Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Feb 1968.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
72 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
28 people listed on the 990; $12.0M paid to officers and key staff.
Pedro Sancha’s $1.9M as President Ceobod Member is at the 100th percentile of top reported officer pay among 8 $100M+ public safety & disaster 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevan P Lawlor to 22822 | — | — | $4,684,246 | — | — |
| Kevan P Lawlor | — | — | — | — | $3,581,913 |
| Michael P Walsh | — | $2,965,896 | $679,746 | $711,617 | $614,454 |
| Thomas Chestnut | — | — | — | $2,862,863 | $409,267 |
| Kevan Lawlor | — | — | — | $2,077,508 | — |
| Pedro Sancha | $1,937,069 | $1,243,490 | $640,720 | — | — |
| Lichun L Ma | $1,650,272 | $760,191 | $857,847 | — | — |
| Karen a Kreza | — | $1,144,175 | $635,965 | — | — |
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 Nsf International 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
Protects public health and safety worldwide through rigorous testing and certification.
Questions for Nsf International
Your first name shows with your question. Nsf International answers here, for everyone.
The NSF water division certifies products that come into contact with drinking water; such products include plumbing components, water treatment chemicals, drinking water filters, and pool & spa equipment.
The NSF global labs division provides engineering, chemistry, microbiology, and toxicology lab and testing services across all major industries. Plastic and plumbing testing services are also provided along with R&D services to assist with market entry for plastic piping products separate from certification testing.
The NSF health sciences division offers reference standards, certification, testing, toxicology reviews, and auditing services for the dietary supplement and cosmetics, and functional food industries.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2021 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY21 | End FY21 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $4.0M | $6.0M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $262.2M | $261.2M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $65.2M | $62.4M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $484.9M | $495.7M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $171.4M | $171.8M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $313.6M | $324.0M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $180K | $180K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $7.5M | $4.5M | $3.0M | |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $47.1M | $33.9M | $13.3M | |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $868K | $484K | $384K | |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $5.3M | $4.1M | $1.2M | |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $3.6M | $2.5M | $1.1M | |
| Management feesLn 11a | $78K | $78K | ||
| Legal feesLn 11b | $947K | $451K | $496K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $266K | $266K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $50K | $50K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $9.7M | $5.5M | $4.2M | |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $2.7M | $431K | $2.3M | |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $4.1M | $3.2M | $895K | |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $4.2M | $1.3M | $2.9M | |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $3.5M | $202K | $3.3M | |
| TravelLn 17 | $650K | $418K | $232K | |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $288K | $15K | $273K | |
| InterestLn 20 | $2.8M | $2.8M | ||
| Payments to affiliatesLn 21 | $40.8M | $40.8M | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $8.4M | $1.9M | $6.5M | |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $1.2M | $262 | $1.2M | |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $7.3M | $4.7M | $2.6M | |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $629K | $4.5M | −$3.9M | |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $152.2M | $109.1M | $43.1M | $0 |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 LatestFiled with the IRS Nov 14, 2025 | $203.1M | $176.8M | $26.3M | $400.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Nov 14, 2024 | $191.9M | $158.4M | $33.5M | $374.5M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $167.8M | $153.8M | $14.0M | $339.7M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 ViewingFiled with the IRS Nov 14, 2022 | $159.5M | $152.2M | $7.3M | $324.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020Filed with the IRS Nov 12, 2021 | $123.5M | $107.0M | $16.4M | $313.6M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $159,455,428 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 9 of 10 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $159,455,428 across 5 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $152,196,832 across 23 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $495,740,429 assets, 19 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $323,985,626 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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