Pelican Bomb

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
455434070
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2018
Forms available
Form 990 2018, Form 990-N 2015
Location
New Orleans, LA, USA
Phone
3238393475
Rating
59
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose

Reported finances

Revenue
$206,492
Expenses
$124,092
Assets
$0
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2018. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • Cameron Shaw (Executive Dir.): $51,000 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2018. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To build and support a sustainable arts infrastructure

What it reported doing in 2018

Exhibition Program - centered at the organization's gallery space in the Central City neighborhood of New Orleans, this program uses contemporary art as a lens to consider pressing social and cultural issues today. The organization's exhibitions explore diverse themesranging from the importance of wellness and care to the relationship between hair and personal identitythrough the inclusion of varied artistic viewpoints. Pelican Bomb looks to bring work by emerging and establishing artists from around the world to New Orleans, where their art has rarely, if ever, been shown.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% 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

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 56
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 58
  • Sustainability: 44
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 43.4%; rating input score 43
  • Program expense ratio: 72.2%; rating input score 72
  • Fundraising efficiency: $34.66 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 72; 72nd 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: No; rating input score 0
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 39.9%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 41.1%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -13.1% per year; rating input score 0; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1.4% per year; rating input score 0; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -129.3% per year; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 43.4% of revenue deployed · 72.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 3 board members independent · 0 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $90K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $51K · 3 people listed
  • Consistency: 19 of 19 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 3 filing years from 2016 to 2018
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 43/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 7 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Major donor itemization scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.