Local Color

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
473980272
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2016
Location
San Jose, CA, USA
Phone
7606463281
Rating
80
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Community, Neighborhood Development

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,456,299
Expenses
$1,396,296
Assets
$848,256
Liabilities
$47,361

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

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Erin Salazar (Executive Director)
  • Lisanna Dominguez (Director & President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Erin Salazar (Executive Director): $89,483 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Local Colors mission is to build equitable pathways for local artists and creatives to thrive. We meet our mission by facilitating equitably paid projects for artists; acquiring and developing affordable workspace for local creatives;(Continued at Schedule O, Note 06.)

What it reported doing in 2024

Creative Services. In 2024, Local Colors Creative Services program supported the creation of over 20,000 square feet of murals across 36 projects, directly engaging 64 local artists. These public and private commissions included highly visible installations in San Jos, Milpitas, and San Mateo, bringing vibrancy to commercial corridors and community hubs alike. In addition to mural production, this program expanded capacity by hiring a second full-time team member, allowing Local Color to meet growing demand for high-quality public art. Highlights include mural restoration work in partnership with the San Jos Downtown Association and the stewardship of beloved pieces such as Threads Woven by Jimmy Paints and Recuerdos del Este by Edgar Ochoa. This work advanced the organizations mission by increasing artist compensation, expanding access to public art, and reinvesting in the cultural infrastructure of the city.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 64% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% 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 - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Accountability: 78
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 71%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 74.1%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.47 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 88.9%; rating input score 89; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: 4.1%; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.61; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.4%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 23.1% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 27% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 30.5% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 71% of revenue deployed · 74.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 9 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $89K · 9 people listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 26 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2017 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 36/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 48/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 28/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 49/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 51/100.