Mars Society INC EIN 31-1585646

Mars Society INC

EIN  31-1585646 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Lakewood, CO
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
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Size
$100K–1M
What they do
Inspires public support and fosters future Mars pioneers for planetary exploration.
Leadership
James Heisler · Chairman
Money in and out
$284K revenue, $663K expenses
Bottom line
93% program efficiency

Inspires public support and fosters future Mars pioneers for planetary exploration. For fiscal year 2025 it reported $284K in revenue, $663K in expenses, and $495K in net assets.Pt I

Where the money goes · FY2025
Total revenue
$284K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$663K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$495K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$378K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.93 Management & general $0.07
Program efficiency
93%
of spending reaches programs▼ -5% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
8.4mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▼ -35% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
-133%
revenue over expenses, this year▼ -911% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2025 · Form 990
Revenue
$284K
FY2025▼ -57%
Expenses
$663K
FY2025▼ -11%
Total assets
$495K
FY2025▼ -43%
Total liabilities
$0
FY2025
Total revenue
$284K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$663K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$495K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$378K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$495K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B93%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 33
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 43
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

1 program service account for $615K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Crews of Mars enthusiasts, students, scientists and volunteers spent 2 or 3 week rotations living, working and conducting expiriments at the habitat designed to simulate the challenges of humans living on Mars

$615Kprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CMars Society INC
EINHdr · item D31-1585646
Principal addressHdr · item CLakewood, CO
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.marssociety.org
Year of formationHdr · item Lpending
State of legal domicileHdr · item MCO
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFScience & Technology (U31)
Ruling yearIRS BMFJun 1998

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a3
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b3
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aNo
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13No
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14No
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aNo
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2024); the FY2025 filing did not itemize Part VII
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Program service revenue$148K · 52%
Contributions & grants$126K · 44%
Investment income$10K · 4%
Program service revenue52%$148K
Contributions & grants44%$126K
Investment income4%$10K
Total revenueLn 12$284K

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.93 Management & general $0.07
Program services93%$615K
Management & general7%$47K
Total functional expensesLn 25$663K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$461K
Total assetsLn 16$495K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$0
Total net assetsLn 32$495K
Months of cash on handcomputed8.4

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2025 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $461K · Operating expenses/yr $663K
8.4 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $615K · Total expenses $663K
93%
Management & General
Management & general $47K · Total expenses $663K
7%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $663K
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $199K
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $126K · Total revenue $284K
44%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $284K
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $148K · Total revenue $284K
52%
Investment reliance
Investment income $10K · Total revenue $284K
+4%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $148K · Total expenses $663K
22%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $284K · Prior year $657K
-57%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $248K · FY2024 $284K
+3%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $495K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $284K · Expenses $663K
-133%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $495K
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $495K · Total assets $495K
100%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $495K
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual James Heisler · Reported title Chairman · Highest reported compensation $0 · Total expenses $663K
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $20K · Total expenses $663K
3%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 93%
Overhead ratio 7%
Fundraising cost ratio 0%
Revenue growth -57%
Accounting fee ratio 0%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$5K

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2025 (Latest)$284K revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2024$657K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$250K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$1.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$126K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$248K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2025IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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