BBB Wise Giving Report for
Catholic Relief Services

BBB Wise Giving Report issued September 2011
BBB Wise Giving Report expires September 2013


This BBB Accredited charity meets all 20 Standards for Charity Accountability and is a Seal Holder. Find out more...


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Charity Contact Information

Name: Catholic Relief Services
Address: 228 West Lexington Street
  Baltimore, MD 21201-3443
Phone: 888-277-7575
Web Address: www.crs.org
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BBB Wise Giving Alliance Comments

Year, State Incorporated: 1943, District of Columbia
Affiliates: USTOI Joint Stock Company (Bulgaria), USTOI Foundation (Bulgaria), Horizonti Foundation (Macedonia), Groupe d’Accompagnement à l’investissement et l’Epargne (GRAINE) (Burkina Faso), Small Enterprise Development Company, Ltd. (SED) (Thailand)

Stated Purpose: "to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas."

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Evaluation Conclusions

              

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) meets the 20 Standards for Charity Accountability.
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Programs

              

CRS supports projects designed to help communities in countries throughout Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America identify long-term solutions to poverty and build self-sufficiency. In most programs, CRS collaborates with one or more local partner agencies. The child survival, water and sanitation, and HIV/AIDS education and care projects give priority to the most vulnerable, typically women of reproductive age, infants, and the very young. Approaching farming as a family business, CRS is involved in furnishing assistance that includes processing, storage, and marketing of crops; weed, disease, and pest control; livestock production, fishing, and forestry; and irrigation and soil and water conservation. CRS also helps establish village banks to invest in loans to persons who have little or no access to other credit alternatives. As a means of achieving increased enrollment and regular attendance of children, especially girls, CRS supports school feeding programs. CRS also carries out humanitarian assistance operations in response to natural and man-made disasters, supplying aid in the form of food, medicines, shelter, and other relief supplies. CRS also conducts workshops; sponsors solidarity camps, prepares training manuals, stimulates inter-religious dialogue, and monitors early warning signs to promote the principles of tolerance, conflict resolution, and reconciliation. Furthermore, CRS operates programs in the United States that focus on parish outreach, fair trade, advocacy, and farmer-to-farmer support. These programs inform and engage American Catholics about poverty and injustice overseas, and provide them with the opportunity to get involved as individuals, with their families, and in their schools.

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010, CRS's program expenses were:

  
Emergency 272,766,000
HIV and AIDS 166,818,000
Agriculture 126,941,000
Health 87,253,000
Education 56,979,000
Welfare 34,376,000
Peace and justice 26,572,000
Small enterprise 8,411,000
Total Program Expenses: $780,116,000
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Governance

              

Chief Executive : Kenneth F. Hackett, President and CEO
Compensation*:
$322,562

Chair of the Board: Most Reverend Gerald L. Kicanas
Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation: Bishop of Tucson, Arizona

Board Size: 20

Paid Staff Size: 5235

*October 1, 2009 - September 30, 2010 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.
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Fund Raising

              

Method(s) Used:

Direct mail, telemarketing, print advertisements, grant proposals, Internet appeals, planned giving, cause-related marketing, and parish appeals.
Fund raising costs were 3% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $912,912,000, are donations received as a result of fund raising activities.)
CRS incurred joint costs of $1,160,000 for informational materials and activities that included fund raising materials. Of those costs, $904,800 was allocated to program expenses and $255,200 was allocated to fund raising expenses.
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Tax Status

              

This organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. It is eligible to receive contributions deductible as charitable donations for federal income tax purposes.
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Financial

              

The following information is based on CRS's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010.

Source of Funds  
US government grants and agreements 312,830,000
Donated agriculture, other commodities and ocean freight 240,777,000
Private contributions 212,179,000
Other public grants and contributions 59,994,000
Foundation and corporate grant revenue 40,131,000
Bequests 16,296,000
Catholic Relief Services collection 12,133,000
Realized and unrealized gain on investments and financial instruments 8,345,000
Private in-kind gifts 7,896,000
Investment and other income 6,046,000
Operation rice bowl 5,652,000
Public in-kind gifts 5,016,000
Net change in annuities, trusts and pooled income fund 1,966,000
Endowments 8,000
Total Income $929,269,000


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Uses of Funds as a % of Total Expenses

Programs: 95%  Fund Raising: 3%  Administrative: 2% 

Total income   $929,269,000
  Program expenses $780,116,000
  Fund raising expenses 25,059,000
  Administrative expenses 17,870,000
 
Total expenses   $823,045,000
Income in Excess of Expenses   106,224,000
Beginning net assets   89,203,000
Other Changes in Net Assets (9,646,000)
Ending net assets   185,781,000
Total liabilities   295,769,000
Total assets   $481,550,000

Note 1: In the above financial summary, "other changes in net assets" represents an adjustment to CRS's defined benefit plan.

Note 2: According to CRS's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010, the organization received in-kind donations in the amount of $255,689,000 which includes agricultural commodities donated by USAID and USDA ($112,141,000), ocean freight ($94,184,000), commodities and other contributions provided by the EU, UN, and other donors ($36,452,000), medical supplies and other tangible assets ($9,386,000), and donated services ($3,526,000).


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An organization may change its practices at any time without notice. A copy of this report has been shared with the organization prior to publication. It is not intended to recommend or deprecate, and is furnished solely to assist you in exercising your own judgment. If the report is about a charity and states the charity meets or does not meet the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability, it reflects the results of an evaluation of information and materials provided voluntarily by the charity. The name Better Business Bureau is a registered service mark of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc.

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