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Nonprofiteer
← HIGHLAND-CASHIERS LAND TRUST INC

Form 990 for tax year 2024

Filed by HIGHLAND-CASHIERS LAND TRUST INC.

Totals

Total revenue
$1,765,118
Total expenses
$769,496
Contributions and grants received
$1,691,622
Grants paid
$0
Program service revenue
$12,423
Investment income
$60,235
Other revenue
$838
Total assets, end of year
$31,648,302
Total liabilities, end of year
$15,091
Net assets or fund balances, end of year
$31,633,211
Program services expenses (Part IX)
$446,615
Management and general expenses
$152,757
Fundraising expenses
$170,124
Program service expenses (Part III)
$446,615

Program services were 58.0% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Revenue

Part VIII, the statement of revenue.

  • 1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants

    $1,691,622

  • 1g · Noncash contributions included above

    $350,833

  • 2a · Program service revenue: Easement Fees

    total $12,423 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 3 · Investment income

    total $123,395 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $123,395

  • 7b · Less cost or other basis and sales expenses

    securities $63,160

  • 7c · Gain or loss

    securities -$63,160

  • 7d · Net gain or loss

    total -$63,160 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded -$63,160

  • 11a · Other revenue: Miscellaneous Income

    total $838 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $838

  • 11e · Other revenue, total

    $838

Functional expenses

Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.

  • 5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees

    total $105,797 · program services $64,262 · management and general $25,470 · fundraising $16,065

  • 7 · Other salaries and wages

    total $237,610 · program services $170,458 · management and general $26,042 · fundraising $41,110

  • 8 · Pension plan contributions

    total $18,513 · program services $12,671 · management and general $2,777 · fundraising $3,065

  • 9 · Other employee benefits

    total $6,034 · program services $4,145 · management and general $905 · fundraising $984

  • 10 · Payroll taxes

    total $27,989 · program services $19,134 · management and general $4,198 · fundraising $4,657

  • 11b · Fees: legal

    total $21,182 · program services $21,182 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 11c · Fees: accounting

    total $20,058 · program services $0 · management and general $20,058 · fundraising $0

  • 11e · Fees: professional fundraising services

    total $57,510 · fundraising $57,510

  • 11f · Fees: investment management

    total $7,486 · program services $0 · management and general $7,486 · fundraising $0

  • 11g · Fees: other

    total $3,000 · program services $3,000 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 13 · Office expenses

    total $17,988 · program services $6,649 · management and general $10,604 · fundraising $735

  • 14 · Information technology

    total $12,542 · program services $6,270 · management and general $3,136 · fundraising $3,136

  • 16 · Occupancy

    total $17,432 · program services $8,742 · management and general $8,667 · fundraising $23

  • 19 · Conferences, conventions and meetings

    total $9,477 · program services $5,837 · management and general $1,856 · fundraising $1,784

  • 22 · Depreciation, depletion and amortization

    total $20,285 · program services $0 · management and general $20,285 · fundraising $0

  • 23 · Insurance

    total $15,804 · program services $4,725 · management and general $9,898 · fundraising $1,181

  • 24a · Other expenses: Property Management

    total $69,270 · program services $69,270 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 24b · Other expenses: Americorp Volunteers

    total $22,949 · program services $15,667 · management and general $3,442 · fundraising $3,840

  • 24c · Other expenses: Other Program Expenses

    total $1,542 · program services $842 · management and general $512 · fundraising $188

  • 24d · Other expenses: Memberships

    total $35,145 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $35,145

  • 24e · All other expenses

    total $41,883 · program services $33,761 · management and general $7,421 · fundraising $701

Balance sheet

Part X, book values.

  • 1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing

    beginning of year $259,793 · end of year $341,162

  • 2 · Savings and temporary cash investments

    beginning of year $225,411 · end of year $146,795

  • 10a · Land, buildings and equipment: cost or other basis

    $27,664,044

  • 10b · Land, buildings and equipment: accumulated depreciation

    $60,597

  • 10c · Land, buildings and equipment, net

    beginning of year $26,649,616 · end of year $27,603,447

  • 11 · Investments: publicly traded securities

    beginning of year $3,177,517 · end of year $3,430,375

  • 15 · Other assets

    beginning of year $119,207 · end of year $126,523

  • 17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses

    beginning of year $1,380 · end of year $15,091

  • 27 · Net assets without donor restrictions

    beginning of year $12,453,591 · end of year $13,787,331

  • 28 · Net assets with donor restrictions

    beginning of year $17,976,573 · end of year $17,845,880

Mission and programs · 2024

Mission

The mission of the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust is to safeguard the unique and irreplaceable landscape of our area through conservation of ecologically valuable land and protection of the biodiversity dependent on such landscapes.

  • In 2024 the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust (HCLT) completed three land projects (1) the fee simple acquisition of 100 acres of ecologically sensitive forestland containing some of the headwaters of the Chattooga River, (2) the fee simple acquisition via donation of more than 55 acres of biodiverse habitat, including almost a mile of Overflow Creek, the primary source of Glen Falls, and via transfer the fee simple acquisition of an 8 acre tract within the Cashiers Township, protecting it from development. HCLT also provided stewardship of conserved land by completing 100% monitoring of all conservation easements and fee simple lands held by HCLT. HCLTs commitment to stewardship is perpetual. Worked with conservation easement landowners to ensure protection of conservation values, rare habitat types, and plant communities. Built trails and expanded community access to conserved lands. Engaged the Highlands and Cashiers communities for involvement with trail maintenance and improvements, invasive species mitigation, and habitat restoration.

    Expenses $446,615 · Revenue $12,423

  • HCLTs education and outreach efforts focus on educating the public about conservation and the natural world by providing opportunities for children, families, and adults to engage in hands-on environmental education and exploration activities at no cost. Our programming generally encompasses three types of outreach (1) guided events for adults and families, such as hikes and clinics, (2) youth- focused environmental education programs, and (3) community speaker events. In 2024 we hosted more that 60 events open to the public, including on such topics as forest bathing, fungi identification, pollinator habitats, wildflower identification, and so on; more than 40 youth events, including programming for organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club, local schools and preschools, and local day camps; and several speaker events, including 6 Village Nature Series lectures. In 2024 HCLT created more than 1,800 individual interactions with youth and adults through our various outreach and environmental education programming.

  • HCLT continues to ensure that it operates ethically and morally, and proactively complies with all legal and statutory requirements. HCLT is an accredited organization by the Land Trust Alliance and in 2024 successfully participated in the re-accreditation process, a complete and thorough review, undertaken every five years, of all HCLTs policies and practices. HCLT has stringent requirements for board members, maintains robust by-laws and policies that are reviewed regularly, engages the services of a third-party bookkeeper, and maintains all appropriate insurance coverages. HCLT completed an independent audit of its 2024 financial statements and received an unqualified opinion.

As filed on the 2024 return.

Listed in Part VII

  • Lance Hardin

    Executive Director

    Total calculated
    $105,797
    From this org
    $96,000
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $9,797
    Hours/week
    40

  • F Carlton King

    Departing President

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    5

  • Ann Huckstop

    Incoming President

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    5

  • Bill Mauldin

    Vice President

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    3

  • Martha Wright

    Secretary

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    3

  • Karen Patterson

    Treasurer

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    3

  • Brad Armstrong

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Chuck Auster

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Lawrence Dimmitt

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Wally Evans

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Hugh Fitzpatrick

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Rick Hildbold

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Chris Hohlstein

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Walter Wingfield

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Russ McLauchlan

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Amy Patterson

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Tom Holmes

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Victoria Stephens

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Bill Stiefel

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Jeffrey Zahner

    Board Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Provenance

Return type
form_990
Tax year
2024
Filed
12 November 2025
IRS schema version
2024v5.2
Source object
202503199349302015

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