Michael Russo
Vice President of Policy and Programs
![Portrait of Michael Russo](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimages.prismic.io%2Fcatalyst-ca%2F74549f42-f5a2-4af0-aa0e-2f5200b748ff_Mike%2BRusso%2BUpdated%2BHeadshot.jpg%3Fauto%3Dcompress%2Cformat%26ar%3D1%26fit%3Dcrop%26crop%3Dfaces&w=3840&q=75)
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As the Vice President of Policy and Programs, Mike Russo works to provide community-based organizations with the data, training, and tools they need to be effective advocates for local budgets that reflect the needs of low-income communities of color. Before joining Catalyst California, Mike served as the director of the federal office of U.S. PIRG, a nationwide federation of state-based public interest advocacy organizations. He also previously led U.S. PIRG’s work on health care, overseeing campaigns to implement the Affordable Care Act and helping to create a program to analyze and watchdog insurers’ rate filings, which has saved consumers over $25 million. Mike graduated from the California Institute of Technology and Columbia Law School.