Fuse Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
454765019
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2014, Form 990-N 2013
Location
Mobile, AL, USA
Phone
2516542293
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Fund Raising and Fund Distribution

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$471,929
Expenses
$481,353
Assets
$431,231
Liabilities
$404,154

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

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ANN-BROOKS MORRISSETTE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • ANN-BROOKS MORRISSETTE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $67,500 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The mission of fuse project is to provide the spark for innovation, funding and implementation of projects benefiting children along Alabama's gulf coast by investing in initiatives, which promote the health, fitness, education and social responsibility of our children.

What it reported doing in 2024

Fuse project's order of fuse organization consists of a diverse group of young professionals looking to give back to the community in a different way. Fuse project hosts several large events and monthly networking opportunities and provides volunteer opportunities for order of fuse (oof) members to participate in. Each spring, at the final event, the oof members vote to determine what local causes serving children a portion of their dues will fund.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 67% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 75
  • Transparency & Controls: 95
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 72.7%; rating input score 73
  • Program expense ratio: 71.1%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $706.49 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 27th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.9; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.94; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 10.3% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.3% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 72.7% of revenue deployed · 71.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $342K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $68K · 14 people listed
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 34/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 38/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 6/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 25/100.