The Buck Hill Conservation Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 232676909
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2010
- Location
- Buck Hill Falls, PA, USA
- Phone
- 9175611560
- Rating
- 66
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Natural Resources Conservation and Protection
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $277,561
- Expenses
- $300,315
- Assets
- $3,692,525
- Liabilities
- $17,587
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
18 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Myron Manternach (President)
- Ed Post (Vice President)
People named in this filing
- Myron Manternach (President)
- Ed Post (Vice President)
- Robert Jeffries (Treasurer)
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
To preserve and protect land in and around Buck Hill Falls, to promote the health of the local forest and watershed, and to foster appreciation of the areas natural beauty.
What it reported doing in 2025
The organization is engaged in the preservation of natural land, forests and watersheds in and around buck hill falls, pa. Stewardship program services include maintaining and clearing trails, maintaining trail signage, removing and controlling invasive species and pests, and planting trees for reforestation. The organization engages with the community by organizing hikes, managing a community garden and holding community events that are open to the general public. The organization raised most of its funds from general donations for use without restrictions. The organization receives a portion of its revenue from grants and donations which are restricted to funding stewardship costs.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 83% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- 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 a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 46
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 72
- Sustainability: 50
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 50.2%; rating input score 50
- Program expense ratio: 42.5%; rating input score 43
- Fundraising efficiency: $8.47 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 72.2%; rating input score 72; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- 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: Fail
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -8.2%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 12.3; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -5.1% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 50.2% of revenue deployed · 42.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 13 of 18 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $128K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 18 people listed
- Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 15 filing years from 2011 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
- Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
- 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 50/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 43/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 33/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 21/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 44/100.