Us Ignite Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 453943413
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Washington, DC, USA
- Phone
- 2028993231
- Rating
- 85
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Educational Services and Schools - Other
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $17,430,772
- Expenses
- $16,674,194
- Assets
- $4,420,957
- Liabilities
- $1,326,347
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
19 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- NICHOLAS MAYNARD (CEO AND PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- NICHOLAS MAYNARD (CEO AND PRESIDENT): $312,717 total reported compensation
- HANI ALMASOUD (TECHNICAL PROGRAM MANAGER): $204,412 total reported compensation
- ERIC WERNER (PROGRAM DIRECTOR & BOARD MEMBER): $202,280 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Us ignite, inc. Is a nonprofit organization formed to promote u.s. Leadership in developing applications and services for ultra-fast broadband networks.us ignite works as a convener to create public-private partnerships among corporate, government, and foundation partners seeking to further smart city development. Us ignite facilitates these partnerships by connecting funding sources to clear project roadmaps and by bringing technical and operational expertise to bear on program execution. We have deep ties to stakeholders across the public and private sectors, including active working relationships with municipal governments, corporate leaders, and academic partners.
What it reported doing in 2024
Us ignite completed two department of commerce projects in salt lake city (slc) and Washington dc. The innovate slc project integrated entrepreneurial training, smart city innovation, and small business capacity-building efforts. Through two coordinated work areas, the urban innovation accelerator for startups and the small business training program for local enterprises, us ignite and its partners supported over 200 participants across 76 industries, focusing on opportunity zones and underserved communities. The startup accelerator delivered mentorship, technical training, and investor engagement to 24 startups in 13 sectors, resulting in over $3.1 million in capital raised, $1.27 million in sbir funding, and $350,000 in new revenue. Concurrently, the small business program reached 183 participants, equipping them with practical knowledge of smart city technologies and fostering stronger ties between minority chambers, local government, and industry partners. Collectively, these initiatives strengthened salt lake city's innovation ecosystem, enhanced workforce development, and laid the foundation for sustainable, tech-driven economic growth and community resilience.the us ignite dc regional startup and workforce training program (innovatedmv) successfully strengthened the entrepreneurial ecosystem across the Washington, dc, Maryland, and Virginia region. Over two years, the program supported 127 startups and 263 small businesses, engaged 40+ ecosystem partners, and hosted 25 training and networking events. Highlights included the ai for dmv startups initiative, smart cities training series, and lean business model canvas workshop, which equipped founders with cutting-edge tools in ai integration, smart technologies, and sustainable business modeling. Through collaborations with organizations such as arlington bizlaunch, black meta agency, and k street capital, innovatedmv advanced minority business participation, facilitated access to capital, and connected 72 founders with 25 funders. The program also launched the innovatedmv website, conducted regional gap assessments using innovative voice-enabled surveys, and developed sustainability strategies to continue driving innovation, inclusion, and workforce development beyond the grant lifecycle.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Grant-funded. 96% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 67% 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. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 90
- Transparency & Controls: 87
- Accountability: 81
- Sustainability: 34
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 88.4%; rating input score 88
- Program expense ratio: 92.4%; rating input score 92
- Fundraising efficiency: $293.16 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- 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: 66.7%; rating input score 67; 11th 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: 4.3%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.27; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.3; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 9.4%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 20.4% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 19.2% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 13.6% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 88.4% of revenue deployed · 92.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 8 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $15.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $313K · 19 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $966K reported
- Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 22 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 13 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: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 6/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 51/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 46/100.