Collaborative Support Services Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The mission of Collaborative Support Services, Inc. is to support charitable programming in the State of Hawaii, with a specific focus on early-stage organizations. The Corporation will support this programming through capacity-building activities for early-stage charitable organizations including grant funding, administrative support, and educational seminars and convenings. The Corporation will also serve as a fiscal sponsor for early-stage charitable initiatives, ultimately assisting those initiatives in becoming independent tax-exempt organizations if there is sufficient need, support, and desire for such independence. Non-profit projects in Hawaii are suffering from the time and cost of applying for tax exempt status independently. This entity will allow these early teams to focus on designing and proving the efficacy of their interventions in a more time and resource efficient way.
- Income
- $4.4 million
- Spending
- $4.3 million
- Spent on programs
- 80%
- Reserves
- 1.5 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 67%
- Employees
- 12
- Volunteers
- 0
- Highest pay
- $150,000, network design and innovat
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 60 out of 100. Higher than 23% of charities in its peer group (mutual benefit, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 1.5 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 10% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 3% of income.
Income trend
0 of 15Income fell 34% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1580% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 7 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 81% of charities in its peer group (mutual benefit, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
18 of 253 of 3 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 December 31, 2024, 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)
- $1.7 million spent. The Early Childhood Action Strategy (ECAS) is a statewide public-private collaborative designed to improve the system of care for Hawaii's youngest children and their families. ECAS brings together government and non-governmental organizations to align priorities for children prenatal to age eight, streamline services, maximize resources and improve programs to support our youngest keiki.
- $1.2 million spent. Chef Hui's mission is feeding undernourished residents of Hawaii by providing emergency relief food distributions.
- $538,096 spent. Maui Wildfire Relief was established to support immediate and longer-term recovery needs for the people and places affected by the Maui wildfires.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, 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 September 7, 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 September 30, 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 September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since December 2019.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 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 7, 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.