GiveBetter x California

Comité Cívico del Valle

Imperial Valley environmental health, asthma and community services

Research time: 6 min on GPT-6 Astra Light
  • Research — reviewed programs, finances and impact evidence.

Updated: 2026-09-13

Summary

What do they do? Comité Cívico del Valle works on health and environmental conditions in Imperial Valley. Its portfolio includes asthma home visits, air monitoring, heat work, community relief and energy-related advocacy. A conditional air-implementation health estimate uses full recipient cost and explicit judgment assumptions; asthma and other portfolio pathways remain unpriced.

Why we’re interested in this organization:

  • Direct home visiting and local exposure work offer identifiable routes to better health.

  • The organization participated in a local comparative study, providing unusually relevant evidence to challenge generic claims.

  • Original accounts and an identified public asthma grant clarify recipient scale and funding substitution.

Our main reservations:

  • The local study found no statistically detected effect of the randomized family intervention at twelve months.

  • Asthma was a small reported expense category; the unrestricted portfolio is much broader.

  • Monitoring, environmental review and education require additional implementation before they yield measurable health benefits.

What do you get for your dollar? $802.4M per better life: ten additional quality-adjusted life years in California. Judgment-based partial-health at full recipient cost; remaining portfolio health unpriced..

Conditional extra .2 ug/m3 PM2.5 for 20,000 older adults for 5 years equals 20,000 person-ug/m3-years. This is unobserved scenario exposure, not monitor count or PM10 conversion.

1. What do they do?

CCV's current site describes seven initiatives spanning public health, environmental justice and energy transition. The asthma program offers bilingual home education, trigger identification and self-management support; it identifies CalEPA funding. This is not a clinic that independently supplies all medication and medical care. Current initiatives and organization Current asthma intervention and management

The same recipient operates air monitoring and broader community programs. Its air-quality page describes California work alongside collaborations in Canada and Mexico, so an unrestricted gift's California benefit share cannot simply be assumed to be 100%. Direct Imperial Valley care is California-scoped; cross-border and national effects require separate attribution. Air-quality network and monitoring initiatives

2. Monitoring and information sharing

For home visiting, useful measures are additional completed patient courses beyond public funding, changed medication/trigger management, and symptom-free days measured against usual care. Track baseline severity, actual visit dose, dropout, seasonal change and recurrence. For monitoring, the key bridge is how information changes exposure: implemented controls or protective behavior, duration, uptake and alternative data sources. A monitor reading alone is not avoided illness. Current asthma intervention and management Air-quality network and monitoring initiatives

Current heat work is described as a community research and mitigation initiative with San Diego State University. The reviewed page does not supply a completed counterfactual evaluation or a priced unfunded intervention. General community relief may reduce hardship, but distributed items cannot be converted directly into health gain. Taking on the Heat initiative Share and Care

3. Qualitative assessment

The most directly relevant evidence is Respira Sano, conducted with CCV in 400 Imperial County youth. Assignment to family home visiting was randomized; clinic exposure depended on where children received care. The investigators found no statistically detected effect of the family intervention at twelve months. Fewer unplanned visits in the clinic comparison cannot be credited to CCV home visits, and clinic selection was not randomized. All groups received community intervention, so its independent effect was not identified. Missing process data and imperfect lung tests limit interpretation. This does not prove today's program has zero benefit, but it is substantial counterevidence to an automatic positive transfer. Respira Sano primary comparative-effectiveness report, April 2021

A separate Seattle randomized trial found 2.10 more symptom-free days per two weeks after CHW home visits versus usual care, with a 95% interval of 1.17–3.05. Different targeting, service dose and existing care may explain differing results. The trial's symptom-day outcome is not a QALY measure; caregiver quality-of-life scores and avoided visits cannot simply be added as QALYs. Randomized home visits for Medicaid-enrolled children with asthma CDC Medicaid Asthma Home Visit Project registry

CCV's August 2026 account reports an appellate decision requiring further environmental review of a lithium/geothermal project, particularly water and Salton Sea air-quality issues. I verified the organization's statement, not the original opinion's full contents. Improved review is not yet a measured reduction in dust exposure. Any health model must compare actual mitigation with the project and energy alternatives that would otherwise occur, including harms from delay or substitution. Coalition work with Earthworks cannot all be assigned to a marginal CCV gift. CCV reports lithium-project environmental review appeal

The central decision scenario now models three years of monitoring, organizing and implementation support producing a 20% chance of an additional 0.2 microgram-per-cubic-meter PM2.5 reduction for a modeled 20,000 older adults over five years. This is an unverified scale hypothesis, not a measured result of the court decision or the monitor network. CCV's current air page explicitly covers both PM2.5 and PM10; the PM2.5 mortality bridge is not applied to all dust or metals. A 25% CCV coalition contribution, 25% ordinary-gift funding response and 90% California benefit share are subjective priors.

A large Medicare study supplies an exposure–mortality anchor, not CCV's implementation effect. The model integrates the difference between closed-cohort survival curves for ten years, with lower hazard only for five years. No repeated lifetime is assigned to annual avoided deaths. Asthma, heat, relief, clean-energy benefits and potential energy-delay harms remain outside the positive priced branch, with separate zero/adverse scenarios. This component is not a whole-portfolio ranking.

4. What do you get for your dollar?

The conditional air-implementation central uses three years of full recorded recipient expense: 3 × $6,458,632 = $19,375,896. It yields 0.241461 modeled California QALY, about $802.44 million per 10. A favorable joint case is about $3.73 million per 10; a weak case exceeds $78 trillion per 10. These are explicit judgment stress cases, not confidence limits or an empirical estimate of campaign effectiveness.

The full expense denominator includes all programs and support, not only the $341,076 air-monitoring category. It preserves recorded depreciation and grants. Additional outside mitigation, public administration and partner resources must be added for a social-cost estimate. The model assumes a marginal implementation improvement using existing planned resources, not that all new control equipment is free.

An explicit finite clinical sensitivity gives a useful hurdle. If the Seattle endpoint difference of 2.10 symptom-free days per fourteen days held throughout one full year, and each gained symptom-free day improved health utility by an illustrative 0.10, q = (2.10/14) × 0.10 = 0.015 QALYs per additional patient-year. Full-year persistence is optimistic relative to an endpoint measurement; the 0.10 mapping is judgment, not trial data. A linear rise from zero to that effect over the year halves q. No mortality, second year or separate urgent-care benefit is added. Randomized home visits for Medicaid-enrolled children with asthma

At q = 0.015, reaching $1 million per 10 QALYs requires 66.667 additional California patient-years per $100,000, or at most $1,500 of whole-recipient gift cost per effective patient-year. A $100,000 threshold requires 666.667 patient-years, or $150 each. Those are break-even requirements, not predictions. Under a purely diagnostic assumption that the gift follows the FY2024 asthma expense share (1.928%), allowable asthma-branch cost per effective patient-year falls to $28.93 or $2.89 respectively. Historical share is not a measured marginal allocation; the calculation demonstrates why restricted-program efficiency cannot stand in for recipient efficiency.

Other branches could add substantial benefit, but require independent finite models of implemented exposure changes, incremental public action or delivered care. Overlapping respiratory benefits must be combined at person level, not counted once for asthma visits and again for air-quality work.

Model, assumptions and sensitivity

Three years of full recorded recipient expense; selected air implementation health only. Outside mitigation resources unquantified.

g=.9 subjective California share of modeled older-adult exposure benefit; cross-border activity excluded by this adjustment, not headquarters.

C=3*6458632=19375896; beta=ln(1.07)/10; h1=h0*exp(-beta*delta). S0(t)=exp(-h0*t); S1(t)=exp(-h1*min(t,T)-h0*max(0,t-T)). Qconditional=N*u*integral(0..L)[(S1-S0)*exp(-.03*t)]dt. QCA=Qconditional*p*a*b*g. N=20000,delta=.2,h0=.04,T=5,L=10,u=.8,p=.2,a=.25,b=.25,g=.9 gives QCA=.241461481251. Price10=10*C/QCA.

Cannual
6458632 USD annual recorded recipient expense (observed). Original Form 990 total functional expenses, including depreciation; no additional netted-cost amount was verified in this revision. [99024]
Ycost
3 years of organizing cost (judgment). Bounded prospective effort.
N
20000 older adults (judgment). Unverified older-adult exposure cohort, test5,000–50,000; not observed court beneficiaries. [air]
delta
0.2 ug/m3 extra annual PM2.5 reduction (judgment). Extra PM2.5 only, not all dust; test .01–.5. [air]
beta
0.006765864847381486 log hazard per ug/m3 (judgment). Representative source anchor within reported full-cohort HR1.06–1.08 per10. [pm-causal]
h0
0.04 annual mortality hazard (judgment). Older-adult prior, not local observed rate; test .02–.06.
T
5 years of lower hazard (judgment). Hazard effect then stops.
L
10 years of survival follow-up (judgment). No benefit thereafter; test5–15.
u
0.8 survival quality weight (judgment). Not measured utility; test .6–.9.
p
0.2 specified implementation success probability (judgment). Not empirically calibrated; test .05–.5. [appeal]
a
0.25 CCV coalition contribution (judgment). CCV coalition share, not entire litigation or agency effect; test .05–.5. [appeal]
b
0.25 ordinary-support funding response (judgment). Existing public grants/reserves and alternate donors; test .05–.75. [99024] [home]
g
0.9 California benefit share (judgment). California share of modeled exposure benefit, test .7–1. [air]
d
0.03 annual continuous discount (judgment). Applied in finite integral.
Qother
null other portfolio health (unknown). Asthma, heat, relief and energy pathways remain unpriced. [home]

central: Cost: $19.4M; California QALYs: 0.241461481251107; all-population QALYs: 0.2682905347234522. N=20000;delta=0.2 ug/m3;h0=0.04;T=5;L=10;u=0.8;p=0.2;a=0.25;b=0.25;g=0.9; beta=ln(1.07)/10;discount=.03. Subjective joint scenario; footprint/success unmeasured.

low: Cost: $19.4M; California QALYs: 0.000002455472757645435; all-population QALYs: 0.0000035078182252077645. N=5000;delta=0.01 ug/m3;h0=0.02;T=2;L=5;u=0.6;p=0.05;a=0.05;b=0.05;g=0.7; beta=ln(1.07)/10;discount=.03. Subjective joint scenario; footprint/success unmeasured.

high: Cost: $19.4M; California QALYs: 51.88767308857389; all-population QALYs: 51.88767308857389. N=50000;delta=0.5 ug/m3;h0=0.06;T=5;L=15;u=0.9;p=0.5;a=0.5;b=0.75;g=1; beta=ln(1.07)/10;discount=.03. Subjective joint scenario; footprint/success unmeasured.

No additional implementation: Cost: $19.4M; California QALYs: 0; all-population QALYs: 0. p,b or delta=0.

Illustrative net harm: Cost: $19.4M; California QALYs: -1; all-population QALYs: -1. One California QALY net harm from displaced emissions or energy delay; not observed.

Whole portfolio unestimated: Cost: $19.4M; California QALYs: unknown; all-population QALYs: unknown. Asthma/heat/relief/energy pathways unresolved, not assumed zero.

Counterfactual: Existing monitors, court-ordered review, public controls and partner work continue. Count only implementation beyond that baseline. Monitoring/calibration or an EIR revision is not itself reduced exposure. Alternate clean-energy supply and displaced emissions matter. The central assumes exposure improvement begins during the three-year spending effort, without an extra implementation lag. A three-year delay alone raises the price by exp(0.09), about 9.4%.

Attribution: One air implementation scenario, not all coalition wins. p success precedes CCV share a and funding b. Closed-cohort survival prevents repeat lifetime gains; no separate asthma/heat QALYs added.

Explicit subjective conditional central, not empirical success rates or complete portfolio expected value. Positive joint cases are not confidence bounds. Zero and harm remain possible.

Sensitivity

  • Footprint,p,a,b dominate; none is source-calibrated.
  • External mitigation resources E change price to10*(19375896+E)/QCA.
  • No PM10/metal coefficient or lifetime project benefit imported.
  • Local asthma trial remains counterevidence to a positive asthma proxy.

Unresolved inputs

  • Specific mitigation caused by additional capacity.
  • Measured PM2.5 exposure and resident cohort.
  • Coalition/public counterfactual and funding response.
  • Outside mitigation costs and energy tradeoffs.
  • Other portfolio health.

5. Funding and previous grants

Original returns report full-recipient expenses of $3,025,205 in 2022, $4,652,438 in 2023 and $6,458,632 in 2024, giving a three-year mean of $4,712,092. The 2023 return provides the 2022 comparative total; these are accrual, calendar-year accounts rather than a cost per participant. Original FY2023 Form 990 with FY2022 comparative figures

In 2024 total expenses comprised $4,513,451 program, $1,926,502 management and $18,679 fundraising. Reported program categories included $4,047,828 community outreach, $341,076 air monitoring and $124,547 asthma services. Revenue was $5,727,894, including $1,591,989 government grants and $4,044,851 other contributions. Net assets were $4,766,066, with $1,025,820 donor-restricted. Expenses include $831,661 depreciation; donor cash expenditure and economic resource cost should not be silently conflated. Original FY2024 Form 990

CalEPA awarded $300,000 in 2024 for at-home asthma education and intervention in Imperial Valley. Current program text still identifies that funding. The award establishes an existing financed pathway, not remaining cash, a current shortfall or a gift-induced expansion; spending timing and restrictions must be checked. CalEPA announces EJ Action Grants including CCV asthma project

The current action page links to a petition, not a verified ordinary-donation checkout. The relief page invites financial support for its program, but that is not enough to identify an unrestricted donation route. The report therefore leaves donationUrl null pending verification rather than directing a user to an assumed or restricted destination. No donation or endorsement is claimed. Current action page, petition rather than donation form Share and Care

Annual expenses

Organization-level spending, including programs, administration and fundraising. The research list averages three comparable, consecutive full fiscal years when available.

  • FY 2022: $3.0M; Comité Cívico del Valle, EIN 33-0411322, 12-month period, Accrual Form 990 total functional expenses; year ended December 31. Source
  • FY 2023: $4.7M; Comité Cívico del Valle, EIN 33-0411322, 12-month period, Accrual Form 990 total functional expenses; year ended December 31. Source
  • FY 2024: $6.5M; Comité Cívico del Valle, EIN 33-0411322, 12-month period, Accrual Form 990 total functional expenses; year ended December 31. Source

6. Sources

  1. Current initiatives and organization. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  2. Current asthma intervention and management. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  3. Air-quality network and monitoring initiatives. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  4. Taking on the Heat initiative. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  5. Share and Care. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  6. CCV reports lithium-project environmental review appeal. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: 2026-08-11; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  7. CalEPA announces EJ Action Grants including CCV asthma project. California Environmental Protection Agency. Published: 2024-03-07; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  8. Original FY2024 Form 990. Comité Cívico del Valle / IRS. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  9. Original FY2023 Form 990 with FY2022 comparative figures. Comité Cívico del Valle / IRS. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  10. Respira Sano primary comparative-effectiveness report, April 2021. Elder and colleagues, PCORI / San Diego State University Research Foundation. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  11. Randomized home visits for Medicaid-enrolled children with asthma. Campbell and colleagues, American Journal of Public Health. Published: 2015-08-13; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  12. CDC Medicaid Asthma Home Visit Project registry. Public Health—Seattle and King County / ClinicalTrials.gov. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  13. Current action page, petition rather than donation form. Comité Cívico del Valle. Published: not stated; retrieved: 2026-09-13.
  14. Long-term PM2.5 and elderly mortality causal-inference study. Wu and colleagues / Science Advances. Published: 2020-07-17; retrieved: 2026-09-14.