Proteus Action League

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
223888268
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Waltham, MA, USA
Phone
4132560349
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Civil Rights, Social Action, Advocacy N.E.C.

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,025,431
Expenses
$1,941,945
Assets
$1,919,583
Liabilities
$360,404

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PAUL DI DONATO (PRESIDENT & CEO)

People named in this filing

  • PAUL DI DONATO (PRESIDENT & CEO)
  • BEERY JIMENEZ (DIRECTOR-PHILANTHROPY & FISCAL SPONSORSHIP)
  • RYAN CHAVEZ (FORMER CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER)

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

Proteus action league (pal) is a 501(c)(4) organization that advances democracy and human rights. Pal convenes and facilitates donor collaboratives, partners with innovative projects through fiscal sponsorship, and offers donor advised c4 accounts.

What it reported doing in 2024

Piper action fund is a grantmaking program that brings together individual donors and 501(c)4 organizations to support legislative advocacy and issue-specific reform campaigns to defend democratic institutions and the rule of law. The action fund connects, and resources grassroots organizations dedicated to protecting our democracy and envisioning reforms to make it more inclusive and representative.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 85% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 74% 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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 92
  • Transparency & Controls: 89
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 26
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 89.3%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $24.9 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 97.3%; rating input score 97; 45th 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: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: -89.4%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.99; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -14.4% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -10.2% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -6.6% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 89.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 21 of 22 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 42 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 42 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.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 42/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 32/100.