Fwdus Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
462223015
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
4155891222
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Alliance/Advocacy

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$12,736,177
Expenses
$17,927,363
Assets
$55,230,657
Liabilities
$5,516,760

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • TODD SCHULTE (PRESIDENT)
  • ZOE TOWNS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & SECRETARY)

Highest reported compensation

  • TODD SCHULTE (PRESIDENT): $515,833 total reported compensation
  • ZOE TOWNS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & SECRETARY): $446,773 total reported compensation
  • MARK DELICH (DIRECTOR OF CONGRESSIONAL): $336,417 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Fwd.us, inc. Organizes constituencies around the country to support policy changes that create opportunity and unlock america's potential through comprehensive immigration reform and criminal justice reform.

What it reported doing in 2024

Fwd.us, inc. Built a grassroots mobilization that connects hundreds of thousands of americans through a technology-based campaign in support of immigration reform, and in support for fixing our broken criminal justice system through policy change at the state, federal, and local level. This included face-to-face events, on-line communications, earned media, paid media and coalition building. In addition, fwd.us, inc. Developed on-line technology to improve its communications, its participant's communications with each other, and the effectiveness of fwd.us, inc.'s grassroots mobilization.

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 96% 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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 90
  • Transparency & Controls: 80
  • Accountability: 81
  • Sustainability: 34
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 74.6%; rating input score 75
  • Fundraising efficiency: $90.45 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 75%; rating input score 75; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: -40.8%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.08; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 10.6%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 0.9% per year; rating input score 100; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.1% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 20.4% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 74.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 4 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $13.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $516K · 12 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2M reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 34 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 32 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 34 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.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 2/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Whistleblower policy not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.