The Greater Wilkes-barre Chamber of Business and Industry

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
020605397
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Wilkesbarre, PA, USA
Phone
5708232101
Rating
64
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Employment Procurement Assistance

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$956,734
Expenses
$802,852
Assets
$1,739,130
Liabilities
$1,260,354

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

Leadership & pay

61 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LINDSAY GRIFFIN (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • LINDSAY GRIFFIN (PRESIDENT): $161,593 total reported compensation
  • MATTHEW BICKERT (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $93,992 total reported compensation
  • PATRICK ENDLER (BOARD MEMBER): $53,909 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 serve charitable and educational purposes by supporting, sponsoring, administering, and overseeing programs and activities intended to promote the overall health and welfare of the greater wilkes-barre area.

What it reported doing in 2024

Greater wilkes-barre chamber of business and industry is organized exclusively for charitable, educational and scientific purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code, or the corresponding section of any future tax code, including without limitation to support, benefit, and carry out the section 501(c)(3) purposes of the greater Wyoming valley chamber of commerce, the greater wilkes-barre industrial fund, and the greater wilkes-barre development corporation by: (a) sponsoring, supporting, administering and overseeing programs and activities intended to promote the overall health and welfare of the greater wilkes-barre, Pennsylvania area; relieve poverty, combat community deterioration, and create jobs;(b) enhancing regional employment through the creation and implementation of workplace development and education programs and events for the benefit of the entire region;(c) assisting in the development, construction, ownership and leasing of distressed real property in order to promote the overall health and welfare of the greater wilkes-barre, Pennsylvania area;(d) providing administrative, managerial, marketing, accounting, bookkeeping and similar supporting services to affiliated not-for-profit organizations;(e) undertaking fundraising to support any of the corporation's activities or those activities of its affiliated not-for-profit entities;(f) awarding grants and gifts to support the programs and activities of affiliated not-for-profit entities; and(g) doing such things as are necessary to implement these purposes as well as any lawful purpose or purposes.

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 available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 44
  • Transparency & Controls: 76
  • Accountability: 94
  • Sustainability: 55
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 46.1%; rating input score 46
  • Program expense ratio: 55%; rating input score 55
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 97.7%; rating input score 98; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: 16.1%; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.17; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.72; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 38.5%; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -2.3% per year; rating input score 0; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.6% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -16.5% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 46.1% of revenue deployed · 55% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 43 of 44 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $441K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $162K · 61 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 6 filed related-organization links
  • 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 46/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 55/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Whistleblower policy not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 4/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 10/100.