Buffalo Urban League Inc

Overview

Mission

To help african americans and others in underserved communities achieve their highest true social parity, economic self-reliance, power, and civil rights. The league promotes economic empowerment through education and job training, housing and community development, workforce development, entrepreneurship, health, and quality of life.

What it reported doing in 2024

Family preservation and support services - the league provides preventive and wrap services to support families and keep them safely together. The league is an authorized foster care and adoption agency that recruits, trains and certified individuals to foster and/or adopt children. The league operates a full service center for seniors. In addition, through its community health worker program, they address the social determinants of health by facilitating access to health and wellness services as well as information and education to the community.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 81% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
160743940
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Headquarters
Buffalo, NY, USA
Phone
7162502400
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Services

Official website

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 83%; rating input score 83
  • Program expense ratio: 81.2%; rating input score 81
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.8; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.4%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 9.7% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 10.8% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 17.3% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 83% of revenue deployed · 81.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 18 of 18 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $8.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $244K · 19 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 annual filings from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Leadership & pay

19 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • THOMAS BEAUFORD JR (PRESIDENT & CEO): $244,479 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: FY2024.