Setzer Foundation
The Setzer Foundation is a private foundation based in Sacramento, California. In 2024, it made grants to organizations working in areas including health, education, human services, community safety, and recreation.
Setzer Foundation at a glance
In short: Setzer Foundation gave $220K across 49 grants in 2024 (avg $4K), mostly in California. 31% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $219,570
- -14.1% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 49
- -3.9% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $4,481
- -10.6% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $2,500
- Total assets
- $1,829,675
- +5.6% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 31% first-time grantees (15 of 49, 2024)
- Primary geography
- California (95% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Setzer Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. The filing lists Scott H Setzer as the contact, says there is no designated form, and states that there are no restrictions on awards.
- Contact
Application contact: Scott H Setzer
Mailing address: 2555 Third Street Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95818
Phone: (916) 442-2555
Email: scott@setzerforest.com
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Setzer Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was Sutter Medical Center Foundation ($60K). Together the top 10 received $141K.
Organizations only. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($1,100), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
260 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 258 grants of 260 (99%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2024 grant dollars were distributed among recipients in California (95%), Montana (3%), and Nevada (2%). The largest listed recipients were in California, including organizations in Sacramento and Los Angeles.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 49 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Setzer Foundation open to new grantees?
31%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 15 of 49 grantees (31%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $6K. How we count
Medians: $2K first-time, $3K repeat.
- 59% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- Giving grew 28% from 2021 to 2024. Method
- In 2024 it paid out 159% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $171K (2021) to $260K (2022). In 2024 it made 49 grants totaling $220K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Sutter Medical Center Foundation Sacramento, CA | B - Health | $60,000 |
| Food Literacy Center Sacramento, CA | A - Education | $25,000 |
| Epilepsy Foundation Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA | E - OTHER | $15,000 |
| Saint John's Program for Real Chang Sacramento, CA | E - OTHER | $9,000 |
| CCHAT Center Rancho Cordova, CA | B - Health | $6,000 |
| Flights to Freedom McClellan, CA | E - Other | $6,000 |
| Sacramento Philharmonic Opera Sacramento, CA | A - Education | $5,000 |
| Yuba Watershed Project Fire Safe Co Marysville, CA | E - OTHER | $5,000 |
| Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sac Sacramento, CA | A - Education | $5,000 |
| Eagle Mount Bozeman, MT | B - Health | $5,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Setzer Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,829,675 | $417,924 | $320,740 | $219,570 | 49 | $260,601 | $348,065 | $164,209 |
| 2023 | $1,732,491 | $82,506 | $382,032 | $255,755 | 51 | $309,607 | $4,560 | $165,423 |
| 2022 | $2,032,122 | $-65,688 | $385,328 | $259,810 | 59 | $313,913 | — | $162,688 |
| 2021 | $2,466,310 | $1,271,951 | $261,135 | $171,370 | 42 | $204,221 | $222,556 | $131,037 |
| 2020 | $1,450,744 | $507,523 | $324,798 | $201,404 | 59 | — | $442,461 | $96,000 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Setzer Foundation reported a distributable amount of $164K for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
No foundation mission is stated. Its 2024 grants included support for organizations whose work spans several fields. For example, Food Literacy Center says it teaches children in low-income elementary schools cooking, nutrition, gardening, and active play. Flights to Freedom describes providing safe air transportation for victims of child sex trafficking and human exploitation. Eagle Mount says it offers adaptive recreation for people with disabilities and children with cancer.
Other 2024 recipients describe work in fire protection and wildfire safety, community well-being, rural services, and healthy forests and watersheds. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not stated missions of the foundation.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation reported 49 grants totaling $219,570. Grants ranged from $135 to $60,000, with a median of $2,500. The largest awards included $60,000 to Sutter Medical Center Foundation, $25,000 to Food Literacy Center, $15,000 to Epilepsy Foundation Los Angeles, and $9,000 to Saint John’s Program for Real Change.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Scott H Setzer, Mark D Setzer, and Jeffrey C Setzer as trustees.
Setzer Foundation's 2024 filing lists 3 officers; none of the 3 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Mark D Setzer
Trustee
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Scott H Setzer
Trustee
On filings since 2020
6 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Jeffrey C Setzer
Trustee
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Frequently asked questions about Setzer Foundation
How much does Setzer Foundation give each year?
Setzer Foundation gave $220K across 49 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $256K across 51 grants.
What is Setzer Foundation's typical grant size?
Setzer Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $2,500, and its average grant was $4,481, across 49 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Setzer Foundation that year got $2K on average.
Where does Setzer Foundation give grants?
Setzer Foundation gives mostly in California: 95% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Sacramento, CA (12 grants), Quincy, CA (4 grants), Bozeman, MT (2 grants) and Rancho Cordova, CA (2 grants).
Does Setzer Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2024: none of the 49 grants with a stated purpose on Setzer Foundation's 2024 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "E - Other" (28 grants), "B - Health" (10 grants) and "A - Education" (10 grants).
Who are Setzer Foundation's largest grantees?
Setzer Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include Sutter Medical Center Foundation ($60,000), Food Literacy Center ($25,000) and Epilepsy Foundation Los Angeles ($15,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($1,100), which are not listed by name. Together they received 46% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Setzer Foundation?
Setzer Foundation reported $1.8M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $261K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $164K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Setzer Foundation fund?
No foundation mission is stated. Its 2024 grants included support for organizations whose work spans several fields. For example, Food Literacy Center says it teaches children in low-income elementary schools cooking, nutrition, gardening, and active play. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Setzer Foundation?
The foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Setzer Foundation's EIN?
Setzer Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 94-6115578. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Setzer Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 10, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/setzer-foundation-morg_c798173affb845d68097e1855d617d9c
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_946115578_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Setzer Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/setzer-foundation-morg_c798173affb845d68097e1855d617d9c},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-10. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Setzer Foundation's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
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