Balanced Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
815230122
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Kansas City, MO, USA
Phone
5045540412
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Nutrition

Reported finances

Revenue
$916,474
Expenses
$838,054
Assets
$1,131,535
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Audrey Sanchez (Executive Director (Org), President (Board))

Highest reported compensation

  • Audrey Sanchez (Executive Director (Org), President (Board)): $78,750 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Balanced is a nonprofit organization improving public health by helping schools, hospitals, and other institutions serve more fiber-rich, plant-forward meals. We provide technical assistance, training, and advocacy to support menu changes that reduce chronic disease risk and make nutritious, affordable foods the easy, everyday choice for children and families.

What it reported doing in 2024

Balanceds Research & Policy program generates evidence to guide institutional menu reform and strengthen nutrition standards in schools. In 2024, the team initiated a national research project analyzing school menus from 90+ districts across the United States to determine whether school breakfasts and lunches provide adequate dietary fiber and to model how replacing meat-based entrées with bean-based, high-fiber alternatives could affect overall nutrition quality. Using descriptive statistics, meal simulations, and substitution analysis, the project examines fiber content, identifies primary sources of dietary fiber on menus, and estimates the nutritional impact of plant-based substitutions on key nutrients such as protein, saturated fat, and sodium. This research will inform upcoming publications, policy recommendations, and technical guidance to help schools close the fiber gap and improve meal quality nationwide.

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 98% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 75
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 72
  • Sustainability: 58
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 76.6%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 83.7%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.1 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 80%; rating input score 80; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • 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: 8.6%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.35; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.4%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 16% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 12% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18.5% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 76.6% of revenue deployed · 83.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 5 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $769K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $79K · 5 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2017 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.

Key Signals

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

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 38/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 58/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 52/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.