Unm Rainforest Innovations

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
850413634
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Albuquerque, NM, USA
Phone
5052727900
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Single Organization Support

Reported finances

Revenue
$9,148,542
Expenses
$9,867,677
Assets
$17,853,939
Liabilities
$5,468,403

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

Leadership & pay

37 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ELIZABETH KUUTTILA (CEO & CHIEF ECONOMIC DEV. OFFICER)

Highest reported compensation

  • DOUGLAS ZIEDONIS (DIRECTOR (THRU 9/6/2024)): $949,961 total reported compensation
  • DR MICHAEL RICHARDS (DIRECTOR (START 10/11/24)): $871,804 total reported compensation
  • GARNETT STOKES (DIRECTOR): $783,348 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 support the university of New Mexico as the source of innovation management, patent prosecution, and licensing of technologies developed at the university.

What it reported doing in 2024

Unm rainforest innovations is the technology transfer organization supporting the university of New Mexico ("unm"), and the corporation was formed under the state of New Mexico university research park and economic development act. Unm rainforest innovations endeavors to make it as easy as possible for unm researchers and faculty inventors to disclose inventions. Unm rainforest innovations protects technologies (intellectual property) developed at unm through patent and copyright consistent with the provisions of the federal bayh-dole act. During fiscal year 2025, unm rainforest innovations received 46 issued patents from the u.s. Patent and trademark office and filed 63 new patent applications with the u.s. Patent and trademark office. Additionally, during fiscal year 2025, unm rainforest innovations entered into 44 license and option to license agreements. As the economic development organization for the university of New Mexico, unm rainforest innovations seeks to find various initiatives to create economic development that is relevant to the university. Unm rainforest innovations has received, in fiscal year 2025, one grant from the city of santa fe economic development to continue the efforts of the unmri tribal entrepreneurial progam.

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 95% 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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 75
  • Sustainability: 30
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 91.9%; rating input score 92
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: 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: 57.1%; rating input score 57; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -7.9%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.81; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.31; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 25.8%; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -51.5% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -55.5% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -3.3% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 91.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 16 of 28 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $9.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $950K · 37 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $966K reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 23 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 6 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.
  • 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 — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 57/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 16/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 58/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 8/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 34/100.