Western Maryland Scenic Railroad Development Corporation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521584622
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Cumberland, MD, USA
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Public Transportation Systems

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,737,982
Expenses
$4,831,384
Assets
$5,579,948
Liabilities
$1,779,055

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ROBERT FLANIGAN (PRESIDENT)
  • RAY MORRIS (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • WESLEY HEINZ (EXECUTIVE DIR): $99,036 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Promotion of tourism

What it reported doing in 2024

Management and operation of a scenic railroad to promote tourism in western Maryland.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 75% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% 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: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 38
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 86.7%; rating input score 87
  • Program expense ratio: 84.3%; rating input score 84
  • 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: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2%; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.15; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.32; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2%; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 14% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.6% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 86.7% of revenue deployed · 84.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $99K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2017 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 27/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 42/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 32/100.