NineStar Connect

Overview

Mission

Provide dependable, cost-effective utility and communications services through a member-owned nonprofit cooperative, and support community giving programs that help those in need. NineStar Connect is a smart utility that brings urban-grade fiber optic and utility infrastructure solutions to Indiana’s most rural communities. Our reliable infrastructure solutions have made the communities we serve the most wired in Indiana, and desirable places for sustained economic development. Our members give back. NineStar Connect is a nonprofit electric, communications and water & sewer cooperative, so we don’t sell to customers or work for shareholders. Instead, we have members who serve as our owners— and they’re the same people who live in the homes, attend the schools, and work at the businesses we serve. That means our sole mission is to deliver the most dependable, cost-effective services...

Operating model

Revenue model

Earned-program. 96% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.

Distribution model

Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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 filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and reported officer compensation is a large share of total spending, which may reflect staffing concentration.

Rating breakdown

• Financial Efficiency: 84
• Transparency & Controls: 86
• Accountability: 95
• Sustainability: 64
• Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Details

• What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
• Where the money goes: 92.5% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
• Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
• Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $62.8M in reported program spending
• Leadership: top reported pay $511K · 28 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
• Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $6.5M reported
• Consistency: 22 of 22 current checks pass
• Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes grants and executive pay
• Filing history: 13 filing years from 2010 to 2024
• Contacts: How to reach this organization
• Money network: 23 filed money-flow records
• Related organizations: 6 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.

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.

• Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
• High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 24/100.
• High — Grant Readiness: Federal audit findings: this organization reported findings in its latest federal Single Audit.