Central Ventura County Fire Safe Council
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
VENTURA REGIONAL FIRE SAFE COUNCIL IS A GRASSROOTS, COMMUNITY-LED ORGANIZATION THAT MOBILIZES RESIDENTS TO PROTECT THEIR HOMES, COMMUNITIES, AND ENVIRONMENTS FROM CATASTROPHIC WILDFIRE, THROUGH COLLABORATIVE PLANNING, PROGRAMS, MITIGATION AND EDUCATION.
- Income
- $1.3 million
- Spending
- $1.3 million
- Spent on programs
- 80%
- Reserves
- 2.5 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 82%
- Employees
- 10
- Volunteers
- 50
- Highest pay
- $102,978, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 57 out of 100. Higher than 22% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 2.5 months of spending.
Debt
10 of 20It owes 49% of what it owns.
Living within its means
12 of 15Income exceeded spending by 1% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 6% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1580% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 3 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 85 out of 100. Higher than 72% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2510 of 10 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
0 of 15Its accounts were not audited or reviewed 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 December 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 (1)
- $1.0 million spent. THE VENTURA REGIONAL FIRE SAFE COUNCIL (VRFSC) PROVIDES ESSENTIAL WILDFIRE MITIGATION AND AWARENESS PROGRAMS THAT ENABLE VENTURA COUNTY'S RESILIENT AND TREASURED COMMUNITIES TO LIVE MORE SAFELY WITH THE THREAT OF WILDFIRE. OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS BRING A DEEP AND BROAD UNDERSTANDING OF WILDFIRE MITIGATION, RESOURCES, MAPPING, LOCAL LEGISLATION, AND CONTENT EXPERTISE.FACILITATED 177 EDUCATION AND OUTREACH EVENTS, WEBINARS, TOWN HALL MEETINGS, AND WORKSHOPS, REACHING 6,637 PEOPLE THROUGHOUT VENTURA COUNTY. MAINTAINED MEDIA AND DIGITAL PRESENCE THROUGH VARIOUS OUTREACH PLATFORMS, ACHIEVING AN ESTIMATED DIGITAL REACH OF OVER 53,000 INDIVIDUALS. PROGRAMS WERE OFFERED IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH TO PROMOTE INCLUSION AND EQUITY.COMPLETED 730 HOME HARDENING ASSESSMENTS, HELPING RESIDENTS IDENTIFY AND ADDRESS THE MOST VULNERABLE COMPONENTS OF THEIR HOMES TO WILDFIRE. SUPPORTED THE RECOGNITION OF OVER 40 FIREWISE USA COMMUNITIES (41+ TO DATE). PROVIDED FIREWISE USA PROGRAM ASSISTANCE AND DISTRIBUTED OVER $25,000 IN FUNDING TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY-LEVEL WILDFIRE RESILIENCE THROUGH CHIPPER EVENTS, VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, EMBER-RESISTANT VENTS, YARD SIGNAGE, AND OTHER MITIGATION ACTIVITIES.DELIVERED CHIPPER AND FUELS REDUCTION PROGRAMS RESULTING IN APPROXIMATELY 1,869 CUBIC YARDS OF VEGETATION REMOVED AND 194 ACRES TREATED, SUPPORTING DEFENSIBLE SPACE AND NEIGHBORHOOD CLEAN-UP EFFORTS. THROUGH THE RESIDENT GRANT PROGRAM AND RELATED INITIATIVES, PROVIDED HOME RETROFITS AND TARGETED ASSISTANCE TO VULNERABLE AND LOW-INCOME RESIDENTS TO IMPROVE WILDFIRE RESISTANCE.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 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 November 6, 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 December 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 August 2010.
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 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.