Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in May 2014.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
73 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
17 people listed on the 990; $1.5M paid to officers and key staff.
Timothy Sears’s $247K as Chief Operating Officer is at the 49th percentile of top reported officer pay among 324 $10–100M environment nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timothy Sears | $247,045 | $217,340 | $206,779 | $190,613 | $170,051 |
| Stanley Greschner | — | — | $183,410 | $194,395 | $208,159 |
| Erica Mackie | $202,881 | $178,684 | $170,176 | $127,632 | $147,244 |
| Anhdai Tran | $196,900 | $145,708 | — | — | $122,549 |
| Christopher Walker | $187,667 | $166,423 | — | — | — |
| Christian Weaver | $181,972 | $139,409 | — | — | — |
| Jeffrey Coleman | — | — | — | $170,984 | $166,165 |
| Hector Pena | $169,307 | $111,111 | — | — | — |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
See Grid Alternatives executive salaries →Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Installs solar projects and clean energy technologies in low-income communities to lower energy costs and jumpstart careers in the renewable energy sector.
Questions for Grid Alternatives
Your first name shows with your question. Grid Alternatives answers here, for everyone.
Provided alternative renewable energy technology and job training accessible to underserved communites. In-kind services donated to the organization in 2020 included legal counsel(primarily around affiliation, human resources, and project financing) and skilled solar installation assistance through grid alternative's volunteer team…
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
Federal money
Plus 3 smaller programs.
The auditor reported 4 findings: a weakness in money controls.
Plus 2 smaller programs.
The auditor reported no findings.
Plus 5 smaller programs.
The auditor reported no findings.
Plus 4 smaller programs.
The auditor reported no findings.
By the numbers
The FY2020 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY20 | End FY20 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $812K | $3.4M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $1.5M | $1.6M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $103K | $162K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $26.0M | $30.3M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $24.0M | $21.9M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $2.0M | $8.4M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $1.6M | $1.6M | ||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $50K | $50K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $880K | $383K | $330K | $166K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $7.9M | $5.2M | $2.1M | $677K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $40K | $28K | $9K | $3K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $912K | $610K | $279K | $23K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $748K | $457K | $179K | $112K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $45K | $41K | $3K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $139K | $12K | $127K | |
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $4.2M | $4.1M | $83K | $5K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $118K | $95K | $11K | $13K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $269K | $100K | $159K | $10K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $828K | $131K | $652K | $45K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $659K | $381K | $225K | $53K |
| TravelLn 17 | $182K | $140K | $31K | $11K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $85K | $67K | $16K | $2K |
| InterestLn 20 | $169K | $169K | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $52K | $47K | $5K | $266 |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $581K | $581K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $2.4M | $2.4M | $39K | $637 |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $78K | $67K | $8K | $2K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $22.0M | $16.0M | $4.8M | $1.1M |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 LatestFiled with the IRS Oct 28, 2025 | $46.9M | $45.1M | $1.8M | $34.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Nov 12, 2024 | $63.3M | $37.6M | $25.7M | $32.8M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS Oct 30, 2023 | $23.1M | $34.0M | −$10.8M | $6.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021Filed with the IRS Nov 7, 2022 | $37.6M | $28.1M | $9.5M | $18.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 ViewingFiled with the IRS Nov 15, 2021 | $27.1M | $22.0M | $5.1M | $8.4M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2020 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $27,084,220 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 6 of 6 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $27,084,220 across 8 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $21,981,341 across 21 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $30,271,553 assets, 19 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $8,419,007 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2020 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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