Common Ground Alliance FY2023 filing

Tax-deductible

Alexandria, VA501(c)(3)Since 2000Community DevelopmentEIN 41-1984081

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
75¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$1.8M paid to officers and key staff.
Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2023 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
3 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $165K a year · 3% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 3 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
75%
of spending
Fine: 75% of spending went to programs; 65% to 75%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$1.8M
to officers and key staff · 29% of spending
Worth a look: pay to officers and key staff is 29% of spending; over 20%.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
3 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 3.0 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $25K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$3.2M
52% of total assets
Fine: liabilities are 52% of assets; 50% to 65%.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
25
of 25 voting members
Looks good: 25 of 25 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$5.8M
+39% vs prior year
Spent
$6.3M
To programs
75%
Net assets
$2.9M
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$5.8M
FY2023▲ +39%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$2.9M
FY2021$4.3M
FY2022$4.2M
FY2023$5.8M
FY2024$7.5M
Expenses
$6.3M
FY2023▲ +43%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$2.7M
FY2021$3.5M
FY2022$4.4M
FY2023$6.3M
FY2024$6.9M
Net assets
$2.9M
FY2023▼ -9%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$3.0M
FY2021$3.8M
FY2022$3.1M
FY2023$2.9M
FY2024$3.5M

From the FY2023 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

Give Claim
You’re viewing the FY2023 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →

Status and standing

Is it real, and can you give to it?

Tax-deductible?
Yes
Per the IRS master file.
Can I give now?
No revocation on IRS record
Not on the IRS revocation list.
Filing up to date?
Filed FY2024 (typical filing lag)
Legal name (IRS)Hdr · item CCommon Ground Alliance
EINHdr · item D41-1984081
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
Ruling yearIRS BMFOct 2001
Year of formationHdr · item L2000
Latest filingForm 990FY2024 · Form 990
Principal addressHdr · item CAlexandria, VA
NTEE classificationIRS BMFCommunity Development (S31)
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.commongroundalliance.com

Where the money goes

What each dollar paid for.

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.75 Management & general $0.25
Program services75%$4.7M
Management & general25%$1.6M
Total functional expensesLn 25$6.3M

Financial health

Is it on solid ground?

Program efficiency
75%
of spending reaches programs
Operating runway
8.5mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate
Surplus margin
-9%
revenue over expenses, this year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2023 · Form 990
Total assets
$6.0M
FY2023▲ +22%
Total assets by fiscal year
FY2020$4.1M
FY2021$4.2M
FY2022$4.9M
FY2023$6.0M
FY2024$5.8M
Total liabilities
$3.2M
FY2023▲ +76%
Total liabilities by fiscal year
FY2020$1.2M
FY2021$461K
FY2022$1.8M
FY2023$3.2M
FY2024$2.2M
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$496K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$6.0M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B75%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 325
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 425

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$1.6M
Total assetsLn 16$6.0M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$3.2M
Total net assetsLn 32$2.9M
Months of cash on handcomputed3.0

Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Program service revenue$5.1M · 88%
Contributions & grants$542K · 9%
Investment income$122K · 2%
Program service revenue88%$5.1M
Contributions & grants9%$542K
Investment income2%$122K
Other revenue$4K
— government grantsLn 1e$293K
Total revenueLn 12$5.8M

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2023 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $4.5M · Operating expenses/yr $6.3M
8.5 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $4.7M · Total expenses $6.3M
75%
Management & General
Management & general $1.6M · Total expenses $6.3M
25%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $6.3M
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $83K
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $542K · Total revenue $5.8M
9%
Government reliance
Government grants $293K · Total revenue $5.8M
5%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $5.1M · Total revenue $5.8M
88%
Investment reliance
Investment income $122K · Total revenue $5.8M
+2%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $5.1M · Total expenses $6.3M
82%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $5.8M · Prior year $4.2M
+39%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $2.9M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $5.8M · Expenses $6.3M
-9%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $6.0M
—
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $2.9M · Total assets $6.0M
48%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) $2.9M · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $6.0M
49%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Sarah K Magruder Lyle · Reported title PRESIDENT & CEO · Highest reported compensation $444K · Total expenses $6.3M
7%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $2.6M · Total expenses $6.3M
41%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 75%——
Overhead ratio 25%——
Fundraising cost ratio 0%——
Revenue growth 39%——
Investment management fee ratio 0.4%——
Legal fee ratio 0.2%——
Accounting fee ratio 0.7%——

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.

Leadership and pay

Who runs it, and what are they paid?

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
President & CEO
$443,537Pt VII · Sec A
VP of Programs & Strategic Initiatives
$262,842Pt VII · Sec A
VP of Marketing & Outreach
$245,259Pt VII · Sec A
VP, Damage Prevention Inst
$227,100Pt VII · Sec A
SR Director Dpi Program Participation and Complian
$150,733Pt VII · Sec A
Communications Director & Press Secretary
$145,601Pt VII · Sec A
Manager, Educ & Programs
$115,467Pt VII · Sec A
Project Mngr Programs & Committees
$109,462Pt VII · Sec A

Sarah K Magruder Lyle’s $525K as President & CEO is at the 97th percentile of top reported officer pay among 2832 $1–10M community development 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

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Sarah K Magruder Lyle$525,306$443,537$392,789$396,895$374,064
Erika Andreasen$272,562$262,842$252,271$255,442$245,110
Khrysanne M Kerr$254,331$245,259$234,499$237,743$228,163
Samuel Hall$236,138$227,100———
Brooke Konopacki$156,646$150,733———
Kelly Cahill$154,552$145,601———
Lisa O'Leary—$115,467$110,864$112,528—
Sarah E Daley$112,227$102,195———

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 Common Ground Alliance executive salaries →

Are you one of these people? Claim this org to confirm your role

Governance & Policies

Part VI
  • 25Voting board membersPt VI · Ln 1a
  • 25Independent board membersPt VI · Ln 1b
  • Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
  • Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
  • Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
  • Top official’s pay independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
  • Family or business ties among leadersPt VI · Ln 2No

Mission and programs

What it does.

Educates the public and industry on safe digging practices to prevent damage to underground utilities.

Provided by the organization

This section is blank until Common Ground Alliance claims this page.

Know this organization? Claim it to add your story

Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $3.9M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2023.
01

Common ground alliance hosted the 2023 cga conference & expo april 17-21ST, 2023 in orlando, florida. Over 1,200 professionals across 16 stakeholder groups gathered in-person for the damage prevention event.

$2.9Mprogram expense
02

811 CAMPAIGN/EDUCATION: executed 811 national communications strategy. Developed a series of 811 toolkits to support national efforts including national safe digging month and 8/11 day. Developed educational program for excavators.

$653Kprogram expense
03

Damage Information Reporting Tool (dirt)

Collected and analyzed data on all events submitted into dirt. Published and distributed the annual dirt report as well as an interactive dashboard.

$363Kprogram expense

Run this program? Claim this org to tell your story

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$25K

Filing history

Every return on file.

YearRevenueExpensesChangeFiling
FY2024 Latest $7.5M$6.9M+30% 990 PDF
FY2023 Viewing $5.8M$6.3M+39% 990 PDF
FY2022 $4.2M$4.4M-3% 990 PDF
FY2021 $4.3M$3.5M+51% 990 PDF
FY2020 $2.9M$2.7M 990 PDF

Want to add your own materials alongside these filings? Claim this org

Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash

Full filing: Form 990 for FY2023

Every line we hold from the return, cited to its Part and line.
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $6,301,870 across 17 lines filed
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $933,467 · Management $583,980$1,517,447
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $534,889 · Management $267,445$802,334
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsManagement $73,055$73,055
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $43,286 · Management $21,642$64,928
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $85,193 · Management $42,596$127,789
IX-11b Legal feesPrograms $1,469 · Management $13,669$15,138
IX-11c Accounting feesPrograms $4,222 · Management $39,278$43,500
IX-11f Investment management feesManagement $21,401$21,401
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $1,434,262 · Management $93,090$1,527,352
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $42,609 · Management $93,093$135,702
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $16,731 · Management $247,322$264,053
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $85,224 · Management $42,613$127,837
IX-17 TravelPrograms $149,246 · Management $21,907$171,153
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $1,124,638$1,124,638
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $62,858 · Management $31,429$94,287
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $3,775 · Management $1,888$5,663
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $185,375 · Management $218$185,593
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $4,707,244 · Management $1,594,626 · Fundraising $0$6,301,870

Not shown yet: ratings, outcomes, and peer benchmarks. A Form 990 doesn’t report them.

Similar organizations you could support

Closest in mission — by what they do
See all organizations like Common Ground Alliance →

Run this organization? Claim this page

Compare

Search another nonprofit to view revenue, expenses, assets, key metrics, and leaders side by side

Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2023IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
Names, privacy, and removal requests More

The names, titles, and compensation shown on this page are reproduced from IRS Form 990 filings, which are public records.

Philanthropy.org does not alter the content of those filings. All information appears exactly as reported by the filing organization for the tax year shown.

We publish only information contained in the public IRS filing — and less than the filing contains. Our profile pages do not display street addresses, telephone numbers, personal email addresses, or other personal contact information, even where the filing includes them.

Many people share the same name. A name shown on this page reflects only what one organization reported in one IRS filing for one tax year. It should not be interpreted as identifying any other individual with the same or a similar name.

If you are no longer affiliated with the organization, your name will generally stop appearing in future IRS filings once the organization no longer reports you. Pages for tax years in which you were reported remain published because those filings remain part of the public record.

Philanthropy.org does not alter or remove IRS filing records. Removing a page from this website would not remove the underlying IRS filing, which remains publicly available from the IRS and other publishers of the same information.

If you believe the IRS filing itself is inaccurate, corrections must be made by the filing organization or the IRS directly.

If you ARE the filing organization, claim this org and add context

Made it to the end? Claim this organization

Keep this kind of thing free
Keep public charity data easy to read.

Free to the public, because obviously. Like this? Pay it forward. Don't like this? Help us get better.

Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe. One time.
Keep this kind of thing free
Keep public charity data easy to read.

Free to the public, because obviously. Like this? Pay it forward. Don't like this? Help us get better.

Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe. One time.

All figures are derived from public IRS Form 990 filings and are presented without evaluation of any organization. philanthropy.org does not rate, score, or rank organizations, including the peer-cohort and compensation comparisons above.