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El Centro Nw

EIN 88-2783153 · Gearhart, OR

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

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood86 out of 100GovernanceFair63 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

The mission of El Centro NW is to unite and empower the Hispanic community by providing a space, a voice, and a way to access academic, financial, health, and cultural resources.

Income
$367,903
Spending
$288,372
Spent on programs
58%
Reserves
6.8 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 59%
Employees
6
Volunteers
25
Highest pay
$51,500, 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

Good: 86 out of 100. Higher than 71% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).

  • Reserves

    28 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 6.8 months of spending.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 1% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 22% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 33% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    8 of 15

    58% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 9 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

Fair: 63 out of 100. Higher than 37% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    6 of 6 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    0 of 15

    Reports no written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    0 of 8

    Reports no written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a 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

    0 of 5

    Reports no independent review process for its chief executive's pay.

  • Independent check of accounts

    6 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 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 (10)
  1. $4,962 spent. Tax Preparation Assistance: We provide free tax preparation assistance through an IRS program called VITA.
  2. $30,157 spent. Plaza Comunitaria: This is a program to educate immigrant adults to complete their primary and secondary education. It's a curriculum provided by the Secretary of Education in Mexico through the Mexican Consulate.
  3. $36,541 spent. Worksource Navigator: This program helps people find better jobs through job sources, referral to trainings, creation of resumes, etc.
  4. $41,982 spent. OHP: We help people enroll in the Oregon Health Plan.
  5. $863 spent. El Puente: We do Community Outreach through our community groups called El Puente. We have a north County community group called El Puente de Astoria and a south County community group called El Puente de Seaside. Our goal is to create another El Puente in Pacific County in Washington. We have monthly meetings to plan events, workshops to educate about immigrant rights and social justice. Through these groups we also get a lot of volunteers for our programs.
  6. $7,608 spent. Dia de los Muertos: On November 2, 2024 we celebrated Dia de los Muertos. We focused on teaching nonHispanic people about this tradition. We had booths for face painting, sugar skull decorating, family history, etc. We also had folklorico dancers, preHispanic dancers, school mariachi, traditional foods and beverages. We had over 300 people attend this event.
  7. $26,027 spent. Mestizo: We have a folklorico dance group where we teach youth 5 to 18 years of age the tradition of baile folklorico. These dancers performed at our cultural events of Cinco de Mayo, Hispanic Heritage Festival and Dia de los Muertos and other school and religious events we were invited to dance at in town. We had 38 dancers participating last year.
  8. $11,515 spent. Hispanic Heritage Celebration: This is a celebration we carry out during Hispanic Heritage Month. We fundraise by selling traditional Hispanic foods. We do folklorico dance performances and have a mariachi band.
  9. $6,952 spent. Cinco de Mayo: This is a fundraising event that we carry out at the Liberty Theatre and do a big folklorico dance performance and mariachi.
  10. $616 spent. Immigrants Program: Support for immigrants.

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

  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 October 13, 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 October 13, 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 October 13, 2026.

  4. 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.

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

    Recognized by the IRS since June 2022.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 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 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.