Sonoma County Economic Development Board Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
943397043
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Santa Rosa, CA, USA
Phone
7075657170
Rating
79
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Public, Societal Benefit

Reported finances

Revenue
$96,545
Expenses
$148,734
Assets
$719,916
Liabilities
$40,479

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

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • E BROWN (ED/SECRETARY): $225,806 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

To support sonoma county's economic development board programs

What it reported doing in 2024

Spring Economic Perspective - The Spring Economic Perspective: "Moving Forward: Strengthening Our Economy for the Challenges of a Changing Climate" examined strategies for addressing economic challenges and fostering inclusive growth in the face of climate change. The event featured keynote speaker Merlin Hanauer from Sonoma State University, followed by a panelist discussion focusing on disaster impacts on marginalized communities, supporting businesses through climate challenges, and disaster resilience. The event was held at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park with over 150 people in attendance.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 71% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 90% 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. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 32
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 97.1%; rating input score 97
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -54.1%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.84; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.5%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.4% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.5% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 97.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $144K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $226K · 11 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 19 of 19 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 28/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 49/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 21/100.