Bluegrass Council of the Blind Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
610971827
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2019
Location
Lexington, KY, USA
Phone
8592591834
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$323,074
Expenses
$320,375
Assets
$306,909
Liabilities
$5,289

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ARTHUR ABSHIRE (PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • ARTHUR ABSHIRE (PRESIDENT)
  • LEN COX (VICE PRESIDE)
  • LAURA DAKE (DIRECTOR)

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

Bcb's mission is to increase independence, security and quality of life for kentuckians affected by vision loss through peer support, technology, training and additional resources.

What it reported doing in 2024

Through nearly 50 total peer support activities, support groups, workshops, and special events, individuals who are blind or visually impaired built lasting friendships, gained confidence, and reduced social isolation. Mobile market & independent living: our twice monthly mobile market program provided fresh food and household essentials to 294 households. In addition to offering supplemental groceries, the program gave clients the ability to shop with dignity and independence by providing sighted volunteers for in- store assistance and transportation passes to access the market. This reduced barriers around both access to food and the need for constant reliance on family or friends for basic errands. In the last fiscal year, this program provided over 3318 pounds of food to individuals who are blind or have low vision. Staff guided clients through critical challenges in housing, healthcare, legal rights, and transportation, ensuring they could live safely and independently. Our advocacy efforts reached 480 participants through presentations and seminars, educating professionals and the public on the rights, needs and abilities of people with low to no vision, along with useful techniques to provide assistance in a friendly and dignified manner.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 85% 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.

The verdict

STRONG - 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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 64
  • Sustainability: 44
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 90.5%; rating input score 90
  • Program expense ratio: 91%; rating input score 91
  • Fundraising efficiency: $15.95 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 14
    • 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: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.8%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.96; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 18.6% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 10.7% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.6% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 90.5% of revenue deployed · 91% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 1 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $292K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 6 not reported.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 52/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 41/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 39/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 41/100.