Labor Community Strategy Center

What it reported doing in 2024

The strategy center currently has the following program projects:1. Voices from the frontlines radio- featuring frontline movement organizers, authors, activists and revolutionaries from around the world. Broadcast live on mondays at 4pm (pst) on pacifica radio kpfk 90.7 fm, online at www.kpfk.org (streaming live), and to archives at the above link. 2. Bus riders union (bru) - features creative tactics, from a groundbreaking civil rights consent decree to direct action and civil disobedience, drive a multiracial dynamo of 200 active members, 3,000 dues-paying members, and 50,000 supporters on the bus. The bru has literally saved public transportation in los angeles and become the largest multiracial, mass transportation grassroots organization in the U.S.3. Transit riders for public transportation (trpt) - the strategy center is initiating a new national campaign, trpt, that will be focusing on mobilizing low-income communities and the most transit dependent to impact the forthcoming federal transportation bill, t4, where hundreds of billions of dollars are at stake and new opportunities must be seized.4. Clean air clean lungs clean buses / public health and global warming campaign - we are leading a growing coalition of environmental and public health groups and directly impacted low-income community residents and bus riders in an international campaign to go far beyond kyoto in the world's car capital. We are shooting to cut l.a.'s 7 million autos in half and reduce l.a.'s greenhouse gas emissions by 50% over the next decade.5. Community rights campaign - we are confronting an epidemic of criminalizing low-income youth, especially black and latino youth, in the urban core communities where we organize. Instead of teaching pre-med and pre-law, schools have become pre-prisons where huge numbers of students are warehoused, "enrolled and "data-based" into the criminal justice system from early on. We have opposed expanded funding for police through the 1,000 more buses, 1,000 less police campaign, and are working in five l.a. High schools.6. National school for strategic organizing - one of the best-known "graduate schools" in movement building in the u.s. More than 80 organizers have graduated since 1991, completing 6-12 months of rigorous 60-hour weeks in the classroom and organizing on the buses. They now comprise a national network of "long distance runners" who will commit years and hopefully a lifetime to highly professional and effective organizing work, with the strategy center and many other groups.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
• Program expense ratio: 80.6%; rating input score 81
• Fundraising efficiency: $7.07 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 19th 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: 75%; rating input score 75; 20th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Fail
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • 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: -95.7%; rating input score 2; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.94; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.41; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 24.2%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -4.2% per year; rating input score 0; 18th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -10.1% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 3.9% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings