Specific Populations

Reported finances

Revenue
$482,486
Expenses
$539,193
Assets
$690,607
Liabilities
$8,360

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SAMANTHA MACFARLANE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • SAMANTHA MACFARLANE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $125,097 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 increase opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities to actively participate in adaptive outdoor recreation

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization serves youth and adults with disabilities of all ages, race, religion and gender, regardless of economic status. We have grown to provide 300 - 350 outdoor recreational activities for 3000 - 3600 people with disabilities annually. Equipment and support are lent to the special olympics, local schools and individuals upon request. Common ground continues to expand programs to meet the needs of people with disabilities in norther Utah. Most of our participants live in cache, rich and box elder counties in Utah. Some live in franklin county Idaho. Our vision is to obtain the resources. Equipment, facilities, and staff to continue providing quality physical and financially accessible recreational opportunites for everyone with a disability that has this desire.

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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 62
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 93%; rating input score 93
  • Program expense ratio: 83.2%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.43 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 87.5%; rating input score 88; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • 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: -11.8%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.28; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 23.2%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.7% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.1% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 93% of revenue deployed · 83.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 8 board members independent · 2 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $449K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $125K · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 28/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 21/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 44/100.