Water Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
371833985
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2016
Location
Sacramento, CA, USA
Phone
9164143310
Rating
85
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Water Resource, Wetlands Conservation and Management

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$22,281,949
Expenses
$18,296,237
Assets
$39,026,292
Liabilities
$7,944,509

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

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CELESTE CANTU (CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT)
  • ALLISON HARVEY TURNER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)

Highest reported compensation

  • ALLISON HARVEY TURNER (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $386,617 total reported compensation
  • LIZETTE LECLERC (CHIEF FINANCE & OPERATIONS DIRECTOR): $268,912 total reported compensation
  • JENNIFER SOKOLOVE (CHIEF PROGRAMS & STRATEGY OFFICER): $264,490 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The water foundation and our partners advance lasting solutions to secure safe water for people, restore and sustain freshwater ecosystems, and build climate resilience.

What it reported doing in 2024

The states and basins program includes state, regional, and local efforts to secure clean and affordable drinking water, build urban and rural climate resilience, and/or advance solutions that restore and protect freshwater ecosystems. Grants from the water foundation in 2024 supported sustainable, inclusive groundwater management and safe and affordable drinking water in California; community engagement in green stormwater infrastructure projects in los angeles county; a campaign to restore the columbia-snake river basin in the pacific northwest; coalitions supporting the protection of surface water, wetlands, and floodplains in New Mexico; and efforts to advance sustainable water management that benefits people and nature in Texas.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 87% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 47% for direct work, and 53% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

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 reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 66
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79.8%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 96.7%; rating input score 97
  • Fundraising efficiency: $228.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • 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: 99.7%; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: 17.9%; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.13; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.2; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.7%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 12.2% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.5% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 17.1% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79.8% of revenue deployed · 96.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $17.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $387K · 18 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $1.6M reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2017 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 96 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 88 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: Governance controls: Document-retention policy not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.