Ella Baker Center for Human Rights

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
943252009
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Oakland, CA, USA
Phone
5104283939
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Civil Liberties

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$8,019,775
Expenses
$5,508,913
Assets
$21,614,072
Liabilities
$2,572,596

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARLENE SANCHEZ (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • MARLENE SANCHEZ (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $186,875 total reported compensation
  • JAMES KING (CO-DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS): $136,234 total reported compensation
  • RANA HALPERN (FINANCE DIRECTOR): $123,616 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

We organize with Black, Brown, and low-income people to shift resources away from prisons and punishment, and towards opportunities that make our communities safe, healthy, and strong.

What it reported doing in 2024

Justice reform and community organizing: the organization's work is informed by a "truth and reinvestment" framework; "truth" means reckoning with the reality of racial injustice from slavery to jim crow to our current criminal justice system. "reinvestment" means leading a material shift in resources away from the punishment economy and toward programs that promote economic empowerment for families and neighborhoods. The organization's key programs include:1. People powered policy - the ella baker center for human rights works with members and allies throughout California to advance state and local policy priorities including curbing extreme sentences, ending abusive practices inside prisons and jails, keeping families connected with their loved ones who are locked up, and reducing the financial burdens faced by incarcerated people and their families. 2. Pathways to freedom - the ella baker center for human rights supports the advocacy of individuals and families who are seeking freedom for their loved ones and works to ensure recent policy wins have the most robust implementation possible. Ebc advances pathways to freedom by developing and distributing written resources and toolkits to inform people of recent changes in the law and how to advocate for relief due to these changes. In addition, ebc holds several training sessions annually, both in the community and in prisons to inform and answer questions about various ways to advocate for freedom. 3. Community reinvestment and power building - the ella baker center for human rights builds power through community engagement, organizing and mobilizing through a variety of sub programs, including the night out for safety and liberation (nosl). 4. Membership program - the ella baker center's membership program is a way for anyone, anywhere but especially those who have been harmed by the criminal legal system to join the movement to create a truly safe and just nation.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 80% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% 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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - Most voting board members are independent and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 56
  • Transparency & Controls: 61
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 72
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 51.1%; rating input score 51
  • Program expense ratio: 71.2%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.09 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 31.3%; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.92; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.12; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 14.6%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 11% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 15.7% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 5 programs and campaigns described on the official site
  • Where the money goes: 51.1% of revenue deployed · 71.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $3.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $187K · 15 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $290K reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 32 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 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.

Key Signals

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

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 51/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 35/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: CEO compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 55/100.