Giving the Basics Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
453069975
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Kansas City, KS, USA
Phone
9133874375
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$14,201,502
Expenses
$10,948,868
Assets
$8,463,124
Liabilities
$121,296

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • TERESA HAMILTON (PRESIDENT & CEO)
  • CHANDRA GOEBEL (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • MATT KARR (DIRECTOR OF GROWTH): $183,535 total reported compensation
  • CHANDRA GOEBEL (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $141,999 total reported compensation
  • NICK HARDESTY (DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR): $140,074 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Giving the basics provides the necessities of life, not covered by government assistance programs, such as laundry soap, shampoo, deodorant, toilet paper and other personal care hygiene products.

What it reported doing in 2025

Giving the basics distributes, free of charge, personal care hygiene products to 251 food pantries, senior centers, and homeless shelters, 519 schools and 23 police divisions in the greater Kansas city metro area. Giving the basics also distributes hygiene products to 584 rural schools across the state of Kansas and has 27 registered national organization partners who serve an additional 1,129 locations. Products distributed include cleaning supplies, brushes/combs, shampoo, lotion, deodorant, feminine hygiene products, laundry soap, tissues, soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, toilet paper and incontinence products. These items are not covered by government assistance and are vital for basic human dignity.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 81% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 87
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 60
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 70.9%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 91.8%; rating input score 92
  • Fundraising efficiency: $26.67 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 87.7%; rating input score 88; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 22.9%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.77; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 5.8%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.8% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 18.9% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 13.4% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 70.9% of revenue deployed · 91.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $10M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $184K · 16 people listed
  • Consistency: 35 of 36 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2017 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 92 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 84 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 21/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Audit committee oversight not reported.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 51/100.