Partners for Christian Media Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
621535834
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2025
Location
Chattanooga, TN, USA
Phone
4238921200
Rating
72
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Media, Communications Organizations
Affiliation
Christianity

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,797,508
Expenses
$3,081,318
Assets
$2,399,776
Liabilities
$678,104

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

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JUSTIN WADE (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • ROBERT H LUBELL (DIRECTOR): $233,027 total reported compensation
  • JUSTIN WADE (PRESIDENT): $166,059 total reported compensation
  • DEAN ARNOLD (DIRECTOR): $48,706 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To provide the greater chattanooga area with christian radio station and a christian music festival along with online ministries that point people to jesus christ.

What it reported doing in 2025

Provides christian music and ministry via radio on 102.7 fm.provides christian music and minsitry via radio on 103.1 fm.provides christian music and ministry via the annual j-fest (christian music festival).provides christian music and ministry via radio on the jradio streaming platform.provides and distributes video testimony ministries with comeonletsgo.

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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 76
  • Accountability: 72
  • Sustainability: 18
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 79.9%; rating input score 80
  • Program expense ratio: 72.4%; rating input score 72
  • Fundraising efficiency: $10.37 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 21st 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: 60%; rating input score 60; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • 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: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -10.1%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.78; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.28; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.5%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.9% per year; rating input score 100; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.9% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 79.9% of revenue deployed · 72.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 5 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $233K · 6 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $121K reported
  • Consistency: 30 of 31 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2013 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 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.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 37/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 10/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 26/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Audit committee oversight not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 28/100.