Family Residences and Essential Enterprises, Inc. (FREE)
Legal name: Family Residences and Essential Enterprises Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 112420547
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Aug 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Old Bethpage, NY, United States
- Phone
- (516) 870-1600
- Rating
- 86
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Residential Mental Health Treatment
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $169,203,609
- Expenses
- $168,435,709
- Assets
- $112,821,910
- Liabilities
- $75,149,527
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
27 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ROBERT S BUDD MPS SR CHIEF (EXECUTIVE OFFICER & PRESIDENT)
- DR CHRISTOPHER D LONG EDD (CO-CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER/PRESIDENT)
- ANITA DOWD-NEUFELD SENIOR (VICE PRESIDENT, COMMUNITY SERVICES)
- DARREN BELCHER SENIOR (VICE PRESIDENT, TECHNOLOGY SERVICES)
- CONSUELO HENDRICKSON SENIOR (VICE PRESIDENT, HEALTHCARE SERVICES)
Highest reported compensation
- ROBERT S BUDD MPS SR CHIEF (EXECUTIVE OFFICER & PRESIDENT): $592,621 total reported compensation
- DR CHRISTOPHER D LONG EDD (CO-CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER/PRESIDENT): $562,493 total reported compensation
- SUSAN DICKINSON CPA (CHIEF PROJECT OFFICER, EFF. 7/1/2024): $346,521 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Our mission is to support people of all abilities to reach their full potential and thrive in their communities. Family Residences and Essential Enterprises, Inc. (FREE), founded in 1977, benefits and proudly supports more than 5,500 individuals with intellectual / developmental disabilities, mental illness and traumatic brain injury. It is the mission of FREE to support people of all abilities reach their full potential and thrive in their communities. FREE provides a diverse array of supports and services including: housing; recovery services; transition to work; employment; day, community and family services; respite; crisis services; education and after school support; specialty health services; and advocacy. Mission Statement Our mission is to support people of all abilities to reach their full po.
What it reported doing in 2024
Free's residential programs, sponsored with the office for people with developmental disabilities (opwdd), individuals receive skills development and habilitation services in such areas as socialization, recreation, problem solving, personal development, activities of daily living, travel training, health care, medication maintenance, and many more. Provided in over 100 communities throughout long island and New York city, our diverse residential services include: - supervised 24-hour residential alternatives - individuals are supported throughout the day and night as they work, travel, and enjoy life in their local community. - independent living services - individuals live in an apartment with 1 or 2 roommates. The individuals can navigate their community to meet their daily needs. - intermediate care facilities - individuals receive highly structured, enhanced support from a skilled clinical team and support staff.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Other-operating. 91% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
- 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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 80
- Transparency & Controls: 91
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 32
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 90.2%; rating input score 90
- Program expense ratio: 90%; rating input score 90
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- 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; 77th 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: 0.5%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.67; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.67; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 2.5%; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 6% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 4 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 90.2% of revenue deployed · 90% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $151.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $593K · 27 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $7.4M reported
- Consistency: 37 of 38 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 14 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 34/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 26/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 24/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 45/100.