Believers Stewardship Services Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 311782614
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2009–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Dubuque, IA, USA
- Phone
- 5635824818
- Rating
- 87
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Standard
- Sector
- Public Foundations
- Affiliation
- Christianity
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $4,544,986
- Expenses
- $5,106,118
- Assets
- $24,228,747
- Liabilities
- $4,278,252
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
7 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ROBERT SULLIVAN (PRESIDENT & CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- ROBERT SULLIVAN (PRESIDENT & CEO): $140,937 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The ministry is designed to glorify god in fulfilling biblical stewardship by assisting christians to accomplish their financial & estate planning goals & by supporting local new testament churches & associated ministries with financial and governance related matters.
What it reported doing in 2024
Rendering estate planning services (e.g., assistance in the preparation of wills, revocable living trusts, powers of attorney, estate and trust tax returns) and planned giving (e.g., administration of charitable gift annuities and charitable remainder trusts) to clients as well as other ministries' clients during the fiscal year, benefiting many charities besides lms. Providing donor education through seminars in areas of estate planning and planned giving. We entered into a subscription agreement with freewill in order for us to have an effective tool to assist most individuals to prepare wills, trusts, etc. This subscription tool is offered to clients at no charge, because we cover the cost.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 85% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 90% of its reported program spending out as grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 96
- Transparency & Controls: 78
- Accountability: 92
- Sustainability: 43
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 90%; rating input score 90
- Fundraising efficiency: $185.15 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 88.9%; rating input score 89; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
- Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
- Requires narrative reports: Fail
- Conducts field audits: Fail
- May suspend future funding: Fail
- Requires financial reports: Pass
- Conducts site visits: Fail
- Requires grant agreements: Fail
- May require repayment: Fail
- Grant itemization coverage: 93.2%; rating input score 93; 28th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 85.7%; rating input score 86; 17th 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: -12.3%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.75; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 2.8%; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 6.4% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 8.2% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 6.4% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 6 of 7 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $4.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $141K · 7 people listed
- Consistency: 39 of 42 current checks pass · 3 findings to review
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and grants
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 59 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 57 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.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 6 of 8 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 11/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 47/100.