Helpline Youth Counseling Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The mission of Helpline Youth Counseling (HYC) is to help build individual, family, and community health, well-being, prosperity, and equity. HYC serves clients and community members with trauma-informed, strength-based, person-centered prevention, early intervention, education, and treatment services.
- Income
- $16.8 million
- Spending
- $16.5 million
- Spent on programs
- 95%
- Reserves
- 1.7 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 93%
- Employees
- 232
- Volunteers
- 30
- Highest pay
- $204,001, executive dir.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 58 out of 100. Higher than 32% of charities in its peer group (crime and legal services, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 1.7 months of spending.
Debt
10 of 20It owes 48% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 2% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 23% on the year before.
Spending floor
8 of 1594% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 41 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 31% of charities in its peer group (crime and legal services, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 258 of 8 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 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 (5)
- $5.6 million spent. Behavioral Health Services Program:HYC provides evidence-based, trauma-informed behavioral health services for individuals including children adolescents and adults, families, and groups at our four agency offices, on school campuses, at community locations, and in client homes. HYC's "Starting Point" substance use disorder outpatient treatment program provides substance use counseling to youth ages 12-17 and adults. Additionally, HYC partners with managed care plans to provide enhanced care management and community support services to high frequency users of managed care health and behavioral health care systems. In FY 2024-25, HYC provided 2365 children, youth and adults with comprehensive behavioral health care early intervention and treatment services.
- $4.0 million spent. Homeless and Housing Support Services Program:HYCs Homeless and Housing Support Services programs deliver coordinated housing and service interventions for homeless individuals and families living on the street in Los Angeles County to achieve permanent housing stability. HYC offers unhoused individuals and families supportive services including case management, financial education, housing navigation, housing placement, time-limited move-in and rental assistance, transportation, and resource information. Additionally, HYC offers eviction prevention services on a limited basis. In FY 2024-25, HYC provided 653 program participants with Homeless and Housing Support services.
- $3.1 million spent. Youth Services Program: HYCs Youth Services programs provide substance use prevention and education, youth leadership and advocacy services, and diversion case management services. HYC's Community Collaboration Program brings together various community sectors that develop tools and resources to educate and empower youth and parents from our community. In its Youth Services programs, HYC offers at-promise youth and their family members individual and group counseling case management, prevention and early intervention services, parent education, life skills, restorative justice practices, leadership development, and family support.See Schedule O for more detail. Additionally, HYC operates 5 Dream Resource Centers on school campuses offering students who have historically been targets of hate violence and bias motivated bullying with a variety of trauma-informed supports including art intervention/activism restorative justice, peer mediation and peer-to-peer counseling designed to empower them and develop their leadership. In FY 2024-2025, HYC provided 16,764 children, youth and adults with youth services programs in our four agency offices, on 67 school campuses throughout Los Angeles County, and in community locations.To build greater community resources and family support in the Greater Unincorporated Whittier community, HYC operates its Family Resource Center at Liberty Plaza offering a variety of health and wellness classes (yoga, Zumba, martial arts), art classes, baby and toddler items, resource and referral information, and a Community Tax Center.Total program expenses were: $3,073,074
- $2.7 million spent. Family Services Program: HYCS Family Services programs provide essential assessment, counseling, education, individualized case management, and linkage to comprehensive community resources that aim to improve family functioning, strengthen the family system, reduce child abuse and neglect, increase child safety, prevent domestic/intimate partner/family violence, and build protective factors within families. Services provided include individual and group counseling, intensive home-based interventions, parent education, and life skills classes. In FY 2024-25, HYCs Family Services programs provided 1,003 children, youth and adults with education, counseling, case management, and support.
- $194,706 spent. EMS Corps Job Training Program:HYC provides EMS Corps, an Emergency Medical Technician training program, for young adults 18 to 26 from underrepresented backgrounds, including foster care, juvenile justice, behavioral health, and economic hardship, for careers in emergency medical services. In partnership with Public Works Alliance, which has led the program for over a decade, EMS Corps offers technical EMT instruction and training, professional development, life skills, career pathways, and wraparound support including case management, clinical support, and a monthly stipend. Our initial class launched in April 2025 with 20 students.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
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.
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 October 13, 2026.
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.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since September 1972.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
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 October 21, 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.