Public Policy Institute of California
Donations deductiblePublic Policy Institute of California's network
21 people30 organisationsi21 people and 30 organisations on this map.The large node is the subject of this page. Solid lines are what the register itself records (21). Violet dotted lines (31) are likely: the same full name sits on the current board of another organisation in the same register and region. Form 990 filings give names without a person identifier; SEC insider filings carry a CIK. It may be a different person.The board
21 listediTime on the board is observed from the annual filings: the IRS files no appointment date, so the bar counts years from the first filing the person appears on - a lower bound, not a filed start date. Names are exactly as filed. The IRS publishes no person identifier, so this edition does not yet link a person across organisations in the tables. The network map shows same-name matches as likely links only, never as confirmed.Time served and departures are observed across annual filings. Observed time served is a lower bound - a member may have joined before the first year on record. The organisation reported 17 voting members of its governing body on its latest Form 990 Part VI; we list 21 in Part VII (Part VII does not always name every voting member).| Name | Role as filed | Since | On the board |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chet Hewitt Chair | Board Chair | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| A Marisa Chun | Director | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| ANA J Matosantos | Director | 2025 | 1 yr |
| Caroline Choi | Director | 2025 | 1 yr |
| Cassandra Walker PYE | Director | 2023 | 3 yrs |
| Dave Puglia | Director | 2024 | 2 yrs |
| David Traversi | Director | 2025 | 1 yr |
| Gaddi H Vasquez | Director | 2023 | 3 yrs |
| Gerald L Parksky | Director (Thru 9/24) | 2025 | 1 yr |
| Helen Iris Torres | Director | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| John Chiang | Director | 2024 | 2 yrs |
| Kim Polese | Director (Thru 9/24) | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| Leon E Panetta | Director | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| Louise Henry Bryson | Director (Thru 9/24) | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| Michael Mendez | Director | 2025 | 1 yr |
| Ophelia Basgal | Director | 2023 | 3 yrs |
| Rusty Areias | Director | 2025 | 1 yr |
| Sandra Celedon | Director (Thru 3/25) | 2023 | 3 yrs |
| Steve Olsen | Director | 2024 | 2 yrs |
| Steven A Merksamer | Director | 2020 | 6 yrs |
| Tani Cantil-Sakauye | President and CEO | 2023 | 3 yrs |
Officers and senior leadership
21 listediNamed in Part VII as officers, key employees or highest-compensated staff - not board members, shown for completeness.| Name | Title as filed | On the filings |
|---|---|---|
| Abigail Cook | VP of Comms/Chief Strategy Officer | since 2020 |
| Athena M Brekke | Director of It | since 2020 |
| Caroline Danielson | VP of Research (Interim) | since 2020 |
| Cynthia Scherer | Treasurer and CFO (Thru 12/1/23) | since 2020 |
| Deborah Gonzalez | VP, Gov't Affairs & Chief Data Officer | since 2020 |
| Douglas Moore | Chief Financial Officer | 2025 |
| Ellen Elizabeth Hanak Valletta | Senior Fellow II (Thru 1/17/25) | since 2024 |
| Ellen Hanak | VP & Dir, Water Policy Ctr & Sen. Fellow | since 2020 |
| Emily Loeschinger | Secretary (Thru 9/12/22) | since 2020 |
| Eric M McGhee | Policy Director and Senior Fellow | since 2023 |
| Hans P Johnson | Senior Fellow II | since 2020 |
| Lande U Ajose | VP, Ca's Fut & Sr FL (Thru 10/21/22) | 2023 |
| Letitia Grenier | Dir of Water Policy Center & Senior Fellow | 2025 |
| Lynette Ubois | Director of Publications | since 2020 |
| Magnus J Lofstrom | Senior Fellow | since 2020 |
| Mark Baldassare | Ppic Statewide Survey Director | 2024 |
| Martin Hoshino | Interim Treasurer and CFO/COO | since 2024 |
| Olga Rodriguez | Dir Ppic Higher Ed Center & Senior Fellow | since 2023 |
| Patrick Murphy | Director of Research (Thru 11/15/19) | 2020 |
| Sandra Ruiz | VP of People and Culture | since 2023 |
| Sarah Bohn | VP of Research and Senior Fellow | since 2020 |
Pay and hours
year to 30 June 2025iFrom Part VII of the Form 990: compensation reported for each officer, director, trustee, key employee and highest-paid staff member, and the average hours a week they report. Most board members are unpaid; a blank means nothing was reported. Pay from related organisations is shown separately.| Name | Title as filed | Hours a week | Pay from the organisation | Related organisations | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tani Cantil-Sakauye | President and CEO | 40 | $544k | $82k | |
| Martin Hoshino | Chief Operations Officer | 40 | $441k | $27k | |
| Ellen Elizabeth Hanak Valletta | Senior Fellow II (Thru 1/17/25) | 40 | $329k | $28k | |
| Sarah Bohn | VP & Dir of Epc & Senior Fellow | 40 | $326k | $51k | |
| Abigail Cook | VP of Comms/Chief Strategy Officer | 40 | $313k | $78k | |
| Hans Johnson | Senior Fellow II | 40 | $305k | $59k | |
| Letitia Grenier | Dir of Water Policy Center & Senior Fellow | 40 | $271k | $64k | |
| Caroline Danielson | VP of Research | 40 | $266k | $44k | |
| Sandra Ruiz | VP of People and Culture | 40 | $263k | $63k | |
| Deborah Gonzalez | Secretary | 40 | $251k | $27k | |
| Magnus Lofstrom | Policy Director & Senior Fellow 1 | 40 | $226k | $50k | |
| Olga Rodriguez | Dir Ppic Higher Ed Center & Senior Fellow | 40 | $225k | $27k | |
| Eric McGhee | Policy Director & Senior Fellow 1 | 40 | $224k | $65k | |
| Lynette Ubois | Director of Content Strategy | 40 | $219k | $65k | |
| Douglas Moore | Chief Financial Officer | 40 | $120k | $43k | |
| Chet Hewitt | Board Chair | 1 | $0 | ||
| Rusty Areias | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Ophelia Basgal | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Sandra Celedon | Director (Thru 3/25) | 1 | $0 | ||
| John Chiang | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Caroline Choi | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| A Marisa Chun | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Ana J Matosantos | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Michael Mendez | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Steven A Merksamer | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Steve Olsen | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Leon E Panetta | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Dave Puglia | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Cassandra Walker Pye | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Helen Iris Torres | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| David Traversi | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Gaddi H Vasquez | Director | 1 | $0 | ||
| Louise Henry Bryson | Director (Thru 9/24) | 1 | $0 | ||
| Gerald L Parksky | Director (Thru 9/24) | 1 | $0 | ||
| Kim Polese | Director (Thru 9/24) | 1 | $0 |
About
- Legal name
- Public Policy Institute of California
- EIN
- 943207299
- Address
- 475 Sansome Street 1150, San Francisco, CA, 94111-3103
- State
- California
- Mission
- (as filed on the Form 990)
- IRS classification
- 501(c)03 (tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) where shown)
- Size band
- 9 (IRS master file code)
- Formed
- 1994
- Principal officer
- Tani Cantil-Sakauye (as named on the Form 990)
- IRS ruling date
- 1 September 1994
- Status
- Code 01 (unconditional exemption)
- Form 990 filings on record
- 5, latest 2025
- IRS Publication 78
- PC (contributions deductible)
Most connected
Longest observed on the filings
≥6years on the filingsChet Hewitt
≥6years on the filingsA Marisa Chun
≥6years on the filingsHelen Iris Torres
≥6years on the filingsKim Polese
Latest return
year to 30 June 2025iFigures from the newest Form 990 or 990-EZ in the IRS e-file releases of 2025 and 2026, for the year ending 30 June 2025. US dollars, as filed.- Total assets
- $371.9m
- Total liabilities
- $3.3m
- Net assets or fund balances
- $368.7m
- Contributions and grants received
- $4.6m
- Program service revenue
- $0
- Employees
- 107
- Volunteers
- 81