Finger Lakes Trail Conference Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
166066796
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Mount Morris, NY, USA
Phone
5856589320
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Parks and Playgrounds

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$452,175
Expenses
$379,913
Assets
$2,576,636
Liabilities
$10,863

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Chris Proulx (President)
  • Cecilia Fabrizio (Executive Vice President)
  • Bob Ansaldi (Vice President of Finance)
  • David Newman (Vice President of Trail Preservation)
  • Scott Geiger (Vice President of Digital Experience)
  • Tim Holahan (Vice President of Programs)

Highest reported compensation

  • Nathan Hayes (Executive Director): $57,328 total reported compensation
  • Willa Powell (Treasurer): $32,184 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We build, enhance, and promote the Finger Lakes Trail system, connect people and communities to trails and the landscape, and steward this outdoor legacy for future generations.

What it reported doing in 2025

The Finger Lakes Trail Conference (FLTC) maintains over 950 miles of recreational footpath across New York State, consisting of the main finger lakes trail, six branch trails and many loop and spur trails. The FLTC coordinates the construction of Lean-tos, outhouses, bridges, puncheons, and many other trail improvement or development projects across the trail system. These projects are occasionally partly funded by grants and/or donations and are nearly always accomplished by volunteer labor.

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

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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 44
  • Transparency & Controls: 85
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 63
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 46.4%; rating input score 46
  • Program expense ratio: 41.6%; rating input score 42
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.45 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 15th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • 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: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 16%; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 6.78; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 23.6%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.1% per year; rating input score 0; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.5% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 46.4% of revenue deployed · 41.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $158K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $57K · 16 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 25 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 46/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 42/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 36/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 15/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 45/100.