Los Angeles World Affairs Council and Town Hall

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
951783788
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Phone
4242586160
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,122,681
Expenses
$1,129,553
Assets
$3,338,162
Liabilities
$421,868

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

Leadership & pay

59 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • RICHARD DOWNIE (PRESIDENT &)

Highest reported compensation

  • RICHARD DOWNIE (PRESIDENT &): $212,103 total reported compensation
  • ALEXANDER MESSMANN (EXECUTIVE VP): $157,355 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The organization is a non-partisan, membership based speakers' forum that connects business leaders, community members, and engaged individuals with shared interest in local, national, and global affairs. It provides an open and accessible platform for public dialogue, fostering informed discussion and deeper understanding of critical issues shaping the world. Through events, programs and thought leadership, the organization promotes civic engagement, and lifelong learning in a welcoming, inclusive environment.

What it reported doing in 2024

Educational events: the organization hosted a series of public educational programs, including webinars and in-person events, featuring distinguished speakers from government, diplomacy, national security, business, media, and academia. Speakers included a former director of the national security agency, a former nato supreme allied commander, a former cia and national security council senior official, foreign consuls general representing france, belgium, qatar, australia, japan, india, and the philippines, the ceo of a major u.s. Energy company, the former speaker of the u.s. House of representatives, and the chief of police of los angeles. Additional presenters included senior policy experts, journalists, and scholars from leading think tanks, technology companies, and universities. Programs addressed current domestic and international issues, including foreign policy, democracy, international security, technology and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, energy transitions, urban policy, and global conflicts. All programs were presented in a nonpartisan, non- advocacy format and were open to the public, with webinars offered at no cost. Total attendance exceeded 3,400

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 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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 88.9%; rating input score 89
  • Program expense ratio: 74.8%; rating input score 75
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.44 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 32; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: -0.6%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.96; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.13; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 32.7%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -4.1% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.8% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.2% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 88.9% of revenue deployed · 74.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 35 of 35 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $845K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $212K · 59 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 32/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 34/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 6/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 39/100.