Buffalo Trace Council Inc Boy Scouts of America #156

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
350867971
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Evansville, IN, USA
Phone
8124235246
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$874,554
Expenses
$1,322,866
Assets
$5,538,677
Liabilities
$249,562

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

Leadership & pay

35 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DR JAMES PORTER (PRESIDENT)
  • WILFRED C BUSSING III (VICE PRESIDENT - ENDOWMENT)
  • MARK DICKEN (VICE PRESIDENT - PROGRAM)
  • JON KECK (VICE PRESIDENT - MEMBERSHI)
  • DR BRIAN L MCGUIRE (IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT)
  • BECCA SCOTT (VICE PRESIDENT - MARKETING)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOHN G HARDING (SCOUT EXECUTIVE/SECRETARY): $173,251 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 corporation shall promote, within the territory covered by the charter from time to time granted it by the boy scouts of america and in accordance with the congressional charter, bylaws, and rules and regulations of the boy scouts of america, the scouting program of promoting the ability of boys and young men and women to do things for themselves and others, training them in scoutcraft, and teaching them patriotism, courage, self-reliance, and kindred virtues, using the methods which are now in common use by the boy scouts of america.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization provides a program for all youth based on character development, citizenship training, and personal health and fitness. The council achieves these three objectives through partnerships with local schools, churches and community based organizations. Buffalo trace council served over 5000 youth through cub scouting, boy scouting, venturing, and exploring. Buffalo trace council offers special outreach programs; scoutreach, serving youth in after-school scouting programs and exceptional needs scouting programs, serving special needs students in school classrooms.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 62% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 93% 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. 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: 75
  • Accountability: 77
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 84.6%; rating input score 85
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.51 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 20; 20th 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: 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: 97.1%; rating input score 97; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -51.3%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.19; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13.1%; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.5% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.1% per year; rating input score 0; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.3% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 84.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 34 of 35 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $173K · 35 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 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.

Key Signals

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

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 20/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 27/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 53/100.