Texas Trees Foundation
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE MISSION OF TEXAS TREES FOUNDATION IS TO IMPROVE THE HEALTH OF CITIES AND PEOPLE THROUGH THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF TREES.
- Income
- $9.2 million
- Spending
- $9.5 million
- Spent on programs
- 86%
- Reserves
- 0.5 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 97%
- Employees
- 35
- Volunteers
- 1,493
- Highest pay
- $190,227, president & ceo
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 52 out of 100.
Reserves
4 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 0.5 months of spending.
Debt
10 of 20It owes 40% of what it owns.
Living within its means
8 of 15Spending exceeded income by 3% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 30% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1586% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 5 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100.
Independent board
25 of 2510 of 10 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (3)
- $1.8 million spent. IN PARTNERSHIP WITH GOVERNMENT, INDIVIDUALS, BUSINESSES AND OTHER COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, THE FOUNDATION INITIATES ACTIONS TO ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING GOALS:(I) TO ENHANCE THE BEAUTY AND BENEFICIAL USE OF PUBLIC LANDS AND RIGHT-OF-WAYS, PRIMARILY BY PLANTING TREES TO EXPAND, MAINTAIN AND PROTECT THE PERMANENCE OF THE "URBAN FOREST." (II) TO TEACH PEOPLE OF ALL AGES TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF ONE OF OUR MOST IMPORTANT NATURAL RESOURCES - OUR TREES - IN ORDER TO ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN OUR COMMUNITY TODAY AND FOR GENERATIONS TO COME. (III) TO REVITALIZE OUR EXISTING PARKS AND CREATE NEW, SAFE, WELL-MAINTAINED PUBLIC PARKS AND RECREATION AREAS.
- $5.3 million spent. THE COOL SCHOOLS PROGRAM CONNECTS STUDENTS AND TEACHERS TO NATURE BY PLANTING TREES AND CREATING FUN AND ENGAGING OUTDOOR EXPERIMENTAL LEARNING AND PLAY AREAS, WHICH CULTIVATE CHILDREN'S KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS OF THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AS WELL AS PROMOTING HANDS-ON, OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVITIES WITH STEAM-BASED URBAN FORESTRY CURRICULUM, SO NO CHILD IS LEFT INSIDE! THE PROGRAM GOALS FOR EACH SCHOOL INCLUDE INCREASING TREE CANOPY COVERAGE TO AT LEAST 30 PERCENT TO REDUCE THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT, SUPPLYING TEACHERS WITH RESOURCES TO EDUCATE STUDENTS ON URBAN FORESTRY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, AND PROVIDING OUTDOOR CLASSROOMS AND AMENITIES TO ENCOURAGE OUTDOOR LEARNING AND PLAY.
- $824,601 spent. THE SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL DISTRICT (SWMD) STREETSCAPE AND PARK PROJECTS ARE A PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE TEXAS TREES FOUNDATION, SWMD, CITY OF DALLAS, NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, DALLAS COUNTY, AND NUMEROUS PRIVATE FOUNDATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS. THE PROJECTS WILL RESTORE THE ENVIRONMENT TO LEVERAGE THE HUMAN HEALTH BENEFITS OF NATURE IN AN URBAN ENVIRONMENT. ADDITIONALLY, THE PROJECT WILL CREATE A CAMPUS EXPERIENCE THAT IMPROVES THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE DISTRICT'S 45,000 STAFF AND 5 MILLION VISITORS/PATIENTS BY INCREASING COMMUNITY SAFETY AND OFFERING AN ACCESSIBLE MULTI-MODAL NETWORK THAT ACCOMMODATES CONNECTIVITY.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since October 1983.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.