Kaboom Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521970904
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Bethesda, MD, USA
Phone
2026590215
Rating
82
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Parks and Playgrounds

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$21,524,179
Expenses
$25,091,649
Assets
$24,686,878
Liabilities
$9,344,051

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

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LYSA RATLIFF (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • LYSA RATLIFF (CEO): $426,539 total reported compensation
  • GEORGE MEGAS (CFO): $285,703 total reported compensation
  • JAMES SIEGAL (SENIOR FELLOW): $277,459 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Kaboom!, inc., which we refer to as kaboom!, is the national nonprofit that works to end playspace inequity by uniting with communities to build kid-designed playspaces that can spark joy and foster a sense of belonging for the kids who are often denied opportunities to thrive.

What it reported doing in 2025

Thought leadership - through media opportunities, conference attendance and developing relationships with funders, city leaders, community advocates, and other key stakeholder. Kaboom! Seeks to lead the conversation and drive communications to raise the awareness of playspaces as an equity issue and to educate and inspire stakeholders and communities to take action to ensure kids have the opportunities to thrive. See schedule o.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 98% 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. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 90
  • Transparency & Controls: 73
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 19
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 90.3%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.85 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 90.5%; rating input score 91; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -16.6%; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.98; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.38; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.8%; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.2% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $22.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $427K · 21 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $401K reported
  • Consistency: 37 of 38 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2019 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 26 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 20 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 — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 38/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 4/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 29/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 34/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 37/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.