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Passes our checks

Center for Community Wealth Building

EIN 85-2257483 · Denver, CO

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

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood76 out of 100GovernanceGood71 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

TO BUILD AN INCLUSIVE ECONOMY THAT WORKS FOR ALL.

Income
$1.6 million
Spending
$1.6 million
Spent on programs
87%
Reserves
8.7 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 78%
Employees
14
Volunteers
8
Highest pay
$121,785, executive director

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

Good: 76 out of 100.

  • Reserves

    28 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 8.7 months of spending.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 6% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    8 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 0% of income.

  • Income trend

    5 of 15

    Income fell 13% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    87% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 3 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

Good: 71 out of 100.

  • Independent board

    18 of 25

    4 of 4 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

    0 of 7

    Reports no 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

    0 of 15

    Its accounts were not audited or reviewed 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 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 (4)
  1. $448,657 spent. DEMOCRATIZING OWNERSHIP: TO BUILD A ROBUST COMMUNITY-OWNERSHIP MOVEMENT ALONGSIDE LOCALS THAT INCREASES LEADERSHIP SKILLS, BUSINESS ACUMEN, AND ECONOMIC MOBILITY, CCWB DEVELOPED THE CURRICULUM FOR, PILOTED, AND LAUNCHED THE WORKER OWNED CO-OP ACADEMY (WOCA), A SIX-MONTH, FOURTEEN-SESSION INTENSIVE, STREAMLINED, COHORT-BASED TRAINING AND SUPPORT PROGRAM; PROVIDED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO 21 CO-OPS AND HOSTED 32 CO-OP TRAININGS; DEVELOPED A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE FOR LOCAL NPOS WORKING ON COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP OF REAL ESTATE AND CO-DEVELOPED THE COMMUNITY FIELD NOTES WEBSITE WWW.FUTUREBY.COMMUNITY; CREATED THE COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP REAL ESTATE ACADEMY, THROUGH WHICH 40 PARTICIPANTS FROM 19 GROUPS LEARNED THE STEPS NEEDED TO COLLECTIVELY OWN AND MANAGE REAL ESTATE; AND HOSTED 35 CO-OP EDUCATION, OUTREACH, NETWORKING, AND FIELD-BUILDING EVENTS ATTENDED BY APPROXIMATELY 410 PEOPLE.
  2. $294,407 spent. STRENGTHENING LOCAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP: TO BUILD LOCAL ECONOMIC RESILIENCE AND COMMUNITY COHESION BY STRENGTHENING NEIGHBORHOOD MICROBUSINESSES THROUGH CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE BUSINESS SUPPORT, CCWB DEVELOPED DATA COLLECTION PROTOCOLS TO TRACK THE IMPACT OF ITS FEEDING ANCHORS PROGRAM, WITH ANALYSIS OF REVENUE DATA FROM FOUR CATERERS SHOWING INCREASES FROM PROGRAM ENROLLMENT IN 2017/2018 TO 2024 RANGING FROM 200 PERCENT TO 800 PERCENT; PROVIDED ONE-ON-ONE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO 76 LOCAL BUSINESSES; HELD A THREE-PART FINANCE SEMINAR ATTENDED BY 39 LOCAL SKILLED TRADES BUSINESSES; AND FURTHER DEVELOPED THE SHOPBIPOC PLATFORM TO CONNECT INTERESTED CONSUMERS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSES, GROWING THE NETWORK TO OVER 700 BUSINESSES ACROSS 11 BUSINESS SECTORS.
  3. $117,623 spent. ENGAGING ANCHOR INSTITUTIONS: TO ADVANCE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMUNITIES BY LEVERAGING PLACE-BASED INSTITUTIONS' PROCUREMENT, HIRING, AND INVESTING PRACTICES, CCWB CONVENED 15 LOCAL ANCHOR INSTITUTIONS IN QUARTERLY MEETINGS OF THE DENVER ANCHOR NETWORK FOR PEER LEARNING ON HOW TO LEVERAGE EVERYDAY BUSINESS PRACTICES TO CLOSE THE WEALTH GAP; ASSISTED FIVE MEMBERS OF THE DENVER ANCHOR NETWORK IN MAKING MEASURABLE PROGRESS TOWARD SHIFTING PROCUREMENT SPENDING TO MORE SMALL, LOCAL BUSINESSES AND HELPED TWO ANCHORS CHANGE DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS TO LOWER BARRIERS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES TO WORK WITH THE INSTITUTIONS; AND HOSTED THE FIFTH EAT.LOCAL.FOOD. EVENT, ATTENDED BY 222 PEOPLE FROM 92 ORGANIZATIONS, WITH A CURATED CATERER LIST THAT NOW INCLUDES 24 BUSINESSES.
  4. $531,210 spent. COMMUNITY RELATIONS, EDFSI, COBRE AND GENERAL PROGRAM.

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

  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 September 7, 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 September 30, 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 September 10, 2026.

  4. 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 September 7, 2026.

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

    Recognized by the IRS since March 2021.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 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 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.