Form 990 for tax year 2024

Totals

Total revenue

$1,542,398

Total expenses

$1,510,504

Contributions and grants received

$815,347

Grants paid

$3,575

Program service revenue

$727,032

Investment income

$19

Other revenue

$0

Total assets, end of year

$318,247

Total liabilities, end of year

$18,060

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$300,187

Program services expenses (Part IX)

$1,300,277

Management and general expenses

$210,227

Fundraising expenses

$0

Program service expenses (Part III)

$1,300,277

Program services were 86.1% 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.

Mission and programs · 2024

• MARINE SCIENTISTS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE HAVE DOCUMENTED THAT THE LINE AND BUOY SYSTEM IN POT/TRAP FISHERIES HAS CAUSED INJURY AND DEATH TO WHALES, ENDANGERED SEA TURTLES AND OTHER MARINE LIFE. SUBLETHAL INJURIES WHICH HAS REDUCED REPRODUCTIVE CAPABILITY IN MARINE MAMMALS DUE TO THE NEGATIVE EFFECT FROM ENTANGLEMENT. THERE ARE MANY MARINE ANIMALS THAT ARE LISTED UNDER THE MARINE MAMMAL PROTECTION ACT (MMPA) AND ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT (ESA) THAT SMELTS HAVE PRIORITY TO DEVELOP A SOLUTION TO PROTECT SUCH CREATURES FROM INJURY. SMELTS LINE LESS LIFT BAG TECHNOLOGY REMOVES THE NEED FOR VERTICAL LINES AND BUOYS NEEDED TO HAUL BOTTOM SET TRAP/POT FISHERIES WHICH IS THE CURRENT SYSTEM FOR BOTTOM SET FISHING. LARGE CETACEAN ENTANGLEMENTS HAVE THREATENED CLOSURES FOR COMMERCIAL BOTTOM SET FISHING. SMELTS HAS HAD GREAT INTEREST AND SUPPORT FOR ITS LINE LESS LIFT BAG TECHNOLOGY FROM THE ISLAND FOUNDATION, SR 3, NOAA, PEW CHARITABLE TRUST, NATIONAL FISH AND WILDLIFE FOUNDATION, DIVISION OF MARINE FISHERIES MASSACHUSETTS, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE, PACIFIC MAMMAL RESEARCH, MARINE-MED, BLUE PLANET STRATEGIES, STELLWAGEN BANK NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY, WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION, AND NORTHEAST FISHERIES SCIENCE CENTER. SMELTS HAS 2 VOLUNTEERS ON ITS BOARD CINDY ELLISER PHD. OF PACIFIC MAMMAL RESEARCH ORGANIZATION AND STEPHANIE NORMAN DVM, MS, PHD OF MARINE MED ORGANIZATION. SMELTS UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE OF "ALL HANDSON DECK" TO WORK ON A SOLUTION FOR THE ISSUE OF MARINE MAMMAL ENTANGLEMENT AND THE FUTURE OPTIONS AVAILABLE TO COMMERCIAL BOTTOM SET FISHING. SMELTS HAS PARTNERED WITH US VENDORS TO PROVIDE AMERICAN COMMERCE AND AN EASY ACCESS TO PARTS AND EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO PRODUCE INNOVATIVE LINE LESS LIFT BAG FISHING SYSTEMS. SMELTS HAS SET UP FORMAL PURCHASING ACCOUNTS WITH THESE VENDORS AND HAS HAD SUCCESS IN FINDING ALL PARTS AND EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO MAKE ITS SYSTEMS. IN THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING SMELTS HAS FOUND THAT ITS LINE LESS TECHNOLOGY HAS CAPABILITY FOR MANY APPLICATIONS IN SHALLOW TO DEEP WATERS BY SIMPLE ADJUSTMENTS OF ITS COMPONENT CONFIGURATIONS.THIS YEAR (2024), SMELTS CONTINUED WORK WITH COMMERCIAL FISHERMAN ON THE DESIGN NEEDS FOR THEIR INDUSTRY, USING THIS INFORMATION SMELTS HAS BUILT SEVERAL SETS OF SUCCESSFULLY TESTED WORKING LIFT BAG FISHING TECHNOLOGY, SMELTS HAS CONTINUED TO BUILD COLLABORATIONS WITH SCIENTISTS, EDUCATORS, FISHERMAN, VENDORS, GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, AND OTHER NGO'S. SMELTS TO DATE HAS DEVELOPED AND TESTED SEVERAL DIFFERENT ACOUSTIC SYSTEMS CUSTOMIZED FOR DIFFERENT FISHING INDUSTRY NEEDS. SMELTS USES VIDEO, PICTURES AND WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION TO CAPTURE DATA ON ALL TESTS. BENCH AND OCEAN TESTING ARE DOCUMENTED FROM OUR LAB, RESEARCH VESSEL AND WITH OUR COMMERCIAL FISHING PARTNERS VESSELS. ALL FISHING TRIALS FOLLOW A STRICT SET OF PROTOCOLS DEVELOPED BY (NEFSC). SMELTS TECHNOLOGY HAS ALSO BEEN TESTED TO RETRIEVE ABANDONED, LOST, DERELICT FISHING GEAR WITH SUCCESS. AS PART OF SMELTS' EDUCATION PROGRAM SMELTS CONTINUES PRESENTING OUR WORK AND FINDINGS AT MANY PUBLIC FORUMS AND MEETINGS AND EDUCATING ON THESE ISSUES. SMELTS SHARES DEVELOPMENT AND FINDINGS OF ITS WORK AND ITS EDUCATIONAL MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES ON ITS WEBSITE FOR PUBLIC VIEWING AT SMELTS.ORG. SMELTS CONTINUES TO DEVELOP, TEST AND TRIAL ITS INNOVATIVE LIFT BAG FISHING SYSTEMS WITH MANY MORE EXCITING PLANS. SMELTS CONTINUES TO FORGE RELATIONSHIPS WITH COMMERCIAL FISHERMAN TO GIVE A NEW FISHING TOOL FOR ACCESS INTO CLOSED AREAS DUE TO NEGATIVE INTERACTION WITH MARINE LIFE IN VERTICAL LINES.

  Expenses $1,300,277 · Grants $3,575 · Revenue $727,032

As filed on the 2024 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

• ANN MARIE RIELS

  PRESIDENT

  Total calculated

  $0

  Hours/week

  40

• STEPHANIE NORMAN

  VICE PRESIDENT

  Total calculated

  $0

  Hours/week

  3

• CINDY ELLISER

  SECRETARY

  Total calculated

  $0

  Hours/week

  3

• RICHARD RIELS

  EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

  Total calculated

  $0

  Hours/week

  40

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

14 November 2025

IRS schema version

2024v5.2

Source object

202543219349309214

Check it against the return as filed: the GivingTuesday Data Lake hosts a public copy of the original XML.

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