The Biophysical Society

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
526050847
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Bethesda, MD, USA
Phone
2402905610
Rating
61
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$5,267,792
Expenses
$5,680,553
Assets
$20,584,049
Liabilities
$2,428,469

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

Leadership & pay

27 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • GABRIELA POPESCU (PRESIDENT-ELECT/PRESIDENT)
  • LYNMARIE THOMPSON (PRESIDENT-ELECT)
  • TAEKJIP HA (PRESDIENT/PAST PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JENNIFER PESANELLI (EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $402,635 total reported compensation
  • HARRIS POVICH (DIRECTOR OF FIN & OPS): $249,705 total reported compensation
  • SARAVANAN RAMUSHANMUGAM (DIRECTOR OF INFO TECH): $235,506 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To lead an innovative global community working at the interface of the physical and life sciences, across all levels of complexity.

What it reported doing in 2024

Publications - the biophysical journal is a semimonthly publication of bps. It includes original articles and reviews on molecular, cellular, and systems biophysics, including experimental studies with a theoretical or mechanistic focus, or research describing significant methodological or technological advances. Areas covered include: cell biophysics, channels/transporters/receptors, genome biophysics and nucleic acids, membranes, molecular machines/motors/nanoscale biophysics, and proteins. The biophysicist aims to highlight and nurture education, and its scholarship and development. The open access journal serves a worldwide audience to make fundamental concepts and techniques in biophysics (and related disciplines), as well as evidence-based pedagogical practice accessible to individuals at all levels: undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate students/trainees, active researchers, and scholars of biophysics teaching and learning. Biophysical reports is a high-quality, forward-looking gold open access (oa) publishing option for the research community. We help you advance biophysics by making it easier for specialists and generalists to share new insights into experimental data or new technologies and methodologies. At biophysical reports, open means rigorous, accessible, concise, and fast.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 85% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 93% 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: 42
  • Transparency & Controls: 72
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 38
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 48.1%; rating input score 48
  • Program expense ratio: 46.2%; rating input score 46
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 1 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 12
    • 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: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: -7.8%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.62; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.12; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 24%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 48.1% of revenue deployed · 46.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 17 of 17 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $2.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $403K · 27 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $165K reported
  • Consistency: 39 of 39 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • 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 48/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 46/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 7 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 16/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 55/100.