Benjamin Lopez has served as the Director of Public Policy and Advocacy for IEEP since March 2022. Prior to coming to IEEP, Mr. Lopez served as a Public Policy Advisor to San Bernardino County Second District Supervisor Janice Rutherford. He has extensive experience in public policy and advocacy, including 7 years in the US Coast Guard, where he served as part of a detachment in Washington DC as a public affairs aide. He has also as well as various private consulting firms throughout the State of California. He has a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor’s of Arts in Political Science and Public Administration from the California State University, Fullerton. A native of the Inland Empire, he now resides in the City of Fontana with his wife Lisa, two baby boys and his dog Buck.