The Traveling Press Fund Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
842726336
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
St Petersburg, FL, USA
Phone
7276230934
Rating
90
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Philanthropy, Voluntarism, and Grantmaking Foundations N.E.C.

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,365,826
Expenses
$4,424,942
Assets
$1,260,015
Liabilities
$9,606

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

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ALEXANDER R BERGER (DIRECTOR/PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • ALEXANDER R BERGER (DIRECTOR/PRESIDENT)
  • GARY L GINSBERG (DIRECTOR/TREASURER)
  • JESSE M FRIED (DIRECTOR/SECRETARY)

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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The traveling press fund inc. (the organization") is an independent, non-profit corporation that provides grants to newsrooms and freelance journalists to produce investigative and on-location journalism, which seeks to educate the public and advance the public interest. The organization is non-partisan and, in the best traditions of american journalism, seeks to encourage and enable journalists to be the eyes and ears for their readers and hold the powerful accountable.

What it reported doing in 2024

The traveling press fund made grants to enable journalists and freelance writers to produce on-location, non-partisan stories and interviews that seek to educate and inform the public about new ideas and initiatives.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 98% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 99
  • Transparency & Controls: 83
  • Accountability: 94
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 99.9%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 98.5%; rating input score 99
  • Fundraising efficiency: $401.47 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 95; 95th 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: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Pass
    • Conducts field audits: Limited
    • May suspend future funding: Limited
    • Requires financial reports: Limited
    • Conducts site visits: Limited
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Limited
  • 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 7 controls in place; rating input score 86
    • 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: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -1.4%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.28; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 31.3% per year; rating input score 100; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 12.3% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 1.5% per year; rating input score 100; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 99.9% of revenue deployed · 98.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 6 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 3 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and grants
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2019 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 28/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 9/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Audit committee oversight not reported.