Smart Electric Power Alliance
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 521794095
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Washington, DC, USA
- Phone
- 2028570898
- Rating
- 67
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Energy Resources Conservation and Development
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $19,875,569
- Expenses
- $15,221,999
- Assets
- $39,471,528
- Liabilities
- $7,113,057
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
31 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Sheri Givens (President & CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- Sheri Givens (President & CEO): $608,719 total reported compensation
- Beth Eagle (Chief Finance & Operations Officer): $319,540 total reported compensation
- Courtney Galatioto (VP of Membership): $266,943 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 Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) is an educational nonprofit working to accelerate the transition to a clean, affordable, and resilient energy system for all.SEPA collaborates with over 1,000 member organizations across the electric power sectorproviding unbiased research, education, and forums to advance decarbonization, grid modernization, and energy equity.
What it reported doing in 2024
Member Services - SEPA connects a diverse community of members, including utilities, technology providers, large energy users, government entities, academia, and nonprofits, to learn, engage, and share best practices. SEPA offers eight working groups where members collaborate on relevant issues and explore actionable solutions. Members also enjoy discounts on educational workshops, webinars, and expert-led courses covering the latest industry trends.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 90% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% 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.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 41
- Transparency & Controls: 78
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 69
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 41.3%; rating input score 41
- Program expense ratio: 56.4%; rating input score 56
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 17th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 44%; rating input score 44; 10th 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; 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: 23.4%; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.59; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 15.3%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 9.4% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 9.5% per year; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 41.3% of revenue deployed · 56.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $8.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $609K · 31 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 35 of 36 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 14 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 5 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 41/100.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 56/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 44/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 8/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.