Wetheaction

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
821550002
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2020
Forms available
Form 990 2020
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2028881746
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,673,211
Expenses
$6,603,274
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2020. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SARAH BAKER (PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • SARAH BAKER (PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $294,069 total reported compensation
  • JACEK PRUSKI (MANAGING DIRECTOR & GENERAL COUNSEL): $243,458 total reported compensation
  • KATIE WALDO (DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY IMPACT): $182,545 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2020. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We the action's sole program is a digital platform (wetheaction.org) that uses technology to make it easy for lawyers to find and volunteer for legal projects posted by we the action's partners. Volunteer lawyers sign up for free at wetheaction.org, browse projects posted by we the action's partners, and volunteer for projects that interest them.

What it reported doing in 2020

The primary objectives of this program during the relevant tax year were to recruit lawyer volunteers to sign-up on wetheaction.org, add new nonprofit partners, increase the amount of volunteer opportunities, and assess and improve the efficacy of the technology. By september 30, 2020, our website, wetheaction.org, has helped secure thousands of hours of free legal service for our nonprofit partners. The long-term objective of we the action is to use technology to engage and mobilize the legal community toward a more equitable, inclusive, and just society.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 89% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 93
  • Transparency & Controls: 88
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 3
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 93.1%; rating input score 93
  • Fundraising efficiency: $20.65 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • 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; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
    • 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: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -79.8%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.4%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 63.7% per year; rating input score 100; 98th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 17.6% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -17.1% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 93.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $6.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $294K · 7 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $1M reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2017 to 2020
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 55/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 20/100.