First City of Lights Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
854069354
IRS 990-EZ coverage
2021–2025
Forms available
Form 990-EZ 2025
Location
Bemidji, MN, USA
Phone
2187664258
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Community Service Clubs

Reported finances

Revenue
$78,116
Expenses
$54,607
Assets
$68,674
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOSHUA PETERSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • REBECCA KUMMET (PRESIDENT)
  • TONYA JAYCOX (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • JOSHUA PETERSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • REBECCA KUMMET (PRESIDENT)
  • TONYA JAYCOX (VICE PRESIDENT)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

Foster general welfare of the city

What it reported doing in 2025

Provide a holiday lights festival in the city of bemidji

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 96% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and revenue comfortably covers expenses. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 50
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Sustainability: 68
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 43.4%; rating input score 43
  • Program expense ratio: 62.1%; rating input score 62

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 30.1%; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.26; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -3.6% per year; rating input score 0; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 28.5% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 43.4% of revenue deployed · 62.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: Filed governance answers
  • Accomplishments: 1 filed program accomplishment · $34K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 7 of 7 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2021 to 2025
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 43/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 54/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 56/100.