Catalyst California

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
954835230
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Phone
2139891300
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Government and Public Administration

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$10,718,061
Expenses
$9,980,426
Assets
$11,769,365
Liabilities
$2,142,957

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

19 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOHN KIM (PRESIDENT/CEO)
  • WENDELYN KILLIAN (EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOHN KIM (PRESIDENT/CEO): $379,889 total reported compensation
  • WENDELYN KILLIAN (EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT): $259,403 total reported compensation
  • LEENA MATHEW (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $233,957 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Catalyst California advocates for racial justice by building power and transforming public systems. We partner with communities of color, conduct innovative research, develop policies for actionable change, and shift money and power back into our communities.

What it reported doing in 2025

Reimagine justice and safetythe criminal legal system was borne out of america's racist founding and continues to devastate communities of color. Data show that californians of color are disproportionately policed, arrested, incarcerated, and subjected to harsher sentences than whites. At the same time, rates of violence are disproportionately higher in low-income communities of color -despite decades of landmark investments in law enforcement and incarceration. These deep-seated harms have eroded public trust in our system of safety.expenses $ 168,910. Including grants of $ 0 revenue $ 0.all other programs including cross programmatic programs.expenses $ 3,456,230. Including grants of $16,751. Revenue $ 726,492.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 92% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 91% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 41
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 69.8%; rating input score 70
  • Program expense ratio: 74.8%; rating input score 75
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.41 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.7%; rating input score 95; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 90%; rating input score 90; 28th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 6.9%; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.18; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 16.1%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.3% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.3% per year; rating input score 100; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -0.1% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 69.8% of revenue deployed · 74.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 13 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $7.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $380K · 19 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $443K reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 13 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 6 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 50/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 34/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 54/100.