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Compass Working Capital Inc

EIN 20-3975100 · Boston, MA

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthStrong100 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

COMPASS WORKING CAPITAL ("COMPASS") IS WORKING TO END ASSET POVERTY FOR FAMILIES WITH LOW INCOMES AND NARROW THE RACIAL AND GENDER WEALTH DIVIDES. OUR MISSION IS TO PARTNER WITH FAMILIES WITH LOW INCOMES TO BUILD ASSETS AS A PATHWAY OUT OF POVERTY. WE FOCUS ON REACHING FAMILIES LED BY BLACK AND/OR LATINX WOMEN. TO ACHIEVE OUR MISSION, WE OPERATE CLIENT-CENTERED SAVINGS AND FINANCIAL COACHING PROGRAMS, DELIVER TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO OTHER PRACTITIONERS, AND SHAPE POLICY SOLUTIONS THAT DISMANTLE BARRIERS TO ASSET BUILDING.

Income
$18.4 million
Spending
$11.1 million
Spent on programs
74%
Reserves
23 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 87%
Employees
87
Volunteers
46
Highest pay
$238,569, president/ceo

Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Strong: 100 out of 100.

  • Reserves

    35 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 23.0 months of spending.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 8% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 40% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 4% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    74% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 4 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 100 out of 100.

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    6 of 6 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (3)
  1. $6.5 million spent. FAMILY SELF-SUFFICIENCY (FSS) PROGRAM:SINCE 2010, COMPASS WORKING CAPITAL ("COMPASS") HAS PARTNERED WITH PUBLIC HOUSING AGENCIES AND PRIVATE OWNERS OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT AN ASSET-BUILDING AND FINANCIAL CAPABILITY MODEL FOR THE FAMILY SELF-SUFFICIENCY ("FSS") PROGRAM, A HISTORICALLY UNDERUTILIZED SAVINGS AND EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM OVERSEEN BY THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT ("HUD"). CONGRESS ESTABLISHED THE FSS PROGRAM IN 1990 AS AN EMPLOYMENT AND SAVINGS PROGRAM FOR RESIDENTS OF FEDERALLY SUBSIDIZED HOUSING. FAMILIES RECEIVING THIS ASSISTANCE TYPICALLY PAY 30% OF THEIR INCOME TOWARDS RENT. THIS STRUCTURE INADVERTENTLY DISCOURAGES SOME RESIDENTS FROM INCREASING THEIR WORK HOURS AND EARNINGS SINCE THEY WORRY ABOUT PAYING MORE RENT AND LOSING OTHER BENEFITS IF THEIR INCOME INCREASES. THE FSS MODEL REMOVES THIS DISINCENTIVE BY ALLOWING PARTICIPANTS TO CAPTURE THEIR INCREASED RENT PAYMENTS IN A SAVINGS ACCOUNT, HELD BY THE HOUSING PROVIDER, WHICH CAN BE ACCESSED UPON COMPLETION OF THE PROGRAM. PARTICIPANTS CAN UTILIZE THEIR SAVINGS TO ACHIEVE THEIR FINANCIAL GOALS. THE COMPASS FSS MODEL INTEGRATES FINANCIAL COACHING AND OTHER ASSET BUILDING STRATEGIES INTO THE FSS PROGRAM, WITH THE GOAL OF PROMOTING ECONOMIC MOBILITY AND FINANCIAL SECURITY FOR PARTICIPATING FAMILIES. THE FIRST MODEL OF ITS KIND IN THE COUNTRY, THE COMPASS FSS PROGRAM IS CURRENTLY OFFERED THROUGH PARTNERSHIP WITH PUBLIC HOUSING AUTHORITIES AND NONPROFIT HOUSING ORGANIZATIONS IN MASSACHUSETTS, PENNSYLVANIA, COLORADO, CONNECTICUT, FLORIDA, ILLINOIS, MARYLAND, MICHIGAN, MISSOURI, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK, NORTH CAROLINA, RHODE ISLAND, VIRGINIA, AND WASHINGTON DC. THE COMPASS FSS PROGRAM HAS ATTRACTED LOCAL AND NATIONAL ATTENTION AS A SCALABLE, HOUSING-BASED MODEL TO SUPPORT FAMILIES WITH LOW INCOMES TO BUILD ASSETS, ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS, AND BECOME MORE FINANCIALLY SECURE.
  2. $997,840 spent. NATIONAL FIELD-BUILDING, TRAINING, AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE:THE FSS PROGRAM HAS THE POTENTIAL TO REACH AN ESTIMATED 2.2 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS NATIONALLY, YET ONLY A TINY SUBSET LESS THAN 3% OF ELIGIBLE HOUSEHOLDS ARE CURRENTLY ABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE PROGRAM. SINCE 2016, COMPASS HAS ALSO WORKED TO BUILD THE FIELD OF FSS PRACTITIONERS AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS NATIONALLY AND SHARE OUT OUR BEST PRACTICES TO EXPAND THE SCOPE AND IMPACT OF FSS. CURRENTLY, THE ORGANIZATION MANAGES AN ONLINE LEARNING PLATFORM AND COMMUNITY CALLED FSS LINK, WHICH PROVIDES FSS PRACTITIONERS WITH ACCESS TO RESOURCES FOR FSS PROGRAM MANAGEMENT AND FINANCIAL COACHING, TRAINING, AND OPPORTUNITIES TO CONNECT WITH OTHER FSS PRACTITIONERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. COMPASS ALSO PROVIDES TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ON ITS MODEL FOR THE FSS PROGRAM TO HOUSING PROVIDERS WHO WANT TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF THEIR EXISTING PROGRAMS OR LAUNCH NEW ONES. COMPASS ALSO HOSTS A BIENNIAL NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE FSS PROGRAM.
  3. $695,397 spent. SYSTEMS AND POLICY CHANGE:TO DELIVER ON OUR MISSION AND FULLY SUPPORT FAMILIES TO REACH THEIR FINANCIAL GOALS, COMPASS COMBINES DIRECT SERVICE AND FIELD-BUILDING WITH WORK ON BROADER SYSTEMS AND POLICY CHANGE. OUR FOCUS IS LARGELY ON ISSUES RELATED TO EXPANDING THE SCOPE AND IMPACT OF THE FSS PROGRAM, AS WELL AS OTHER PRIORITIES RELATED TO OUR MISSION TO END ASSET POVERTY AND NARROW THE RACIAL AND GENDER WEALTH DIVIDES. IN ORDER TO CARRY OUT THIS WORK, WE EDUCATE PUBLIC OFFICIALS, LEGISLATORS, AND POLICYMAKERS AT THE NATIONAL, STATE, AND LOCAL LEVELS, AND PLAY AN ACTIVE ROLE IN COALITIONS, GROUPS, ADVOCACY EFFORTS, AND INFORMAL NETWORKS THAT ALIGN WITH OUR MISSION AND VISION AND ENABLE US TO HELP PROMOTE PROMISING IDEAS, PRACTICES, AND POLICIES. WE ALSO WORK TO ELEVATE THE VOICES AND LIVED EXPERIENCES OF OUR CLIENTS TO INFLUENCE SYSTEMS AND POLICY CHANGE.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending August 2025.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since December 2006.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.