COPA (Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action)
Legal name: COPA Communities Organized for Ralational Power in Action in Action
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 770557460
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Watsonville, CA, USA
- Phone
- 8317283210
- Rating
- 77
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Interfaith Coalitions
- Affiliation
- Interfaith
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $443,397
- Expenses
- $400,889
- Assets
- $577,002
- Liabilities
- $11,101
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
14 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- VICKY ELDER (BOARD PRESIDENT)
- JACK HERBIG (VICE PRESIDENT)
People named in this filing
- VICKY ELDER (BOARD PRESIDENT)
- JACK HERBIG (VICE PRESIDENT)
- MARY-LITEL WALSH (SECRETARY)
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
COPA builds power and works to revive democracy in our region by developing leaders within member institutions to address issues affecting families across Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito Counties. COPA (Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action) is a regional non-profit organization consisting of 23 dues-paying member institutions across Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito Counties. Within these member institutions - congregations, schools, non-profits, unions - COPA develops leaders capable of working together to address the issues affecting families in our community. Founded in 2003, COPA has had success on issues such as affordable housing, healthcare access, safety, immigration, education and economic development. Since 2003, COPA has been developing leaders in member institutions through Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito Counties so that together they can take...
What it reported doing in 2024
Housing community meetings, January 2025-May 2025, 125 participants: COPA has been actively working in housing. In Santa Cruz County COPA leaders held a public conversation of community members with city officials about local housing efforts. Later, COPA co-led a housing conversation in Monterey with community members and clergy to teach about the potential development of housing in church properties.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 77% 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.
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 expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 70
- Transparency & Controls: 84
- Accountability: 82
- Sustainability: 55
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 76.3%; rating input score 76
- Program expense ratio: 81.7%; rating input score 82
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 90%; rating input score 90; 9th 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: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 9.6%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.44; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 5.3% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 18.5% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 76.3% of revenue deployed · 81.7% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $328K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 14 people listed
- Consistency: 39 of 40 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
- 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: 2 of 6 not reported.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 50/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 40/100.