Police Athletic League, Inc.

Legal name: Police Athletic League Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
135596811
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
New York, NY, United States
Phone
212-477-9450
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Youth Centers, Clubs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$32,865,221
Expenses
$34,256,223
Assets
$38,306,118
Liabilities
$21,921,915

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

Leadership & pay

37 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BART M SCHWARTZ ESQ (PRESIDENT)
  • CHARLES A STILLMAN ESQ (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • DANIEL ROSE (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT)
  • DONNA H MACPHEE (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • RICHARD A BERNSTEIN (SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT)
  • CARLOS VELAZQUEZ (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • CARLOS VELAZQUEZ (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $437,304 total reported compensation
  • LISA WEIR (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $241,847 total reported compensation
  • ASNETH COUNCIL (DIRECTOR OF CHILD CARE): $201,247 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 Police Athletic League (PAL) is dedicated to providing New York City youth with a fun place to play, learn and grow, nurtured by a special relationship with youth development professionals and police officers, helping them realize their full individual potential as productive members of society.

What it reported doing in 2024

Teen programs: pal helps older youth, ages 13-19 gain work skills to promote long-term educational and career outcomes. 10 teen centers offer drop-in, safe spaces within pal communities where youth can connect with positive peer and adult mentors and take part in an array of holistic recreational, educational and job skills training activities, and social-emotional supports. Pal's youth link service offers an enhanced teen model with a comprehensive suite of services including mental health supports at five sites. Program enhancements include additions to our staff of lmsw's and increased training requirements for direct line staff in the nyc "building resilient youth" program model for teens. The maap program offers one-on-one mentorship to teenagers who are under the supervision of the nyc administration of children services. Pal also offers jobs skills training and placements through the work progress program.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 92% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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

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 some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 29
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.7%; rating input score 89
  • Program expense ratio: 84.7%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $70.32 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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; 66th 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: -4.2%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.12; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.57; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.9%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.1% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.5% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 9 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 6 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 88.7% of revenue deployed · 84.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 27 of 27 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $29M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $437K · 37 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $925K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 18/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 40/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 24/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 52/100.