The Backstoppers Inc Fka Policemen & Firemen Fund of St Louis
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 436032561
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2015–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
- Location
- Saint Louis, MO, USA
- Phone
- 3146920200
- Rating
- 74
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $8,597,220
- Expenses
- $5,272,705
- Assets
- $73,993,936
- Liabilities
- $34,669
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
31 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JOHN CAPPS (PRESIDENT)
- HONORABLE MARY RUSSELL (VICE PRESIDENT)
- SCOTT SCHNUCK (IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT)
- COL LAWRENCE M O'TOOLE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (AS OF 9/24))
- COL RON BATTELLE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (THRU 9/24))
Highest reported compensation
- COL RON BATTELLE (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (THRU 9/24)): $219,202 total reported compensation
- ELIZABETH BETTALE (OPERATIONS MANAGER): $129,506 total reported compensation
- JIM NOONAN (FINANCE MANAGER): $112,834 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 mission of the backstoppers is to ensure stability and quality of life for the families of police officers, firefighters and publicly-funded paramedics and emts killed in the line of duty or suffering a catastrophic injury in a defined coverage area in Missouri and Illinois by providing financial and emotional support. In this way, the backstoppers and our members honor those who give their lives protecting our communities.
What it reported doing in 2024
Financial assistance provided to spouses and children of eligible policemen, firemen, & publicly-funded paramedics and emts who have lost their lives or experienced a catastrophic injury in the line of duty.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 74% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 89% of its reported program spending out as grants.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 60
- Transparency & Controls: 75
- Accountability: 91
- Sustainability: 83
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 57.6%; rating input score 58
- Program expense ratio: 70.8%; rating input score 71
- Fundraising efficiency: $10.05 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Missing
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 99.9%; rating input score 100; 43rd 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 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
- 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: Fail
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 38.7%; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 14.03; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 9.7%; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 9.1% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 13.5% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 57.6% of revenue deployed · 70.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 27 of 27 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $3.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $219K · 31 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 9 filing years from 2015 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 58/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 38/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 31/100.