Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Oct 2001.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
71 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
11 people listed on the 990; $107K paid to officers and key staff.
Aaron Falk’s $167K as President/CEO is at the 70th 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Falk | $167,346 | $165,950 | $147,671 | — | — |
| Kristen a Beall Watson | — | — | — | $106,970 | $152,727 |
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 Kern Community 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
Connects local donors with charitable causes in Kern County by managing philanthropic funds, awarding grants, and leading community initiatives like college access.
Questions for Kern Community Foundation
Your first name shows with your question. Kern Community Foundation answers here, for everyone.
Kern community foundation is in business to serve as a charitable resource for local donors and corporations and to generate capital that provides philanthropic solutions to help make kern county a better place to live, to work and to visit.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
Federal money
The auditor reported no findings.
The auditor reported: a weakness in money controls.
By the numbers
The FY2021 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | FY21 | FY20 | FY19 | FY18 | FY17 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| End of yearLn 1g | $1.7M | $1.4M | $1.3M | $1.1M | $1.2M |
| Given inLn 1b | $50K | ||||
| SpentLn 1d–1f | $59K | $55K | $73K | $96K | $46K |
| Line | Start FY21 | End FY21 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $8.0M | $10.6M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $24.0M | $28.4M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $563 | $2K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $32.5M | $39.2M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $5.6M | $8.1M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $26.9M | $31.1M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $2.0M | $2.0M | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $107K | $53K | $40K | $13K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $219K | $110K | $82K | $27K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $39K | $19K | $15K | $5K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $27K | $13K | $10K | $3K |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $18K | $9K | $7K | $2K |
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $492K | $492K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $277K | $139K | $104K | $35K |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $24K | $12K | $9K | $3K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $57K | $28K | $21K | $7K |
| TravelLn 17 | $179 | $90 | $67 | $22 |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $23K | $12K | $9K | $3K |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $248 | $124 | $93 | $31 |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $11K | $5K | $4K | $1K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $175K | $88K | $66K | $22K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $13K | $7K | $5K | $2K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $3.5M | $2.5M | $864K | $124K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 LatestFiled with the IRS Nov 17, 2025 | $8.5M | $8.8M | −$322K | $39.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Nov 15, 2024 | $5.1M | $4.3M | $781K | $37.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS Oct 25, 2023 | $11.3M | $4.3M | $7.0M | $33.8M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 ViewingFiled with the IRS Oct 4, 2022 | $6.5M | $3.5M | $3.0M | $31.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020Filed with the IRS Sep 20, 2021 | $6.9M | $4.6M | $2.4M | $26.9M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $6,488,635 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 12 of 12 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $6,488,635 across 7 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $3,461,622 across 16 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $39,214,030 assets, 15 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $31,136,399 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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