Marin Symphony Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
946104150
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2022
Location
San Rafael, CA, USA
Phone
4154798100
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Symphony Orchestras

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,444,755
Expenses
$2,902,510
Assets
$8,994,974
Liabilities
$265,639

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

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • STEVE MACHTINGER (PRESIDENT)
  • KATE SEARS (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • NANCY REHKOPF (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • TOD BRODY (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • TOD BRODY (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $148,030 total reported compensation
  • MARTY ESHOFF (DIR. OPS. & FIN.): $123,680 total reported compensation
  • NURI KYE (DIRECTOR DEVELOPMENT): $120,805 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 marin symphony's mission is to enrich, educate, and transform lives through classical music.

What it reported doing in 2024

During this year, the organization's professional symphony orchestra (marin symphony) presented ticketed public performances to audiences of approximately 15,000 people. The organization also operated education/outreach programs with a three-tiered youth orchestra, in-school programs with marin symphony teaching artists, and a free public concert for thousands of students.

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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 36
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 69.8%; rating input score 70
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.47 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 42; 42nd 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: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: -18.7%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.1; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 1.7% per year; rating input score 100; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 17.5% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 69.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 18 of 18 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $148K · 22 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 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: Fundraising efficiency scored 42/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 7/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Document-retention policy not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 20/100.