California · Nonprofit
ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING
ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING (California) receives grants from 5 organizations whose IRS filings report $109,887 to it, the largest being CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF DUI TREATMENT PROGRAMS ($74,900). 1 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $1.9M
- Funders on record
- 5
- Grants received
- $110k
- Net assets
- $212k
What Alternatives for Better Living does
Mission
Alternatives helps families stay safe. We offer counseling and education for people at-risk of, or currently experiencing, life problems. This includes criminal justice, parole services, or child welfare involvement. The primary foci of services are parenting, substance abuse, anger (or other emotion) management, and mental health issues. By providing low cost, accessible services to people experiencing life and behavior problems alternatives intends to reduce current suffering and reduce the inter- generational of problem behaviors.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
The aod services through the napa state hospital contract continue through 2026. There is a staff of nine state certified alcohol and drug counselors who facilitate approximately 45 weekly groups for around 550 napa state hospital patients. Alternatives outpatient aod program saw growth in fy24-25. The number of cases went from 60 in fy23-24 to 93 cases in fy24-25. Outpatient aod clients received a total of 633 units of services in fy24-25. Outpatient aod clients are seen through a mixture of in person and telehealth services. More clients are opting for a la carte services such as one group a week or one individual a week which has contributed to a lower number of total service units while still maintaining a higher case rate for the year.
$102,648 spent$44,089 earned by the program5% of program spendingThe dui program continued to grow in fy2-25 due to a larger number of transfers from the marin county program closure. The number of people served increased 16% in fy24-25 with a total of 1067 active participants for the year. Alternatives enrolled 409 individuals including transfers and re-instated clients. The dui program follows the trend of our other programs in being heavily male with over 70% of all participants identifying as male. English continues to be the primary program while spanish speaking clients comprise 35% of the overall enrollees. The dui program is now being run through a mixture of in person and live virtual services as mandated by the state of california. The 2024-25 tax year saw the expansion of our physical space with the addition of 1600 sq ft of office space including a large group room and additional office. With this space alternatives can offer even larger groups to accommodate the dui program as well as space to facilitate workshops. The next fiscal year brings the expansion of more juvenile services as well as weekend workshops and expanded alcohol and other drugs services.
$1,557,141 spent$1,669,133 earned by the program79% of program spendingOur largest programs are domestic violence (batterer's treatment for men which is court-ordered treatment for intimate partner violence), alcohol and drug services through the napa state hospital and the driving under the influence program comprise 80% of the people served during fy23-24. Our batterers treatment program comprises around 17% (109 cases) of total served making it the second largest of our top three programs. Our in house alcohol & drug treatment (aod) program comprises around 15% (93 cases) of total served making it the smallest of our top three programs. These programs are currently being run as an in-person service as well as through tele-health (aod services) for out of county clients. Alternatives batterers treatment program saw a lower number of total participants in fy24-25 but maintained the same percentage to total business. A total of 109 cases received a total of 1622 services. Alternatives relaunched its women's group serving women convicted of intimate partner violence for either 26 or 52 weeks of classes. This program has the highest completion rate at 47%.
$126,449 spent$82,269 earned by the program6% of program spendingOur original core behavioral health programs saw enrollments of around 200 people in fy24-25 with 3204 units of services administered. These original programs are the core of what we do and are composed of behavioral health and addiction services.
$185,710 spent$97,483 earned by the program9% of program spending
The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $1,971,948.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2019 to 2020, from $199k to $493k (+147%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
0% of ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING’s revenue is contributions — more earned-revenue than three-quarters of its peers (51% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 4 of the last 9 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Who funds it, year by year
2019 → 2023: the base broadened from 1 funder to 2 funders, grant income rose $5k → $59k.
From the IRS filings of ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING leans on a few funders — its largest provides 68% of grant income and the top three 91%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
77% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2019 100% · 2023 84% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Where its funders are
87% of ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING's grant income comes from California funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING has grown faster than three-quarters of the 4,665 health nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 4,665 health nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2025
Organizations like ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In California
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
100% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
99%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 1 state
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING?
- ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING (California) receives grants from 5 organizations whose IRS filings report $109,887 to it, the largest being CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF DUI TREATMENT PROGRAMS ($74,900). 1 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING have?
- IRS filings report 5 organizations giving $109,887 in grants to ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING, 1 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING?
- CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF DUI TREATMENT PROGRAMS is the largest funder on record, with $74,900 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like ALTERNATIVES FOR BETTER LIVING find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in California. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Alternatives for Better Living →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 5 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing