Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Oct 1991.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
84 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Who runs it and what they're paid
22 people listed on the 990; $231K paid to officers and key staff.
Michael Sype’s $102K as Marketing Director is at the 35th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1842 $1–10M recreation & sports 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 · 4 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matthew Caldwell | — | $167,755 | $152,137 | $134,742 |
| Michael Sype | $101,935 | — | — | — |
| Matt Gaskins | $77,077 | — | — | — |
| Matt Caldwell | $51,591 | — | — | — |
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.
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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
Promotes outdoor ethics to protect recreation access and enhance healthy ecosystems.
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During the fiscal year, Tread Lightly! advanced its mission to promote responsible outdoor recreation through stewardship, education, and strategic partnerships. The organization worked with public land agencies, nonprofit organizations, recreation groups, industry partners, local communities, and volunteers to protect public lands…
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Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2024 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY24 | End FY24 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $1.7M | $166K |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $751K | |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $37K | $24K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $2.2M | $1.3M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $554K | $482K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $1.6M | $778K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $87K | $87K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $129K | $64K | $64K | |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $773K | $715K | $48K | $11K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $13K | $12K | $1K | $160 |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $89K | $80K | $8K | $1K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $76K | $68K | $6K | $906 |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $10K | $10K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $72K | $72K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $538K | $459K | $56K | $23K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $144K | $83K | $10K | $52K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $56K | $46K | $8K | $1K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $24K | $24K | ||
| OccupancyLn 16 | $57K | $36K | $19K | $2K |
| TravelLn 17 | $99K | $91K | $7K | $558 |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $46K | $45K | $964 | $118 |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $13K | $9K | $4K | $483 |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $6K | $2K | $4K | $102 |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $297K | $291K | $4K | $2K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $2.5M | $2.1M | $321K | $94K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 | $2.1M | $2.5M | −$411K | $1.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $3.0M | $2.2M | $776K | $2.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $2.3M | $1.8M | $455K | $1.5M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $1.8M | $1.3M | $502K | $1.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $1.4M | $1.4M | $9K | $551K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2024 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $1,662,600 across 8 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $2,527,942 across 18 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $1,260,303 assets, 15 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $778,175 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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