Staff
Remy Trupin, Executive Director
Remy is the founding executive director of the Budget & Policy Center. He leads the strategic direction of the organization, acts as primary spokesperson, and works with the Board of Directors and community partners to implement our vision and mission.
Remy’s experience includes serving as the Government Affairs Director for the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and also as legislative consultant to United Way of King County. In addition, Remy has a diverse array of public policy experience, including working for the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, DC, and researching programs and strategies to improve health outcomes for children at the Urban Health Initiative.
Remy has been named to several budget advisory groups by current and previous gubernatorial administrations, is active in the community and is an American Marshall Memorial Fellow of the German Marshall Fund. Remy’s undergraduate and graduate degrees are from the University of Washington; a BA in political science and a MPA from the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs.
Contact: remyt@budgetandpolicy.org
Emiko Blalock, Development Manager
Emiko focuses on strategic resource development, donor engagement, and grant writing. Prior to joining the Budget & Policy Center, Emiko worked in resource development at Forterra (formerly Cascade Land Conservancy), focusing on donor engagement, communications, and strategic fundraising.
She has also worked in development at Seattle Audubon Society. A native of the Northwest, Emiko enjoys spending time outdoors hiking, and gardening in her p-patch. She can also be found birding around the city parks of Seattle. Emiko is currently finishing her Master’s degree in Nonprofit Leadership at Seattle University.
Contact: emikob@budgetandpolicy.org
Jennifer Cohen, Director of Operations
Jennifer is responsible for human relations, finance, work with our Board of Directors, and day-to-day operations. She joins the Budget & Policy Center from the University of Washington where she served as Assistant Director for an academic program in the Jackson School of International Studies.
Prior to her time at the UW, Jennifer worked in planning, evaluation, development and marketing for Jewish Family Service. Jennifer holds a Master’s degree in not-for-profit leadership from Seattle University and a B.A. in journalism/public relations and a minor in women studies from the University of Oregon.
Contact: jenniferc@budgetandpolicy.org
Kim Justice, Policy Analyst
Kim conducts research and analysis on the state budget. She has worked in Washington state politics since 2001, as a campaign staffer for Democratic legislative and congressional races, a community organizer for labor and progressive organizations, and a lobbyist for policies that benefit people with low incomes.
Prior to joining the Budget & Policy Center, Kim was a Policy Analyst for the House Democratic Caucus where she staffed the House Committee on Community, Economic Development and Trade and the House Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services.
Contact: kimj@ budgetandpolicy.org
Tara Lee, Communications Director
Tara focuses on media relations, marketing, social media, and messaging. Prior to joining the Budget & Policy Center, Tara was responsible for public policy and marketing at the Washington Dental Service Foundation where she worked with the state legislature and community partners to support public health initiatives.
Tara served as Interim Director at HomeStep, which provides transitional housing and worked at the University of Washington Women’s Center. She began her career working for four years on political campaigns in California.
Tara currently serves on the Public Affairs Committee for the March of Dimes, Washington state chapter. She has a B.A. in history from Western Washington University and a M.P.A. from Seattle University.
Contact: taral@budgetandpolicy.org
Michael Mitchell, State Policy Fellow
Michael conducts research on tax policy and the state budget. Prior to joining the Budget & Policy Center, Michael was a full-time M.P.A. student at the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, where he focused on state and local finance and the impacts of racial and cultural diversity on management and governing.
He has worked in Washington, D.C. serving as a Congressional Intern in both the House and the Senate. Michael completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Connecticut with degrees in Political Science and Economics.
The State Policy Fellowship is designed to bring diverse voices to state policy debates while making a difference for vulnerable families and communities.
Contact: michaelm@ budgetandpolicy.org
Andy Nicholas, Policy Analyst
Andy specializes in state tax and revenue systems. Since joining the Budget & Policy Center in 2009 he has served on a Legislative Task Force on Tax Preference Reform and has conducted numerous analyses of Washington’s tax structure.
Andy worked at the DC-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), where he performed extensive research on state fiscal policy. Additionally, Andy taught English in China. He holds a Master of Public Policy from American University’s School of Public Affairs.
Contact: andyn@budgetandpolicy.org
Lori Pfingst, Ph.D., Senior Policy Analyst
Lori leads research on the Progress Index, KIDS COUNT, and our long-term planning for adequate, equitable, and sustainable social policy. She received her PhD in Sociology from the University of Washington in 2010 and has 15 years’ experience conducting social research and policy analysis.
Prior to joining the Budget & Policy Center, Lori was a Research Scientist with Public Health – Seattle/King County, and also served as the Assistant Director of Washington KIDS COUNT in the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Affairs. Her current and past research covers a broad range of areas, including criminology, poverty, income inequality, epidemiology, and racial equity.
Contact: lorip@budgetandpolicy.org
Ben Secord, Outreach Manager
Ben works with community organizations, decision makers, and partners to expand the reach of our research and analysis.
Ben led the legislative outreach program at Progressive States Network (PSN), where he was responsible for developing and implementing strategies to grow the legislative network; including organizing an annual retreat and playing a lead role in the organizations program to support and build progressive caucuses in the states.
Ben has more than six years of experience in progressive policy and advocacy organizations, including previous outreach work for the Budget & Policy Center. He has a B.A. from Whitman College.
Contact: bens@budgetandpolicy.org
