Hermosa Beach Friends of the Library

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
953512644
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2010, Form 990-N 2014
Location
Hermosa Beach, CA, USA
Phone
3107765354
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$148,548
Expenses
$79,226
Assets
$1,535,775
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KIRA BACCARI (PRESIDENT)
  • GEORGE CEMAN (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • KIRA BACCARI (PRESIDENT)
  • GEORGE CEMAN (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • DANIEL CARINCI (SECRETARY)

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

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The mission of hermosa beach friends of the library is to promote literacy, education, culture and community in hermosa beach and the south bay

What it reported doing in 2024

Hbfol operates three bookstoresa 575-sqft community bookstore, a shop inside the hermosa beach public library, and an online storeeach stocked entirely from our community donations. Thousands of gently loved books, puzzles, cds, and dvds are sold at affordable prices (under $1 in our physical stores), with the commitment that every patron leave with a book. In 2024, bookstore sales grew through expanded hours, a nationwide online presence, and strong community support, with more than 44,000 donated materials processed and organized by volunteers for resale or redistribution. These donations also powered our book readcycle program, launched in 2024, which redistributed over 2,900 books to schools, teachers, nonprofits, and community partners across southern ca. Together, our bookstores and readcycle advance literacy and sustainability, turning every donation into a resource for learning and connection and furthering our mission to support literacy and education.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 59% for direct work, and 41% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - 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 some filed totals do not add up.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 80
  • Accountability: 70
  • Sustainability: 88
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 64.3%; rating input score 64
  • Program expense ratio: 93.2%; rating input score 93
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 81.8%; rating input score 82; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 93.5%; rating input score 94; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 46.7%; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 19.38; rating input score 95; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 30.1% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 8.9% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 64.3% of revenue deployed · 93.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 4 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $74K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 19 of 21 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes grants
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • 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.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 6 not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.