Dane County Fair Association Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
390818102
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2009
Location
Oregon, WI, USA
Phone
6082912900
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Fairs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$445,394
Expenses
$437,944
Assets
$249,094
Liabilities
$129

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

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DICK STRAUB (PRESIDENT)
  • SUSAN QUAM (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • DICK STRAUB (PRESIDENT)
  • SUSAN QUAM (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • CASEY JENTZ (TREASURER (THRU AUGUST))

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

The dane county fair association promotes and sponsors the dane county fair, an annual public exhibition in madison, Wisconsin. The fair's primary purpose is to develop excellence in dane county youth by giving recognition to their endeavors through exhibits in leadership, animal sciences, mechanical sciences, home and family arts, cultural arts, and other activities for which premiums are awarded.

What it reported doing in 2024

The dane county fair is an annual, family-friendly event held in Wisconsin's capital city every july. Friends from near and far venture to the alliant energy center in madison for free concerts, entertainment, great food, animals, and adventure. The fair has a rich history dating back to 1851 when the first dane county fair was held in madison. The fair's long history guides us as we strive to honor the past while continuing a tradition and looking to the future.our organization is centered around the community of dane county, and it is our goal to host an event that is not only fun, but educational for everyone in attendance. Attendees are encouraged to walk through the new holland pavilions and the exhibition hall to view youth-developed projects that are an accumulation of their hard work throughout the year. With support from our generous friend of the fair sponsors, we are able to offer this public exhibition for dane county's youth, giving them the opportunity to be recognized in their endeavors. Dane county fair sponsors also allow us to offer educational displays such as the kiddie farm and learning lane to our attendees, along with unique daily activities.through community partner support, the fair is able to be a central location for different outreach groups, allowing for positive impacts across our community. The fair proudly works with the public libraries, madison school & community recreation, and daycares. Our outreach continues throughout the year with the dane county fairest of the fair program an ambassador who serves as voice and a face for the fair as well as a role model to youth in dane county.the 2025 dane county fair was attended by approximately 29,638 people and had 538 individual youth exhibitors plus 266 youth who participated in group organization entries.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 86% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 98% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

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 revenue has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 74
  • Transparency & Controls: 93
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 83%; rating input score 83
  • Program expense ratio: 84.4%; rating input score 84
  • 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: 95.5%; rating input score 96; 55th 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: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: 1.7%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.57; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 1.4% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1% per year; rating input score 0; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -2.7% per year; rating input score 0; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 83% of revenue deployed · 84.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $370K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 18 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 43/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 27/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.