Navigation Charitable Fund

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
921117448
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2022
Location
Berkeley, CA, USA
Phone
5103064555
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$18,953,079
Expenses
$39,324,574
Assets
$1,289,483,686
Liabilities
$415,311

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DAVID COMAN-HIDY (PRESIDENT)
  • ANDREA GUNN (EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • DAVID COMAN-HIDY (PRESIDENT): $397,923 total reported compensation
  • ANDREA GUNN (EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT): $328,680 total reported compensation
  • KRISTEN DIEDERICH (GRANTS & OPERATIONS DIRECTOR): $214,782 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 navigation fund is advancing bold solutions to the world's most urgent problems.

What it reported doing in 2024

Navigation charitable fund provided $14.24 million to humane america animal foundation, along with non-binding recommendations to fund organizations dedicated to supporting farm animal welfare and climate work through movement-building, research, and novel projects.ncf provided $15.375 million to vanguard charitable, along with non-binding recommendations to fund organizations dedicated to transforming criminal justice, climate, open science, and digital sentience through research, grassroots organizing, prototype development, and more.ncf also provided the following:- $6,030,457 to three organizations supporting digital sentience work, including an endowment for a new program area at nyu, a nuclear safety and security project, and expanding public awareness of digital sentience.- $500,000 to one organization working on climate change mitigation.- $300,500 to two organizations working to transform criminal justice through the advancement of solutions that enhance safety and justice, and work to understand the intersection of criminal justice and artificial intelligence. - $81,482 to three organizations and one individual to support digital sentience project.- $70,000 to one organization working to make sharing scientific data more accessible and less centralized. - $64,200 to three organizations for movement support.- $3,500 to two organizations as sponsorships for events to educate the public about cash bail and to generate ideas for mitigating climate change.- $350,000 to one organization for climate research.

Operating model

Revenue model
Investment-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from recurring investment income.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 98% 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. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 48
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 96.3%; rating input score 96
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Pass
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Pass
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: No; rating input score 0

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: -107.5%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 32.79; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.8%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 159.1% per year; rating input score 100; 100th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -194.3% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -1.4% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 96.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $37.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $398K · 10 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $105K reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 36 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2023 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 15 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 8 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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Related-party transparency scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.