Ocean Genome Atlas Project

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
863259023
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2021, Form 990-N 2022
Location
Berkeley, CA, USA
Rating
76
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Marine Science and Oceanography

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$55,827
Expenses
$167,637
Assets
$721,898
Liabilities
$749,170

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

People named in this filing

  • Peter Molnar (Chairman)
  • Tyler Meade (Secretary)
  • Jeffrey Coyle (Treasurer)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

The Ocean Genome Atlas Project OGAP aims to collect, classify, sequence and map the genomic information of organisms representing at least 80 of the extant marine species worldwide. Deploying a fleet of advanced but cost effective research vessels to transect our oceans over the coming decades, OGAP will allow access to all of our Blue Planet to hundreds of scientists. The resulting Ocean Genome Atlas will be a global 3D genomic atlas of the worlds oceans at single-cell resolution, providing critical information for planetary health, evolutionary and fundamental biology as well as biomedicines of the future. The Atlas will be a public database available to researchers and institutions across the globe. Time is of the essence given accelerating species extinction with estimates that 50 of existing biodiversity could vanish within a few generations.

What it reported doing in 2024

Since 2017, OGAP has conducted nine voyages over 15,000 nm across both the North Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. These voyages have demonstrated that smaller vessels, equipped with a new generation of compact and powerful laboratory equipment and crewed by a combination of ambitious scientists and seasoned ocean sailors, can gather novel specimens in the most remote areas of the worlds oceans at dramatically lower operational costs. This combination allows researchers critical access to the genomic data critical for understanding fundamental and evolutionary biology as well as building a high resolution atlas of the biodiversity of our oceans.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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

SUPPORTED - 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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 58
  • Sustainability: 28
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 46.8%; rating input score 47
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 55; 55th 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 0 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -200.3%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.31; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 1.04; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.1% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 34.4% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 36.1% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 46.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 5 board members independent · 0 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $78K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 22 of 22 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 6 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 47/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 55/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 5/100.