Transit Alliance

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
841483080
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2016
Forms available
Form 990 2016, Form 990-EZ 2013
Location
Denver, CO, USA
Phone
3039194334
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Alliance/Advocacy

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$234,085
Expenses
$280,404
Assets
$22,032
Liabilities
$7,715

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2016. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • KATHLEEN OSHER (EXECUTIVE DI): $90,880 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2016. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Transit alliance is a nonprofit organization serving the entire denver metro region that works to empower citizens to lead the transformation of Colorado's mobility future. Transit alliance envisions a network of engaged and informed citizens building a healthy, sustainable and equitable society through better mobility.

What it reported doing in 2016

We are experts in the fields of citizen engagement & connectivity evolution. Our savvy and dedicated team is a trusted voice with the ability to empower citizens to take action in their communities with mobility- related initiatives. Our programming evolves to reflect the latest trends in transit & mobility, but our people-first philosophy stays central. Transit alliance reaches stakeholders through educational programming including the citizens' academy, open access series and the annual transit event. Our impact reaches thousands of people each year with mobility education that encourages action and empowers change. Graduates of our citizens academy report reading more about connectivity-related issues and discussing mobility issues with family, friends and colleagues after graduating from the academy. Graduates even report riding transit more after finisihing citizens' academy.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 85
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 11
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 88.5%; rating input score 89
  • 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: 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: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -19.8%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.08; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.35; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 32.4%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.5% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 21.5% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 88.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $248K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $91K · 9 people listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2012 to 2016
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • Moderate — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 5/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 19/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.