UNITED STATES SAILING ASSOCIATION INC

EIN: 13-1671529 · BRISTOL, RI · Data spans: TY2015–TY2024

Most recent filing: Tax Year 2024.

A more recent filing may not yet be published.

Sailing's public record, made legible. All numbers come directly from this organization's own sworn 990 filing. Patterns are computed from years of filings — not assessments or judgments.

Read trends in context: compare like with like, note the filing year, and treat major disruptions (like 2020–2021) as discontinuities rather than a continuous baseline.

Missing or N/A does not always mean absent. It can mean the item was not disclosed on that form, not collected on that filing type, or not available for that year.

Accrual basisAuditedAudit committeePart XII · TY2024
Total Revenueℹ️Form 990, Part VIII — Statement of Revenue. Includes contributions, grants, member dues, program service revenue, and investment income. Does NOT include borrowed funds or asset sales proceeds.

$9,858,951

Total Expensesℹ️Form 990, Part IX (full 990) or Part I Line 17 (990-EZ) — Total functional expenses. Includes program service expenses, management and general, and fundraising. The gap between revenue and expenses is the operating surplus or deficit for the year.

$12,481,224

Total Assetsℹ️Form 990, Part X — Balance Sheet, end of year. Includes cash, receivables, investments, land, buildings, and equipment.

$13,812,749

Net Assetsℹ️Form 990, Part X — Total assets minus total liabilities. Positive = financially solvent. Negative = liabilities exceed assets. Also called 'fund balance.'

$2,661,272

65 W-2 employees reported (Form W-3, most recent filing — contractors and volunteers excluded) · TY2024 · 990

Total compensation, benefits & payroll taxes (Part IX)

TY2024

$5,131,486

Full cost to employ everyone — wages + employer benefits + payroll taxes. Not officer pay alone.

~$79,000 per employee average across 65 W-2 employees; includes benefits & payroll taxes; part-time and seasonal staff counted at full weight.

Named officers/key employees (Part VII‑A) show reportable compensation only and are already included in the Part IX total above. They are not additive.

Professional & consulting fees (Part IX, line 11)

TY2024

$2,158,991

Payments to outside firms and independent contractors — not included in the Part IX labor total above. Combined with the labor total, full people cost is $7,290,477.

Legal$137,044
Accounting$64,651
Other$1,957,296

Functional Expense Allocation (Part IX)

TY2024

$12,481,224total functional expenses

71.9%

Program services

$8,976,862

27.5%

Management & general

$3,428,661

0.6%

Fundraising

$75,701

Source: Form 990, Part IX, line 25. A higher program-service percentage generally indicates more mission-directed spending.

Historical Trends

Revenue vs. Expenses

Net Revenue / Operating Margin

Net Assets

Revenue Trend

Tax YearPeriodFormRevenueExpensesNet RevenueNet Assets
TY2015Before 2020990$10,511,722$9,862,276$649,446$5,817,826
TY2016Before 2020990$11,646,019$10,450,026$1,195,993$7,062,155
TY2017Before 2020990$9,668,307$10,915,627-$1,247,320$6,144,375
TY2018Before 2020990$9,925,617$11,451,899-$1,526,282$4,715,364
TY2019Before 2020990$10,474,843$11,154,534-$679,691$4,053,075
TY20202020–2021990$9,873,231$9,079,817$793,414$4,864,091
TY20212020–2021990$11,092,289$11,465,127-$372,838$4,317,229
TY20222022+990$14,807,478$14,102,629$704,849$4,801,639
TY20232022+990$12,911,236$11,838,413$1,072,823$5,761,099
TY20242022+990$9,858,951$12,481,224-$2,622,273$2,661,272

Revenue trend is a filing-history view. It helps you compare operating periods, not infer the club's live condition today.

Revenue Breakdown (Part VIII — most recent year)

Form 990, Part VIII — Statement of Revenue. Includes, but is not limited to: Line 1 = contributions and grants (including member dues reported as contributions). Lines 2a–2f = program service revenue (activities that directly further the organization's exempt purpose). Line 3 = investment income. The specific mix varies by organization type. Source: the organization's own sworn filing.

LineDescriptionAmount
11aMISCELLANEOUS INCOME$90,276
12Total revenue$9,858,951
1dRelated organizations$115,100
1fAll other contributions, gifts, grants$3,009,611
1gNoncash contributions included in 1a-1f$811,877
1hTotal contributions and grants$3,124,711
2aADULT PROGRAMS$2,769,535
2bYOUTH PROGRAMS$1,442,336
2cOLYMPIC PROGRAM$1,142,534
2dOFFSHORE RACE SUPPORT$459,924
2eOTHER EDUCATION SERVIC$18,445
2fTotal program service revenue$5,832,774
3Investment income$18,018

Most revenue is reported in a single category this year. That can be normal for some org types; see the source filing for detail.

Endowment (Schedule D, Part V)

$251,999

Ending endowment balance as of TY2024

Ending balance — 5-year trend

TY2020

$382,753

TY2021

$435,764

TY2022

$340,648

TY2023

$351,083

TY2024

$251,999

TY2024 rollforward

Beginning balance$351,083
Investment earnings / losses$21,962
Ending balance$251,999

Allocation

0.25884%

Board-designated

0.74116%

Permanent endowment

Source: Form 990, Schedule D, Part V. Endowment funds reflect the organization's long-term investment reserves.

Balance Sheet (Part X)

TY2024
LineDescriptionBOYEOY
16Total assets$15,120,841$13,812,749
26Total liabilities$9,359,742$11,151,477
33Total net assets or fund balances$5,761,099$2,661,272

Source: Form 990, Part X, Balance Sheet.

Officers & Key Staff (Part VII)

How to read this section

This is not a full staff directory. It is the subset of people the organization had to disclose in Form 990, Part VII (the officer, director, trustee, key employee, and highest-compensated employee section of the filing). Why this matters: a missing name does not mean a person was not employed or involved.

Total Volunteer Board Hours/Week (Selected Year): 136

Hours per week are self-reported by each officer on Form 990, Part VII. They are not verified.

Officers and directors as reported on Form 990, Part VII. These are typically unpaid, elected positions. If an officer receives compensation, it will appear in the Paid Staff tab.

Operationally, this section is most useful for understanding disclosed leadership structure, compensation visibility, and board labor — not for reconstructing the full staffing model of a club.

NameTitleHours/WeekStatus
WILLIAM RUHDIRECTOR-FOUNDATION PRESIDENT (TO 2/24)5Volunteer
BOB KOTTLERDIRECTOR (AS OF 11/24)5Volunteer
CHRIS BARNARDDIRECTOR (AS OF 12/24)1Volunteer
SARAH LIHANDIRECTOR10Volunteer
MAGGIE SHEADIRECTOR (TO 11/24)5Volunteer
LUKE MULLERDIRECTOR (AS OF 12/24)5Volunteer
SHEILA TOLLEDIRECTOR5Volunteer
MATT GALLAGHERSECRETARY/DIRECTOR (AS OF 11/24)10Volunteer
LAURA GRONDINVICE PRESIDENT (AS OF 11/24)10Volunteer
BRIAN KEANEDIRECTOR/ FOUNDATION PRESIDENT (AS OF 2/24)10Volunteer
MARIE ROGERSVICE PRESIDENT/DIRECTOR (TO 11/24)5Volunteer
CHARLIE ARMSSECRETARY/DIRECTOR (TO 11/24)10Volunteer
MIKE VAN DYKEDIRECTOR (AS OF 11/24)5Volunteer
JUDGE RYANDIRECTOR (TO 11/24)5Volunteer
STAN HONEYDIRECTOR5Volunteer
RICHARD JEPSENPRESIDENT/DIRECTOR (TO 11/24)10Volunteer
JOHN SCHOENDORFTREASURER/DIRECTOR10Volunteer
HENRY BRAUERPRESIDENT (AS OF 11/24)10Volunteer
PAMELA HEALYDIRECTOR10Volunteer

Top Independent Contractors (Part VII-B)

$173,077across 1 contractor

TY2024
ContractorServicesCompensation
OLYMPIC SAILING DIRECTOR$173,077

Source: Form 990, Part VII, Section B. Lists each independent contractor paid more than $100,000.

Programs (Part III — most recent year)

Form 990, Part III — Statement of Program Service Accomplishments. These are the activities that directly further the organization's exempt purpose. Expenses, grants, and revenue are as reported in the organization's own sworn filing.

THE YOUTH PROGRAMS PROVIDES YOUTH TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION OF INSTRUCTORS FOR BEGINNING INTERMEDIATE AND ADVANCED SAILING CLASSES PROVIDED THROUGHOUT THE US. FOR LEARN-TO-SAIL PROGRAMS AND SMALL BOAT PROGRAMS WITH A GOAL OF PROMOTING PARTICIPATION IN BOATING AND ON-WATER ACTIVITIES. THESE SERVICES ARE ALSO CONDUCTED IN ASSOCIATION WITH VARIOUS INTERNATIONAL SAIL TRAINING ORGANIZATIONS. ALSO COND…

Expenses: $1,705,604Grants: $58,503Revenue: $2,586,104

THE EDUCATION DEVELOPS PRODUCTS AND PROGRAMS THAT SUPPORT THE VARIOUS CONSTITUENT SECTIONS OF US SAILING (YOUTH, ADULT, AND RACE ADMINISTRATION). ADDITIONALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR SCHEDULING OF EDUCATIONAL COURSES AND SEMINARS, RESPONSIBLE FOR MANAGING THE ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE US COAST GUARD, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE BOATING ADMINISTRATORS (NASBLA) ,AND NATIONAL SAFE BOATING COUNC…

Expenses: $1,795,372Grants: $4,000Revenue: $2,311,826

Governance & Transparency Signals

The IRS Form 990 is a sworn disclosure document — not just a tax return. Beyond financials, it captures governance policies, compensation practices, and relationships between insiders and the organization. Every category below comes directly from that filing. When a field is blank, it is often because this form type doesn’t require it, or the org doesn’t meet the threshold that triggers disclosure. That context is itself worth knowing.

Conflict of Interest Policy

Form 990, Part VI — Line 12a

Governance data not available for this organization’s most recent filing year. This can occur for newly filed returns not yet in the corpus, or for organizations whose XML filing did not include Part VI.

Whistleblower Protection Policy

Form 990, Part VI — Line 13

Governance data not available for this organization’s most recent filing year.

Officer & Key Employee Compensation (Part VII)

Form 990, Part VII — Named individuals with reportable compensation

Part VII requires individual disclosure of all officers, directors, trustees, key employees, and the five highest-compensated employees earning above the reporting threshold. The individuals listed here are from the most recent available filing.

NameTitleComp from Org
ALAN OSTFIELDCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER/NO$501,966
ALAN OSTFIELDCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER$501,966
ALAN OSTFIELDCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER/NON VOTING$389,783
ALAN OSTFIELDCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER$319,454
BYRON J GIERHARTCEO$260,670
PAUL CAYARDOLYMPIC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR$253,781
BYRON JACK GEIRHARTFORMER CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER$222,828
BYRON J GIERHART JRCEO$214,273

Compensation shown is reportable compensation from this organization only, as disclosed in Part VII. The $150,000 threshold is significant context: most volunteer-run sailing clubs report $0 for all officers. When professional staff — a General Manager, Executive Director, or Harbor Master — earns above that level, it signals an org operating more like a business than a volunteer collective. That’s not inherently good or bad: a $12M club with 45 full-time employees may well need a $200K GM. But a $400K club paying its Commodore $180K warrants scrutiny.

Independent Compensation Consultant

Schedule J, Part I — Organizations filing when comp exceeds $150K

No independent compensation consultant reported for the most recent year with Schedule J data (2024). Executive pay was set through internal board processes — a compensation committee, comparison to prior years, or board vote — without outside benchmarking. This is common and not inherently concerning for organizations paying market-rate salaries. It becomes more notable as compensation levels rise and the board’s judgment becomes harder to validate externally.

Equity-Based Compensation

Schedule J, Part II — Per-person compensation detail

None reported

No equity-based compensation reported — expected for a nonprofit. Nonprofits cannot issue ownership stakes because they have no shareholders. In the for-profit world, equity aligns executive incentives with long-term value creation; the nonprofit analog takes different forms (retention bonuses, deferred comp) but not equity. Zero percent of organizations in the sailing and yacht club corpus report this. If any did, it would immediately raise questions about whether the arrangement is consistent with tax-exempt status.

Related-Party Transactions (Schedule L)

Schedule L — Transactions with Interested Persons (officers, directors, their families, controlled entities)

Schedule L requires disclosure of loans, grants, and business transactions between the organization and its own insiders — board members, officers, key employees, and their family members or entities they control. Nonprofits are not prohibited from transacting with insiders, but they must disclose it, follow fair-market-value standards, and document that the transaction benefited the organization, not just the insider. These disclosures exist because self-dealing is the most direct way nonprofit assets can flow to those in control.

2 transactions found across all available filing years. Sorted largest to most recent.

Person / EntityRelationshipTypeAmountYear
HENRY BRAUERBOARD MEMBER/PRESIDENT AS OF 11/24loan$200,0002024
BRIAN KEANEBOARD MEMBERloan$200,0002024

⚠️ Entity-controlled transactions detected. One or more transactions involve an entity owned or controlled by a board officer. Even if terms are fair, this is a related-party transaction of the highest order: the lender has direct influence over whether the loan is repaid, on what terms, and whether it was structured to benefit the club or themselves. Key questions: Was interest charged at market rate? Did a disinterested board majority approve it? Is there a documented repayment schedule?

📋 Context note. Where available, transactional context may be supplemented by audited financial statements or other independent disclosures that are not derived from 990 XML data alone. When an independent audit confirms the terms, repayment schedule, and arm's-length pricing of a related-party loan, the transaction carries a materially different risk profile than the 990 alone would suggest.

Schedule O — Supplemental Information (most recent year)

Organizations use Schedule O to provide additional explanation for answers given on the main 990 form. These are direct excerpts from the filed document.

FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 12C

EACH YEAR THE ORGANIZATIONS CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY IS PROVIDED TO ALL OFFICERS, DIRECTORS AND EMPLOYEES. THESE PEOPLE ARE ASKED TO REVIEW THE POLICY AND SIGN A STATEMENT INDICATING THAT THEY UNDERSTAND THE POLICY AND HAVE REPORTED ALL POTENTIAL CONFLICTS DURING THE COMING YEAR. ALL POTENTIAL CONFLICTS ARE EVALUATED BY THE BOARD TO DETERMINE IF A CONFLICT ACTUALLY EXISTS. IN THOSE INSTANCES WHERE THE POTENTIAL TRANSACTION IS A CONFLICT, THE BOARD EXAMINES THE TRANSACTION AND A VOTE IS TAKEN …

FORM 990, PART XII, LINE 2C

THE ORGANIZATION DID NOT CHANGE EITHER ITS OVERSIGHT PROCESS OR SELECTION PROCESS DURING THE TAX YEAR.

FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 11B

A DRAFT FORM 990 IS PROVIDED BY US SAILINGS EXTERNAL AUDITORS FOR REVIEW BY THE CFO, AND ANY NEEDED ADJUSTMENTS ARE MADE. THE FINAL DRAFT FORM 990 IS PRESENTED TO THE FINANCE COMMITTEE AND CEO FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL PRIOR TO SENDING TO THE IRS.

FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 15A

THE COMPENSATION COMMITTEE REVIEWS THE COMPENSATION OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVES FOR SPORT (ACES) SALARY SURVEY AND OTHER APPROPRIATE SALARY SURVEYS BEFORE MAKING A RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD.

FORM 990, PART IX, LINE 11G

CONSULTANTS: PROGRAM SERVICE EXPENSES 1,936,470. MANAGEMENT AND GENERAL EXPENSES 0. FUNDRAISING EXPENSES 20,826. TOTAL EXPENSES 1,957,296.

Mission

INCREASE SAILING PARTICIPATION AND EXCELLENCE THROUGH EDUCATION, COMPETITION AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY, WHILE UPHOLDING THE PRINCIPLES OF FAIR PLAY, SPORTSMANSHIP AND SAFETY.

As stated in the organization's 990 filing.

IRS Source Filings

Source filings are IRS e-file records in XML (Extensible Markup Language) format — a structured data standard used by the IRS for electronic filing. If you open one of these links, it will look like code. That's not an error — that's what XML looks like. Harbor Commons processes this raw XML and presents the structured, readable view you see above.

Why this matters: the XML is the receipt. Harbor Commons is the reading layer on top of that receipt. If you ever need to verify a number, wording choice, or disclosure, the source filing is where to check.

Similar Organizations

Finding peer organizations…

Capacity Signals

Auto-detected patterns from this organization's own IRS filing history. Signals are relative to this org's trend only — not peer comparisons, not judgments.

Private clubs are naturally labor-heavy. Always interpret signals against this organization's own context before drawing conclusions.

Mild

Expenses grew faster than labor

Total expenses rose 5% (TY2023→TY2024) while labor costs grew less than 2%. The gap is being filled by non-labor spending — contractors, facilities, insurance, or other professional services.

Why it matters: When expense growth consistently outpaces labor growth, the organization may be substituting staff with outside contractors — or absorbing rising fixed costs without expanding its team.

Operator question: Which non-labor line items drove the increase: outside contractors (Part IX line 11), occupancy, or insurance?

Phase 2 signals (contractor substitution, benefits share changes) require Part IX line-level data and are not yet available. All computations use IRS-filed data only; no external benchmarks or CPI adjustments beyond a 3% per year inflation proxy.

📡 Filing Signals (15 total)

Trends and shifts computed from this organization's own public filings across all available years. Signals highlight where numbers changed — not whether those changes are good or bad. Only people with inside knowledge of this organization can interpret what these signals mean.

Signals describe filing history, not the club's live operating state. The newest filing may still lag current reality by many months.

See an error?

If you spot a data discrepancy, misattribution, or filing mismatch — let us know.

Send us a signal →
Questions or corrections? Send us a signal →