Merchant Row Association Corporation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
813425510
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2028539810
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Economic Development

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$325,916
Expenses
$336,890
Assets
$33,850
Liabilities
$25,198

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARY QUILLIAN HELMS (PRESIDENT)
  • SANJU MISRA (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • JUDITH THOMAS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JUDITH THOMAS (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $70,539 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

See schedule o.

What it reported doing in 2024

Emms continually fulfilled its mission of supporting, promoting, and recruiting businesses by engaging small business technical assistance, award grants for facade improvements and operation, and hosting events to highlight the neighborhood and bring new customers into the area. See schedule o for additional information and accompishments for 2025.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 76% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 75% for direct work, and 25% for grants.

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: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 20
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 91.2%; rating input score 91
  • Program expense ratio: 88.2%; rating input score 88
  • Fundraising efficiency: $40.6 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 22nd 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: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -3.4%; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.1; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.74; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 20.9%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.5% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.3% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 91.2% of revenue deployed · 88.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $297K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $71K · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 25 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2018 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 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 32/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 6/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.