National Rural Water Association
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 731006395
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2019–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Duncan, OK, United States
- Phone
- 580.252.0629
- Rating
- 86
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $81,786,877
- Expenses
- $74,539,636
- Assets
- $89,126,630
- Liabilities
- $19,649,350
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
56 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- PHILLIP COMBS (PRESIDENT)
- CHRIS KENYON (SR. VICE PRESIDENT)
- DAVID PETERSON (VICE PRESIDENT)
- JOHN O'CONNELL (IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT)
- JOHN CHOATE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
- TOM SPEER (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- MATTHEW HOLMES (CEO): $428,889 total reported compensation
- WILLIAM SIMPSON (LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR): $373,693 total reported compensation
- CHARLES STEPHENS (SR. EXECUTIVE POLICY DIREC): $324,035 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 National Rural Water Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to training, supporting, and promoting the water and wastewater professionals that serve small and rural communities across the country. NRWA programs and staff exclusively focus on helping rural and small-town America, where _**1 in 5 Americans live and work.**_ In addition, State Rural Water Associations have built up substantial expertise in emergency response, operator certification and training, cybersecurity, and other areas that **_directly benefit 220,035,060 Americans_** , including many residents in urban areas. > Our mission is to strengthen State Associations. Safe drinking water and clean wastewater treatment are vital to the health and safety of Americans. With the support of our State Associations, NRWA strives to protect the quality of life in America, while supporting the grassroots efforts...
What it reported doing in 2024
Nrwa provides training and technical assistance through 49 affiliated state rural water associations, that currently have over 31,000 utility system members. Rural water training and technical assistance covers every aspect of operating, managing, and financing water and wastewater utilities.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 93% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 82% of its reported program spending out as 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 total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 86
- Transparency & Controls: 82
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 59
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 95.8%; rating input score 96
- Program expense ratio: 99.1%; rating input score 99
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th 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: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 8.9%; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.2; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.22; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 3%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 9.6% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 8.5% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 95.8% of revenue deployed · 99.1% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 49 of 49 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $73.9M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $429K · 56 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes grants and executive pay
- Filing history: 5 filing years from 2019 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 56 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 51 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 46/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.