Austin Opera

Legal name: Austin Lyric Opera Endowment Fund

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
742744864
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Austin, TX, US
Phone
512-472-5992
Rating
87
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Philanthropy, Charity, Voluntarism Promotion

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$594,182
Expenses
$347,052
Assets
$10,830,512
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MIKE ERSPAMER (ALO PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • ERNEST BUTLER (DIRECTOR)
  • MIKE ERSPAMER (ALO PRESIDENT)
  • JAMES GREEN (ALO FINANCE COMMITTEE CO-CHAIR)

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. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Austin Opera leverages the multidisciplinary, collaborative, and transcendent power of opera to increase the quality of life for our diverse community by: Bringing together local and national artists to create outstanding, meaningful operatic performances and experiences; Partnering with local schools and community groups to provide robust, responsive educational programs that inspire and engage.

What it reported doing in 2024

To assist austin lyric opera ("alo") in providing austin and the greater central Texas community with the production of operatic and music theatre performances for the cultural and educational enrichment.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. No material rating questions were generated from the available inputs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 91
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 81%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 81.8%; rating input score 82
  • 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 41.6%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 31.21; rating input score 98; 98th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 11.6% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.3% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.7% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 81% of revenue deployed · 81.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $284K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 14 of 14 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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.