Mountain Watershed Association

Legal name: Mountain Watershed Association Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
251730301
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2025
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2020
Location
Kempton, PA, US
Phone
(610) 917-0388
Rating
90
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Water Resource, Wetlands Conservation and Management

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,633,567
Expenses
$2,417,257
Assets
$4,313,893
Liabilities
$124,870

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PAIGE DIX (CO-VICE PRESIDENT)
  • JERRY GEARHART (CO-PRESIDENT)
  • MARY LOU KUHNS (CO-PRESIDENT)
  • KURT LIMBACH (CO-VICE PRESIDENT)
  • ASHLEY FUNK (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • ASHLEY FUNK (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $101,433 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To protect and restore the Indian Creek watershed and surrounding lands in southwestern Pennsylvania.

What it reported doing in 2025

Conservation - to continue to implement the indian creek watershed comprehensive plan to address abandoned mine discharges, develop recreational amenities, and address other conservation needs. Activities include rehabilitation, installation, monitoring, operating, maintenance and oversight of abandoned mine treatment systems and trail systems, as well as extensive water quality and biological monitoring througout the watershed.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 82% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 81% 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 total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 85
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 55
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 87.2%; rating input score 87
  • Program expense ratio: 84%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: $45.21 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 77; 77th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 75th 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; 63rd 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: 8.2%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.78; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.2%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 9.1% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9.7% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 87.2% of revenue deployed · 84% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $101K · 20 people listed
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $132K reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 51/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 54/100.