Book Industry Charitable Foundation FY2021 filing

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To strengthen the bookselling community through Charitable programs that support employees and their families.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
81¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$117K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2021 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
2 of 6
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $121K a year · 6% of revenue · last 6 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 2 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
81%
of spending
Looks good: 81% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$117K
to officers and key staff · 5% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 5% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
3 mo
of spending, in cash
Plus $3.0M in investments, Pt X · Ln 11–13
Looks good: 3.0 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $10K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$26K
0.7% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 1% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
12
of 12 voting members
Looks good: 12 of 12 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$2.2M
-57% vs prior year
Spent
$2.3M
To programs
81%
Net assets
$3.6M
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$2.2M
FY2021▼ -57%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$5.2M
FY2021$2.2M
FY2022$956K
FY2023$924K
FY2024$1.7M
FY2025$1.4M
Expenses
$2.3M
FY2021▼ -37%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$3.6M
FY2021$2.3M
FY2022$1.1M
FY2023$1.4M
FY2024$1.7M
FY2025$1.6M
Net assets
$3.6M
FY2021▲ +5%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$3.4M
FY2021$3.6M
FY2022$2.9M
FY2023$2.7M
FY2024$3.0M
FY2025$2.9M

From the FY2021 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Apr 1996.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

81 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 81% · $1.8M Management & general 9% · $202K Fundraising 10% · $238K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

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Who runs it and what they're paid

13 people listed on the 990; $117K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Executive Di
$116,779Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice Preside
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Pamela French’s $124K as Executive Di is at the 49th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1690 $1–10M philanthropy & grantmaking nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 1 named individual · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Pamela French$123,832$123,171$120,638$108,721$116,779$113,494

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

See Book Industry Charitable Foundation executive salaries →

Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Provides emergency financial aid to book and comic industry workers facing hardship.

Questions for Book Industry Charitable Foundation

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3 programs · $1.8M · in their own filed words · FY2021
01

Disaster Relief Program

Designed to assist book and comic store owners if their store was impacted by a natural disaster, including public health emergencies. Any assistance given is outside of what is covered by insurance and does not include any payments to merchandise vendors.

$1.4Mprogram expense
02

Financial Assistance Program

Provides assistance to employees, owners, and former employees. This centerpiece program provides short-term financial assistance to book and comic industry employees, owners, and former borders employees and their immediate families who have demonstrated financial need arising from severe hardship AND/OR emergency circumstances…

$401Kprogram expense
03

Post Secondary Scholarships

A merit and needs based scholarship program to assist former borders employees and the dependents of employees with the costs of higher education, including undergraduate, graduate, vocational, and technical studies.

$49Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$10K
Grants paid · 24 grants · $7.0M · 2020–2025
Unitemized GrantFY2025$536,386
Unitemized GrantFY2025$85,495
Unitemized GrantFY2025$58,246
Unitemized GrantFY2025$22,650
Unitemized GrantFY2024$395,951
Unitemized GrantFY2024$148,541
Unitemized GrantFY2024$120,000
Unitemized GrantFY2024$84,275
Unitemized GrantFY2024$25,523
Unitemized GrantFY2023$406,913
Unitemized GrantFY2023$71,210
Unitemized GrantFY2023$14,164
Unitemized GrantFY2022$347,355
Unitemized GrantFY2022$60,787
Unitemized GrantFY2022$26,052
Unitemized GrantFY2021$1,254,863
Unitemized GrantFY2021$282,536
See all 24 grants →

By the numbers

The FY2021 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$2.2M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$2.2M
Investment incomeLn 3$49K
Money outPt IX
$2.3M
Ln 25
Programscol B$1.8M
Managementcol C$202K
Fundraisingcol D$238K
Owns and owesPt X
$3.6M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$571K
Total assetsLn 16$3.6M
LiabilitiesLn 26$26K
PeoplePt VI, VII
13
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a12
IndependentVI 1b12
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$2.2M
Fundraising eventsLn 1c$122K
Investment incomeLn 3$49K
Total revenueLn 12$2.2M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$489K
SavingsLn 2$81K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$571K
Pledges and grants receivableLn 3$8K
Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesLn 9$6K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$3.0M
Other assetsLn 15$2K
Total assetsLn 16$3.6M
LiabilitiesLn 26$26K
Net assetsLn 32$3.6M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 59
VolunteersI 665
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY21End FY21
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$1.9M$571K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$1.5M$3.0M
Total assetsLn 16$3.5M$3.6M
LiabilitiesLn 26$56K$26K
Net assetsLn 32$3.4M$3.6M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$1.6M$1.6M
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$121K$18K$60K$42K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$303K$125K$55K$123K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$7K$2K$2K$3K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$24K$8K$7K$10K
Payroll taxesLn 10$32K$11K$9K$12K
Legal feesLn 11b$4K$990$2K$594
Accounting feesLn 11c$14K$4K$8K$2K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$59K$59K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$2K$989$494$494
Office expensesLn 13$1K$259$1K
Information technologyLn 14$24K$2K$20K$2K
OccupancyLn 16$21K$5K$10K$5K
TravelLn 17$672$235$437
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$16K$4K$8K$4K
InsuranceLn 23$2K$483$965$482
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$51K$7K$12K$32K
All other expensesLn 24e$6K$5K$731
Total functional expensesLn 25$2.3M$1.8M$202K$238K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 LatestFiled with the IRS Jun 25, 2026 $1.4M$1.6M−$225K$2.9M 990 PDF
FY2024Filed with the IRS Jul 21, 2025 $1.7M$1.7M$26K$3.0M 990 PDF
FY2023Filed with the IRS May 13, 2024 $924K$1.4M−$430K$2.7M 990 PDF
FY2022Filed with the IRS Jun 15, 2023 $956K$1.1M−$176K$2.9M 990 PDF
FY2021 ViewingFiled with the IRS Apr 6, 2022 $2.2M$2.3M−$57K$3.6M 990 PDF
FY2020Filed with the IRS Apr 19, 2021 $5.2M$3.6M$1.6M$3.4M 990 PDF

Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $2,208,751 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $5,117,785$2,176,067
I-9 Program service revenue$0
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $56,637$49,075
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $4,531−$16,391
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $5,178,953$2,208,751
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paidPrior year $3,005,374$1,578,379
I-14 Benefits paid to members$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $417,602$486,887
I-16a Professional fundraising fees$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $169,149$200,076
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $3,592,125$2,265,342
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year $1,586,828−$56,591
Part VI · Governance 12 of 12 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body12
VI-1b Independent voting members12
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $2,208,751 across 6 lines filed
VIII-1c Fundraising events$122,233
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$2,053,834
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$2,176,067
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $49,075$49,075
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising events−$16,391
VIII-12 Total revenueExcluded from tax $49,075$2,208,751
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $2,265,342 across 18 lines filed
IX-2 Grants to domestic individualsPrograms $1,578,379$1,578,379
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $18,098 · Management $60,325 · Fundraising $42,228$120,651
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $125,038 · Management $55,175 · Fundraising $122,782$302,995
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $2,424 · Management $1,955 · Fundraising $2,794$7,173
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $8,277 · Management $6,679 · Fundraising $9,542$24,498
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $10,666 · Management $8,607 · Fundraising $12,297$31,570
IX-11b Legal feesPrograms $990 · Management $2,376 · Fundraising $594$3,960
IX-11c Accounting feesPrograms $3,539 · Management $8,492 · Fundraising $2,123$14,154
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $59,000$59,000
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $989 · Management $494 · Fundraising $494$1,977
IX-13 Office expensesManagement $259 · Fundraising $1,037$1,296
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $1,627 · Management $20,420 · Fundraising $1,627$23,674
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $5,162 · Management $10,325 · Fundraising $5,163$20,650
IX-17 TravelPrograms $235 · Management $437$672
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $3,645 · Management $8,275 · Fundraising $3,645$15,565
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $483 · Management $965 · Fundraising $482$1,930
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $6,708 · Management $12,288 · Fundraising $32,164$51,160
IX-24e All other expensesManagement $5,307 · Fundraising $731$6,038
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $1,825,260 · Management $202,379 · Fundraising $237,703$2,265,342
Part X · Balance sheet $3,616,056 assets, 13 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $1,699,005$489,442
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $237,899$81,369
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $20,568$7,796
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $3,612$5,503
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $1,503,485$3,030,386
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $1,560$1,560
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $3,467,147$3,616,056
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $16,173$26,315
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $56,117$26,315
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $2,866,966$3,128,586
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $544,064$461,155
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $3,411,030$3,589,741
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $3,467,147$3,616,056
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $3,589,741 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$2,208,751
XI-2 Total expenses$2,265,342
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$56,591
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$3,411,030
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments$235,302
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$3,589,741

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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