Elyria Public Library

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
346000941
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Elyria, OH, USA
Phone
4403220320
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,646,812
Expenses
$6,068,892
Assets
$16,146,143
Liabilities
$13,515,000

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DEBORAH KROUPA (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JENNIFER STARKEY (EXECUTIVE DI): $149,096 total reported compensation
  • DEBBY PERKINS (FISCAL OFFIC): $105,437 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The elyria public library system will always offer free resources with unlimited possibilities for every person in the community it serves. Library resources in all formats will be readily and equitably accessible to all library users. The library provides free access to all library materials, services, and programs. The library provides lifelong learning services to all. The library upholds the principles of intellectual freedom and resists all efforts to censor resources. The library's employees are professional, friendly, efficient, and qualified personnel. The library provides the highest level of service to all library users. The library will monitor library services to ensure that they respond in a relevant way to changing needs and demands, and that their quality is as high as resources allow. The library is committed to patron confidentiality. The library practices fiscally responsible management of public resources with full accountability.

What it reported doing in 2025

Providing of library materials, services, programs, lifelong learning, and quality service to residents of the city of elyria and neighboring residents of lorain county, Ohio.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 86% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filed totals do not add up and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 52
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 92.3%; rating input score 92
  • Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • 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: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 8.7%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.66; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.84; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4.2%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6% per year; rating input score 100; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 92.3% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 10 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $6.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $149K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 20 of 21 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 52/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 7/100.