San Diego Automotive Museum

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
330147359
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
San Diego, CA, USA
Phone
6192312886
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Museum, Museum Activities

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,998,943
Expenses
$3,001,722
Assets
$8,752,775
Liabilities
$3,525,009

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

Leadership & pay

18 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LENNY LESZCZYNSKI (CEO)
  • ALAN PELTIER (President)
  • EVE MAZZARELLA (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • LENNY LESZCZYNSKI (CEO): $162,328 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 Museum functions as an educational and cultural institutionexercising community responsibility for the preservation of the automotive arts and sciences

What it reported doing in 2024

Education San Diego Automotive Museums programming offers San Diegos children an opportunity to learn about the many facets of the automobile experience, from the automobiles impact on society to societys impact on the automobile. This includes social studies (automotive history: local, national, and international), science (thephysics and technologies involved), and even art (movable art). The impact of the automobile on American society is without question and has been driving factor in our growth.At the San Diego Automotive Museum, visitors can begin to understand how important the industry has been to humanity, how the automobile has helped to shape our national identity, how the automobile has changed the course of American History, and how technological improvements brought on by the automobile have given us much greater access to the world at large.

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 - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 53
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 32
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 65.9%; rating input score 66
  • Program expense ratio: 47.6%; rating input score 48
  • Fundraising efficiency: $2.25 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -50.2%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.92; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.4; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 5.4%; rating input score 52; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 15.7% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 16.5% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 12.6% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 65.9% of revenue deployed · 47.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $1.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $162K · 18 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $130K reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • 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: Program expense ratio scored 48/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 6/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 19/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 52/100.