Friends of Belize Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
272589596
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2014
Forms available
Form 990 2014
Location
Orlando, FL, USA
Phone
4075142697
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
International Economic Development

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$399,721
Expenses
$331,067
Assets
$52,063
Liabilities
$2,291

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2014. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • ANDREW ASHER (SECRETARY/TREAS./GEN COUNS): $46,774 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2014. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Friends of belize (fob) is a totally independent non government organization (NGO) and has no official connection to the government or country of belize. Fob is not funded by belize or any other entity affiliated with or exercising sovereign powers on behalf of belize. The primary activity of the fob is the furtherance and promotion of development of deeper political, commercial and cultural ties between the us and belize in the interest of fostering economic growth, promotion of trade, preservation of cultural wealth, conservation of natural beauty and solidifying liberal democratic institutions. Through programs in the us and belize, the fob will empower belizeans to invigorate and energize belize's inherent social and economic potential. This activity involves the participation by fob staff, directors, and officers in public debates, programs, educational seminars and petitioning congress and the executive branch where desirable.

What it reported doing in 2014

Non-governmental activity: friends of belize (fob) underlook several activities aimed at securing adequate mission-appropriate infrastructure, planning and strategic advisement in furtherance of its mission-critical activities. Furthermore, the fob undertook specific activites in support of its mission objectives before the congress, executive branch and several international organizations which promoted the existence of fob and its leadership.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% 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. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 79
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 26
  • Sustainability: 48
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 82.8%; rating input score 83
  • Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 0%; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 17.2%; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.16; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.1%; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -22.9% per year; rating input score 0; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -48.9% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -77.9% per year; rating input score 0; 1st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 82.8% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 3 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $331K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $47K · 3 people listed
  • Consistency: 14 of 14 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2011 to 2014
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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.

Grant-readiness screening is separate from the live rating, not a measure of program quality. Review the source records before making a grant decision.

  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 10/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 29/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 44/100.
  • High — Grant Readiness: Automatic revocation: this organization had its federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked.