Community Based Public Safety Collective
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
Our mission is to strengthen neighborhood leadership by investing in the education, advocacy and training of community based public safety practitioners and organizations.
- Income
- $6.0 million
- Spending
- $5.7 million
- Spent on programs
- 89%
- Reserves
- 3.7 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 41%
- Employees
- 10
- Volunteers
- 0
- Highest pay
- $250,000, president and board chairp
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
Good: 70 out of 100. Higher than 38% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
20 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 3.7 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 7% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 5% of income.
Income trend
0 of 15Income fell 30% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1589% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 5 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
Fair: 65 out of 100. Higher than 40% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 255 of 6 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
0 of 15Reports no written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
0 of 8Reports no written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
0 of 7Reports no 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
0 of 5Reports no independent review process for its chief executive's pay.
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 (1)
- $5.1 million spent. I. Introduction2024 was a transformative year for The Collective. Still in our early years of operation, the organization experienced significant growth, doubling our staff, budget, and projects. Despite being in a formative stage, our team rose to meet the demands of an expanding national footprint, managing a diverse range of projects with varying funding structures and compliance requirements.This period of rapid development marked a turning point for The Collective, as we firmly established ourselves as a national leader in the community based public safety movement. Highlights below reflect our continued momentum and the impact of our work across the country.II. Core Program Areas: Key AccomplishmentsCoalition to Advance Public Safety (CAPS) AccomplishmentsDisbursed $4.5 million through the Local Capacity Building Fund (LCBF) to support local CVI organizations nationwide. Of that total, The Collective directly administered $2.5 million in the following cities: Baton Rouge, Newark, Los Angeles, and AtlantaProduced narrative change tools, including sizzle reels for four grantees and community partners to elevate their stories and showcase their impactCreated 31 tailored TTA plans to strengthen grantee operations, infrastructure, and violence intervention strategiesTrained over 200 frontline practitioners and community members through certification programs and targeted capacity-building workshopsStrengthened back-office infrastructure for grantees by supporting board development, refining program design, enhancing data management systems, launching websites, and delivering a 16-week grant courseRaised over $6 million in additional funds to support LCBF grantees and sustain long-term impact through our 16-week grant course and assigned SMEs Completed the Impact Lab with BridgeSpan Consultants in early February, positioning CAPS for long-term growth and structural evolutionRevamped CAPS' internal onboarding process to streamline transitions, improve team integration, and set new hires up for successCommunity Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative (CVIPI)Developed Cohort Based Learning Communities to expand TTA capacity:Conducted the Data Management Cohort quarterly, training a total of 20 cities, counties, and municipal agencies and their subgrantees Conducted the Law Enforcement Engagement Cohort, training 6 law enforcement agenciesCreated 28 tailored TTA plans to strengthen grantee operations, infrastructure, and violence intervention strategiesProvided TTA to 75 CVIPI grantees, including CBOs, law enforcement, cities, counties, and state governmentsReconfigured staff to hire a Senior Project Manager and a Senior TTA Specialist enhance the effectiveness of the team and program deliveryLos Angeles Regional ProjectsLaunched the LA County Peer-to-Peer Academy to build a training infrastructure for CBOs to strengthen the skillsets of their peer workforce within the CVI field Launched Safe Passage and Peace Building programming with LAUSD schools Provided TTA for Gang Reduction Youth Development programs in Los Angeles areaIII. New InitiativesScaling Safety: The Collective along with our partner, Alliance for Safety and Justice were selected for the Audacious 2025 Cohort, in support of Scaling Safety. This comprehensive initiative aims to support cities across the nation experiencing chronic violence cycles to scale up effective community-based prevention, intervention, and crisis response programs and integrate these prevention strategies as complementary to existing public safety efforts, in five US cities: Austin, Texas; Cleveland, Ohio; Jackson, Mississippi; Miami, Florida; and Tucson, Arizona.Ford Build Nomination: The Ford Foundation nominated the Community Based Public Safety Collective for their highly competitive capacity building initiative that provides $3M over 5 years to exceptional organizations, to support strengthening their organizational infrastructure to further sustain the critical work.
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 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 December 2024.
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 March 2022.
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.