LagoonKeepers.org

Legal name: Lake Worth Lagoon Environmental Defense Fund Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
141895034
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2023
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2023, Form 990-EZ 2013
Location
Riviera Beach, FL, US
Phone
(561) 255-6974
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Water Resource, Wetlands Conservation and Management

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$180,852
Expenses
$195,663
Assets
$596,153
Liabilities
$272,872

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

4 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • GREGORY LEE REYNOLDS (Executive Direc): $15,701 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To keep waterways safe by removing all marine debris, trash and large items that pose a danger to the environment and the boating community.

What it reported doing in 2023

D.a.v.e. (derelict, abandoned, vessel eradication): twelve vessels and 385,824 pounds of debris were removed from the intracoastal waterway in palm beach county in 2023, making the water cleaner and safer for all citizens in the spirit of maintaining community education and awareness, lagoonkeepers.org contributed to thirty-two cleanup events, and thirty-six calls for boating hazards in 2023.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 64% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program 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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 38
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 97.7%; rating input score 98
  • Program expense ratio: 90.3%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.41 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 4 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 57
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Limited
    • Other executive compensation review process: Limited
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -8.2%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.05; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.46; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8%; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.8% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.5% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.4% per year; rating input score 100; 53rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 3 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 97.7% of revenue deployed · 90.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 4 board members independent · 4 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $177K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $16K · 4 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2014 to 2023
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 40/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 26/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 12/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 31/100.