CalNonprofits (CN): The nonprofit sector plays a crucial role in California communities, spanning diverse areas like human services, behavioral health, environmental protection, disaster relief, education, animal welfare, arts, and culture. Please share any personal experience or involvement you’ve had with nonprofits, including how you’ve supported or engaged with the sector. How has this shaped your understanding of nonprofits’ challenges and contributions?

Katie Porter (KP): As a Member of Congress, I met with Californians, leaders, and nonprofit organizations every week to hear how the government can better help our communities. My office helped nonprofits navigate the federal grant process and write letters of support. I regularly attended events and uplifted the work of nonprofits in my community—including volunteering my time at local food banks and other service organizations. I’ve continued to meet with nonprofit organizations from all across California as a gubernatorial candidate so that I can learn and hear from Californians about the work they are doing and the biggest challenges in their lives.

California’s nonprofits are on the frontlines of our biggest challenges as a state—homelessness, food insecurity, the environment, disaster response, health care, education, and more. You are integral partners in making a difference and often actually implementing government policy on the ground. Our next governor must treat our nonprofit sector as the important partners you are, with a seat at every step of the policymaking process so your expertise and frontline experience is heard. Nonprofit organizations have always been a key partner of mine and will be among my closest partners as governor. The road ahead to improve the lives of Californians and bring down costs may look daunting, but I know we can overcome it together.

CN: Nonprofits are currently navigating a complex financial landscape, facing increased demand for services while managing rising costs and uncertain funding streams. What specific steps would you take to ensure the financial health and long-term sustainability of the nonprofit sector, including its workforce, in our state? How might you potentially address issues related to government funding and contract reforms?

KP: The uncertainty that many of your organizations have faced over the last year of federal funding cuts and instability is uncertainty that should never be felt again. Too often your work relies on unpredictable funding streams that change based on the politics of the year. I see that and I know how terrible it can be for the people you serve and the staff you employ when giant cuts come out of left field. Grants and funding for nonprofits must be prioritized.

Our next governor is going to have to be a governor who knows how to be fiscally responsible, and who has the creativity and grit to both tackle our budget deficit and live up to our values as a state. That means raising the revenue we need, and I will do that by taking on corporations and billionaires. But it also means prioritizing our commitments and ideals as a state in our budgetary decisions. It makes no sense that we keep giving handouts to corporations while withholding the funding we need to solve street homelessness or protect our communities from disaster. Budgets are about priorities, and my priority is California families.

As Governor, I will do my best to make up for federal funding cuts that have devastated some of California’s nonprofits and cut off families from the services they rely on. And I’ll work hand-in-hand with the nonprofit community to implement some of my policy initiatives to address affordability and improve economic stability. My affordability policies will tackle some of the greatest expenses Californians are facing. These policies include: zero tuition at all UCs and CSUs, free child care for all, less expensive housing, and no state income tax on income under $100,000. To achieve this, I will raise revenue by closing tax loopholes for billionaires and corporations and by implementing a progressive corporate tax rate so that our most profitable corporations pay a slightly higher rate in their best years. Making California more affordable will help nonprofits and their workers thrive, and improve California’s fiscal situation by growing our state and generating new revenue.

CN: Nonprofits possess deep community understanding, innovate solutions, and fill systemic gaps by collaborating with government agencies. The state’s Little Hoover Commission recently issued a report detailing recommended state reforms to improve the partnership of the state and nonprofits. If elected, what specific policies or structures would you prioritize to foster stronger partnerships between government and the nonprofit sector in order to address local challenges?

KP: I am a professor, so I do my homework. When considering policy decisions, I am committed to making sure I listen to and meet with relevant stakeholders including policy experts and advocates, nonprofit organizations, as well as everyday Californians and their families. I will work to implement this approach across state agencies because I want those most affected by state policy decisions to have a seat at the table and be empowered to share their input. When it comes to nonprofits’ interactions with the state, it’s clear that California has some work to do to improve our relationships.

As a champion for oversight, I am all too aware that passing legislation without appropriate transparency, oversight, and accountability is a recipe for ineffective implementation and enforcement. We’ve seen that with the state’s law to allow advance payments on nonprofit contracts, which we should make sure every state agency is implementing. We also should make it easier to apply for funding by streamlining forms and modernizing government processes. These are the types of reforms that I am committed to working on together, and I look forward to doing so as Governor.

Unlike my opponents in this race, I’ve proven that I can’t be bought. I am the only candidate in this race who has never taken a dime from corporations and corporate PACs. We need people in government who are willing to act on good ideas, rather than be frightened by special interest donors from taking bold action. That’s why I will be unique in my outreach to California’s nonprofit community to provide the guidance and expertise we need to fix problems in our communities and grow our state.