Lowcountry Land Trust Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

Land protection: during fy25, lowcountry land trust participated in fifteen conservation transactions. This includes ten new conservation easements protecting 1,295 acres, four fee-simple purchases protecting 146 acres, and one deed restriction on a .7-acre property. Fy25 land protection projects expanded across coastal South Carolina, from the ace basin to the santee basin. On the outskirts of walterboro, a 561- acre tract was placed under a conservation easement, demonstrating the commitment of private landowners, nonprofits, and state government agencies to preserving cultural history and natural resources. The project helped create a contiguous protected landscape in colleton county, contributing to the quickly growing area's ecological integrity and aligning with lowcountry land trust's recently identified high-resilience zone near cottageville. In addition to acquiring 94 acres of vital farmland on johns island that will soon become publicly accessible via walking trails, field trips, farm stands, and educational programs about sustainable farming practices and land stewardship, lowcountry land trust bought, protected, and transferred three properties for community use and benefit. In partnership with charleston county park and recreation commission, a 35-acre tract in ravenel will serve as an official addition to caw caw interpretive center. In collaboration with the barrier islands little league, a 40-acre landmark project on johns island ensures that a vital green space will remain undeveloped, providing both active and passive recreational opportunities for the community. In partnership with the phillips community association and its residents, a .7 acre site will be transformed into a publicly accessible green space, with the preserved rutledge tomb at its centerpiece, providing a vital link to the area's plantation history and honoring the settlement community's relationship with the land. Lowcountry land trust also helped the red top improvement association conserve, interpret, and celebrate a culturally significant property, as part of its community lands program. Other fy25 conservation easement projects include permanently protecting 1.77 miles of direct river frontage along fee farm creek, adding to the nearly 14,340 acres of protected land along the ashepoo river and its tributaries protected by lowcountry land trust; safeguarding 20 acres of history and habitat in the ashley river historic district; conserving an entire undisturbed barrier island of 28 acres of upland habitat surrounded by 393 acres of salt marsh along the intracoastal waterway; and expanding the conservation easement of an ecologically rich and historically significant property located on the south santee river at the gateway to charleston county along both sides of u.s. Highway 17.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 83.6%; rating input score 84
• Program expense ratio: 91.8%; rating input score 92
• Fundraising efficiency: $19.96 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 8 of 8 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: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 10.5%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.48; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.28; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 1.4%; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -4.8% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 5.2% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings