Country First Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
883020032
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Moline, IL, USA
Phone
8149541628
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Civil Liberties

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$177,886
Expenses
$682,892
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • GREG RIDENOUR (EXCECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SECRETARY AND TREASURER): $17,500 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

At country first foundation we pursue a path to educate the public on important civic and policy issues. Country first foundation strives to support nonprofits that are working on proven solutions that empower local communities from the bottom-up. For too long, many have looked to Washington, dc to solve the problems facing rural, exurban, suburban, and urban america. Real change often takes place closest to the people at the local level. Country first foundation will work to educate citizens on strengthening our democratic institutions and look to invest in nonprofit organizations that seek to implement proven solutions with a lasting impact for the american people.

What it reported doing in 2024

Dash for democracy, a weeklong non-partisan celebration of democracy held in line with the international day of democracy (september 15th), that we hold between the commemoration of september 11th and constitution day (9/17). The week is filled with educational, athletic, artistic, and social gatherings, both virtual and in-person across the country.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 90% of its reported program spending out as grants.

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: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 60
  • Sustainability: 5
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 93.9%; rating input score 94
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 66.7%; rating input score 67; 18th 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: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -283.9%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.6%; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 125% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -117.2% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -200% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 93.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 3 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $641K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $18K · 3 people listed
  • Consistency: 17 of 17 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2023 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 5 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 35/100.