Silverlining

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
371908884
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2018
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
8889674583
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,670,628
Expenses
$6,497,308
Assets
$2,557,023
Liabilities
$2,024,210

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

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KELLY WANSER (PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JEAN FRANCOIS LAMARQUE (CHIEF CLIMATE SCIENTIST): $452,000 total reported compensation
  • DANIEL BOWEN (PLATFORM ENGINEER): $249,167 total reported compensation
  • KELLY WANSER (PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $240,417 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Silverlining is dedicated to ensuring that society has the information and capabilities needed to ensure a safe and secure atmosphere. We support open research, science-based policy and broad stakeholder engagement to advance understanding and protection of the atmosphere in a world with emerging interventions in weather and climate. Our work focuses on advancing rigorous, independent science and evidence-based decision-making to promote public safety, economic prosperity and national security.

What it reported doing in 2024

Research & innovation - the safe earth system research initiative (sesri) supports and undertakes research and technology innovations to accelerate atmospheric science and forecasting to rapidly advance society's ability to ensure the safety and security of the amosphere. Sesri provides research funding and coordination across research efforts, convening, publication support and the collaborative development and maintenance of a research roadmap.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 65% for direct work, and 35% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - 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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 80
  • Transparency & Controls: 68
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 27
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 84.7%; rating input score 85
  • Program expense ratio: 81.9%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $14.08 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 20th 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: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 73.6%; rating input score 74; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 66.7%; rating input score 67; 11th 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: 2.6%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.39; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.79; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 18.8%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 30.9% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 35.6% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 36.3% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 84.7% of revenue deployed · 81.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 3 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $5.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $452K · 7 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $915K reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 35 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2019 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 6 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 49/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 43/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 13/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 10/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 14/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.