Community Labor United Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
203404034
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Boston, MA, USA
Phone
6177232639
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,258,415
Expenses
$1,449,027
Assets
$1,988,016
Liabilities
$273,941

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DARLENE LOMBOS (PRESIDENT/CHAIR/SECRETARY)
  • LISA CLAUSON (FORMER INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • NATALICIA TRACY (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • ROBERT BOWER (FORMER SENIOR POLITICAL STRATEGIST): $133,610 total reported compensation
  • LISA CLAUSON (FORMER INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $120,962 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Community labor united's mission is to drive forward strategic campaigns with grassroots organizations and labor unions that stabilize and strengthen working-class families and communities of color in greater boston. Through a program of coalition building, research and policy development, public education, and grassroots mobilization, we advance policies that promote quality jobs, secure healthcare, affordable housing, and environmental justice for all.

What it reported doing in 2024

Community labor united, inc. Builds power and lasting connections between grassroots organizations and labor unions, in order to develop community-driven solutions to protect and further the interests of the working-class and communities of color in the greater boston region and beyond. Our programs and campaigns build upon strategic planning, organizing, collaborative research, and grassroots leadership development, in order to promote quality jobs, livable wages, pathways to green high-road job access, environmental justice, dependable and low-cost public transit, affordable and quality childcare, and affordable housing for low and moderate-income people and communities. Our signature campaigns are our green justice coalition; care that works; public transit, public good; young workers for a green economy; and, ai and tech.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 91% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 75% for direct work, and 25% for grants.

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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 28
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 77%; rating input score 77
  • Program expense ratio: 65.6%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.38 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 98.1%; rating input score 98; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • 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: 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: -15.1%; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.37; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.14; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 17.6%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.3% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 11% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 77% of revenue deployed · 65.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $950K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $134K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 4 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 36/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 12/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 53/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 38/100.