Terrafirma Risk Retention Group Llc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 451437560
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2014–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025
- Location
- Williston, VT, USA
- Phone
- 8028645599
- Rating
- 76
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Insurance Providers
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,144,917
- Expenses
- $2,534,177
- Assets
- $16,518,197
- Liabilities
- $5,111,527
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
15 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ASHLEY DMOSTHENES (PRESIDENT - ARMS)
- JENNIFER HERZOG (VICE PRESIDENT - ARMS)
- LESLIE RATLEY-BEACH (VICE PRESIDENT - ARMS)
- RENEE KIVIKKO (VICE PRESIDENT/TREASURER - ARMS)
People named in this filing
- OLIVER BASS (MEMBERS COMMITTEE)
- DEBORAH GOARD (MEMBERS COMMITTEE)
- SHELLEY HARMS (MEMBERS COMMITTEE)
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 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The primary exempt purpose of terrafirma is to operate as a qualifiedcharitable risk pool pursuant to i.r.c. Section 501(n).
What it reported doing in 2025
The primary purpose of terrafirma is to operate as a qualified charitable risk pool pursuant to i.r.c. Section 501(n), organized and operated to pool and insure the insurance risks of its members and to provide information to its members with respect to loss control and risk management. Each member of such pool shall at all times be an organization described in section 501(c)(3) and exempt from income tax under section 501(a). Fundamentaly, terrafirma is designed to provide a safety net for a charitable land trust from catastrophic legal expenses and provide the confidence and capability to uphold our conservation obligations forever. However, terrafirma will also offer loss prevention and risk management services to its members through alliance risk management services, llc (arms), a wholly owned subsidiary of the land trust alliance, inc. And the manager of terrafirma will also provide free claims assistance to land trusts and early advice to assist dispute resolution and avoid unnecessary litigation.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 83% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- 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.
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 liabilities are high compared with assets.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 51
- Transparency & Controls: 90
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 72
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 52.1%; rating input score 52
- Program expense ratio: 67.4%; rating input score 67
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
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: Limited
- 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: 19.4%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 6.52; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 5.2% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 10.1% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 52.1% of revenue deployed · 67.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 15 people listed
- Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $651K reported
- Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2014 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 52/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 26/100.