Amitabha Buddhist Society of USA

Overview

Mission

Buddhist temple providing free distribution of buddhist materials and TV/Radio/Newspaper broadcasting of Buddhist Teachings to the general public.

What it reported doing in 2024

EProviding TV/Radio/Newspaper Broadcasting of Buddhist teachings to the general public and anticipating that the public would be spiritually and physically benefited and will prosper. TV broadcasting of Buddhist teachings(30 minutes) daily or on weekend through KTSF channel 26, TVB cable-San Francisco, TVB Cable-Los Angeles, TVB-Satellite (TVBe) and PTV Network (USA) Inc. Radio broadcasting of Buddhist teachings through AM 1380-New York(M-F)for 30 minutes. Buddha Name Chanting (60 Sec) broadcasting through San Francisco FM 96.1 & AM 1400, New York AM 1380 & AM 1480, Los Angeles AM 1300 & AM 1430. Buddha Name Advertising on World Journal Newspaper(SF, Seattle, HI, DC, NY), ZhongGuo Daily News(LA), and Chinese L.A. Daily News. Estimated more than 50,000 people have benefited from these program services.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
770211532
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Official website data refreshed
Jun 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Sunnyvale, CA, USA
Phone
4087120124
Rating
76
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Buddhism
Affiliation
Buddhism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$87,837
Expenses
$146,841
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 58
  • Sustainability: 20
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 77.8%; rating input score 78; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -67.2%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -7.3% per year; rating input score 0; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -11.8% per year; rating input score 0; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -17.6% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 9 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $147K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 9 people listed
  • Consistency: 15 of 15 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 9 annual filings from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 25/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 3/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: California registration: this organization is recorded as not currently operating in California.

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

People named in this filing

  • David Yang (President)
  • Shan Shan Wang (Treasurer)
  • Celia P Chen (Secretary)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024.