Bowdoinham Public Library

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
016016360
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-N 2020
Location
Bowdoinham, ME, USA
Phone
2076668405
Rating
57
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Libraries

Reported finances

Revenue
$99,664
Expenses
$51,175
Assets
$710,149
Liabilities
$670

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Stephanie C Hanner (President)
  • Marla R Blake (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Katherine G Cutko (Library Director): $54,366 total reported compensation
  • Sherry Ann Carmichael (Treasurer): $5,850 total reported compensation
  • Jacqueline Shea (Treasurer): $2,100 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To provide and maintain a public library which provides free services and programming to the residents of Bowdoinham (pop. c. 3000), lends books and other media, offers educational and reading programs for children, youth and people of all ages, provide public computer access and workspace for remote workers.

What it reported doing in 2024

Programming at no cost to the public is an important part of our services and at no cost to the public: reading challenges, two adult book groups, children's summer reading program, weekly storytime, free passes to state parks, several museums, and local botanical garden, speakers and lectures. The library also has onsite learning opportunities: taxidermy collection, observation beehive, and instruction on accessing ebook and audiobook downloads.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 48
  • Transparency & Controls: 84
  • Accountability: 21
  • Sustainability: 66
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 36.9%; rating input score 37
  • Program expense ratio: 56.3%; rating input score 56
  • Fundraising efficiency: $30.7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 48.7%; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 13.88; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 121.8%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 15% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 36.9% of revenue deployed · 56.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 7 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $29K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $54K · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 43 of 44 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 37/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 56/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 3/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 35/100.