South Carolina Wildlife Federation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
570602549
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2025
Location
Columbia, SC, USA
Phone
8032560670
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Alliance/Advocacy Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$619,465
Expenses
$603,858
Assets
$977,655
Liabilities
$69,108

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

25 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • SARA GREEN (EXECUTIVE DI): $80,211 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

South Carolina wildlife federation, inc. Was formed in 1981 as a non-profit entity to promote effective habitat conservation, natural resources conservation, and respect for outdoor traditions through statewide leadership, education, advocacy, and partnerships. The federation is South Carolina's oldest conservation group and is primarily funded through individual and corporate membership donations, special fundraising activities and events, and by national, state, and local grants. The federation is governed by an elected board of directors and affiliated with the national wildlife federation.

What it reported doing in 2025

Conservation advocacy: a program designed to educate governmental bodies and committees through the use of a paid contractor who presents evidence and information used to train and develop constituencies for grassroots involvement; the paid contractor prepares articles included in the federation's newsletters and serves as a general resource in governmental relations on behalf of the federation; fosters knowledge, stimulates interest and participation in public and private wildlife preservation.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 74
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80.5%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 81.6%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.28 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 17; 17th 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.5%; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.62; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.3%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.4% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 19.6% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80.5% of revenue deployed · 81.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 24 of 24 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $493K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $80K · 25 people listed
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 17/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 38/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 58/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 28/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 39/100.