Funding search · EIN 943147856 · San Francisco, CA

Sandler Foundation

Name: Sandler Foundation grants, 2021–2024
Creator: PaperOrbit
License: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/exempt-organization-public-disclosure-and-availability-requirements

A grantmaking public charity (files IRS Form 990, Schedule I). Charities like this often run real grant programs with application cycles.

230
grants reported: $261.3M
total given: 2021–2024
filing years: $600,000
median grant

Based on grants this organization reported to the IRS for tax years 2021–2024. This is what they filed, not a complete record of their giving, and recent years may be incomplete because filings lag.

What they fund

center research democracy advised medicine clean energy institute

Full IRS filings ↗How this is built Report an error

Funding pattern

What this funder pays for, at what size, and how to position adjacent work. Read from their filings, with every number checked against the record.

Where the money goes

Democracy and voting rights infrastructure, mostly DC-based national groups
Progressive economic and fiscal policy research and litigation
Investigative journalism and disinformation research
Climate, clean energy implementation, and ocean conservation
UCSF biomedical research, especially asthma and breakthrough science
State-level organizing and civic engagement funds in AZ, NC, GA, TX

Typical grant

Median grant is $600,000, with the middle half falling between $350,000 and $1.5 million. The largest checks, $2 million to $8 million, go to long-standing national anchors like ProPublica, Center for American Progress, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Oceana, and the Jewish Community Federation's Tikkun Olam fund. Giving repeats heavily year over year at the same or rising amounts, which means most of the money is committed before any new request arrives.

Their words

Phrases from their own grant descriptions, worth speaking back to them.

“GENERAL SUPPORT”
“CHARITABLE PROJECTS”
“STATE FISCAL EFFORTS AND GENERAL SUPPORT”
“CLEAN ENERGY AND IRA IMPLEMENTATION”
“PROGRAM IN BREAKTHROUGH BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH (PBBR)”

Positioning adjacent work

Biomedical researchers should route through UCSF Foundation; that is the only academic science channel they use repeatedly.
Policy researchers should tie work to state fiscal policy, tax law, antitrust, or consumer lending, their funded economic themes.
Ask in the $350,000 to $1 million range as a newcomer; multimillion checks go to existing anchors.
Frame the request as unrestricted general support for an institution, not a project budget with line items.

Worth knowing: This is a closed, relationship-driven portfolio: 230 grants went to only 73 recipients, and a dozen national organizations absorb most of the dollars. Geography clusters in San Francisco and Washington DC, and the one consistent university relationship is UCSF, where the family's name sits on a named research center.

0 grants matching “asthma and respiratory health”

No grants to show here.

Top recipients

Repeat recipients are the strongest signal of whether a funder has an open door or quietly re-funds the same organizations.

University of California San Francisco Foundation19 grants · $19.3M
Center On Budget and Policy Priorities4 grants · $17.0M
Luminate Projects Limited3 grants · $15.5M
Center for American Progress4 grants · $14.5M
Earthjustice4 grants · $11.0M
Propublica4 grants · $11.0M
Democracy Forward Foundation4 grants · $10.5M
Learning Policy Institute4 grants · $10.5M
Center for Responsible Lending4 grants · $9.3M
Jewish Community Federation5 grants · $8.2M

Giving over time

$65.1M

2021

$68.2M

2022

$62.5M

2023

$65.5M

2024

Grant history

The 100 largest of 230 grants.

$8.0M
Jewish Community Federation · San Francisco, CA · 2024
Tikkun olam charitable fund
$7.0M
Reset Tech · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$6.0M
Propublica · New York, NY · 2024
General support
$5.5M
Luminate Projects Limited · San Francisco, CA · 2023
Reset project
$5.0M
Center On Budget and Policy Priorities · Washington, DC · 2022
State fiscal efforts and general support
$5.0M
Luminate Projects Limited · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Reset project
$5.0M
Center On Budget and Policy Priorities · Washington, DC · 2021
State fiscal efforts and general support
$5.0M
Luminate Projects Limited · San Francisco, CA · 2021
"reset" project
$4.0M
Center for American Progress · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$4.0M
Center On Budget and Policy Priorities · Washington, DC · 2024
State fiscal efforts and general support
$4.0M
Earthjustice · San Francisco, CA · 2023
Clean energy and general support
$4.0M
Earthjustice · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Clean energy and ira implementation and general support
$4.0M
Center for American Progress · Washington, DC · 2021
General support
$3.5M
Center for American Progress · Washington, DC · 2022
General support
$3.5M
Learning Policy Institute · Palo Alto, CA · 2021
General support
$3.0M
All Voting Is Local · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$3.0M
Democracy Forward Foundation · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$3.0M
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2024
Program in breakthrough biomedical research (pbbr)
$3.0M
Center for American Progress · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$3.0M
Center On Budget and Policy Priorities · Washington, DC · 2023
State fiscal efforts and general support
$3.0M
Learning Policy Institute · Palo Alto, CA · 2023
General support
$3.0M
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2023
Program in breakthrough biomedical research (pbbr)
$3.0M
Learning Policy Institute · Palo Alto, CA · 2022
General support
$3.0M
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Program in breakthrough biomedical research (pbbr)
$3.0M
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2021
Program in breakthrough biomedical research (pbbr)
$2.8M
Amalgamated Foundation · Washington, DC · 2022
All voting is local
$2.8M
Center for Responsible Lending · Durham, NC · 2021
General support
$2.5M
Global Impact · Alexandria, VA · 2024
Charitable projects
$2.5M
Democracy Forward Foundation · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$2.5M
Center for Responsible Lending · Durham, NC · 2022
General support
$2.5M
Democracy Forward Foundation · Washington, DC · 2022
General support
$2.5M
Washington Center for Equitable Growth · Washington, DC · 2022
General support
$2.5M
Democracy Forward Foundation · Washington, DC · 2021
General support
$2.0M
American Civil Liberties Union · New York, NY · 2024
General support
$2.0M
Center for Responsible Lending · Durham, NC · 2024
General support
$2.0M
Oceana · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$2.0M
All Voting Is Local · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$2.0M
American Civil Liberties Union · New York, NY · 2023
General support
$2.0M
Center for Responsible Lending · Durham, NC · 2023
General support
$2.0M
Hopewell Fund · Washington, DC · 2023
Charitable projects
$2.0M
Human Rights Watch · New York, NY · 2023
General support
$2.0M
Oceana · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$2.0M
Propublica · New York, NY · 2023
General support
$2.0M
Washington Center for Equitable Growth · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$2.0M
American Civil Liberties Union · New York, NY · 2022
General support
$2.0M
Human Rights Watch · New York, NY · 2022
General support
$2.0M
Oceana · Washington, DC · 2022
General support
$2.0M
Propublica · New York, NY · 2022
General support
$2.0M
American Civil Liberties Union · New York, NY · 2021
General support
$2.0M
Earthjustice · San Francisco, CA · 2021
General support
$2.0M
Human Rights Watch · New York, NY · 2021
General support
$2.0M
Oceana · Washington, DC · 2021
General support
$2.0M
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2021
Neurosciences building initiative
$1.6M
Center for Biological Diversity · Tuscon, AZ · 2022
Climate law institute and general support
$1.5M
Campaign Legal Center · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$1.5M
Fund for a Better Future · Sacramento, CA · 2024
Social welfare charitable projects
$1.5M
Shared Ascent Fund · Sacramento, CA · 2024
In support of the student borrower protection center
$1.5M
States United Democracy Center Llc · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$1.5M
Washington Center for Equitable Growth · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$1.5M
Fund for a Better Future · Sacramento, CA · 2022
General support for social welfare activities
$1.5M
Hopewell Fund · Washington, DC · 2022
Democracy docket
$1.5M
Fund for a Better Future · Sacramento, CA · 2021
General support for social welfare activities
$1.5M
Hopewell Fund · Washington, DC · 2021
Democracy docket
$1.5M
Washington Center for Equitable Growth · Washington, DC · 2021
General support
$1.4M
New Venture Fund · Washington, DC · 2023
Charitable projects
$1.4M
New Venture Fund · Washington, DC · 2021
Charitable contributions
$1.3M
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2021
Glioblastoma precision medicine program
$1.3M
International Community Foundation · National City, CA · 2021
International fund
$1.3M
American Economic Liberties Project · Washington, DC · 2022
General support
$1.3M
Campaign Legal Center · Washington, DC · 2021
General support
$1.2M
Global Impact · Alexandria, VA · 2023
Charitable projects
$1.1M
Tides Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2023
Charitable projects
$1.0M
American Economic Liberties Project · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$1.0M
American Oversight · Washington, DC · 2024
General support
$1.0M
Earthjustice · San Francisco, CA · 2024
Clean energy and ira implementation
$1.0M
Learning Policy Institute · Palo Alto, CA · 2024
General support
$1.0M
American Economic Liberties Project · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$1.0M
Campaign Legal Center · Washington, DC · 2023
General support
$1.0M
Campaign Legal Center · Washington, DC · 2022
General support
$1.0M
Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis · Cleveland, OH · 2022
General support
$1.0M
Shared Ascent Fund · Sacramento, CA · 2022
Student borrower protection center
$1.0M
Sierra Club Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Beyond coal campaign and clean energy for all
$1.0M
Amalgamated Foundation · Washington, DC · 2021
Democratizing philanthropy project
$1.0M
Leadership Conference Education Fund · Washington, DC · 2021
All voting is local
$1.0M
Propublica · New York, NY · 2021
General support
$1.0M
Sierra Club Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2021
Beyond coal campaign
$1.0M
Sierra Club Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2021
Clean energy for all
$900,000
State Democracy Project · Brooklyn, NY · 2023
Charitable projects
$900,000
New Venture Fund · Washington, DC · 2022
Charitable contributions
$890,000
International Community Foundation · National City, CA · 2022
International fund
$825,000
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Sandler asthma basic research center
$825,000
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2021
Sandler asthma basic research center
$800,000
Center for Biological Diversity · Tuscon, AZ · 2024
General support
$800,000
Center for Biological Diversity · Tuscon, AZ · 2023
General support
$800,000
New Florida Majority Education Fund · Miami, FL · 2022
General support
$786,030
University of California San Francisco Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Glioblastoma precision medicine program
$750,000
Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis · Cleveland, OH · 2024
General support
$750,000
Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis · Cleveland, OH · 2023
General support
$750,000
International Community Foundation · National City, CA · 2023
Project fund
$750,000
Tides Foundation · San Francisco, CA · 2022
Center for working families fund

View all 230 grants →

Who else funds this kind of work

Same state

Silicon Valley Community Foundation10,471 grants · $10.10B
Tides Foundation9,402 grants · $1.86B
UCLA Foundation276 grants · $1.75B

Similar purposes

The Leona M and Harry B Helmsley2,251 grants · $1.69B
Impactassetsinc7,851 grants · $1.04B
Marin Community Foundation5,238 grants · $990.8M

Similar grant size

The Andrew W Mellon Foundation2,231 grants · $1.59B
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation13,441 grants · $18.24B

Grants already paid are the record; PaperOrbit reads your paper and finds the funders whose record matches it — then explains why.

Search funders like this one

Source: IRS Form 990, Schedule I, as filed by this organization. These are grants already paid. Grants paid directly to individuals are reported to the IRS only as totals, so they do not appear as named lines here.