About Policy Impact
Improving the quality of government decision-making by promoting standardization in policy analysis and advancing the Marginal Value of Public Funds (MVPF) framework.
Focus Areas
Public policy evaluationWelfare economicsEducation policyHealth policyTax and social insurance policyResearch grants and fellowshipsData and methods for causal inference
Who They Fund
nonprofit organizations defending democracy (e.g., public-interest legal orgs, watchdog groups)individuals engaged in lawful democratic defense (e.g., lawyers, advocates, civil society leaders)
Funding Style
general operating / unrestricted support
About Policy Impact
Policy Impact’s recent giving shows a funder that uses large general-assistance grants to support democracy defense organizations and policy research groups in the same portfolio. In 2025, it awarded $1,250,000 to Support Services Network for charitable assistance to a class of individuals and organizations doing lawful work to defend democratic institutions and uphold the rule of law, alongside another $1,250,000 to Defending Democracy Together Institute for general assistance. That mix sits next to grants to organizations working on information environments, civic oversight, and policy evaluation, including More in Common, Democracy Security Project, and Access Now. The pattern reflects the foundation’s stated aim of improving government decision-making through standardization in policy analysis and the Marginal Value of Public Funds framework, while also backing advocacy and legal-defense work tied to democratic institutions. Policy Impact’s portfolio also includes support for early-career scholars and graduate students conducting causal policy analysis and translating results into welfare impacts. The recurring presence of general-assistance grants suggests flexibility in how it supports recipients, even when the underlying work differs across democracy, research, and public-interest policy fields.
What Policy Impact Funds
Policy Impact’s democracy-related grants include $750,000 to Democracy Security Project for general assistance and $250,000 to Issue One for general assistance, both aligned with civic institutions and governance safeguards. In public-interest legal defense, it gave $250,000 to the International Center for Not-forprofit Law for general assistance and $60,000 to States United Democracy Center Inc (v) for general assistance. The foundation also funded information and media-adjacent work: $180,000 to Harmony Labs Inc for general assistance and $20,000 to Ngo Information Sharing and Analysis Center Inc for general assistance. On the research side, its active Early-Career Scholars Grant program supports empirical welfare analysis, policy evaluation, and MVPF-oriented economics research, with awards of up to $20,000.
How Policy Impact Gives
Policy Impact’s recent grants cluster around a relatively large middle band: p25 is $232,425, median grant size is $360,000, and p75 is $603,500. The list also includes several seven-figure awards, indicating that the foundation can make very large unrestricted grants as well as smaller support grants. The recipient list shows continuity across years: More in Common received grants in both 2024 and 2025, Defending Democracy Together Institute did as well, and Neo Philanthropy appears in both years too. Policy Impact is classified as a regular funder, does not fund individuals directly, and does not make program-related investments. Its active scholar grants accept unsolicited applications.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$8.9M
Total Assets
$14M
Total Revenue
$21.7M
Total Expenses
$13.5M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $232K and $604K, with a median of $360K.
25th Percentile
$232K
Median
$360K
75th Percentile
$604K
Geographic Reach
National6 states funded
About 15% of grants go to recipients in DC.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
KARI SARATOVSKY
Accepts unsolicited proposals
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