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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Mental Health Association In Essex

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 020580380
NY · NTEE T11
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Valerie Ainsworth, Executive Director / CEO ($10,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 57 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 14th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Valerie Ainsworth — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

57 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 57 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$370 total compensation of comparable organizations → $196,590 $10,000
$9,82910th
$17,96325th
$32,532Median
$47,46075th
$89,92690th
$10,000This org · 14th
p10$9,829
p25$17,963
p50$32,532
p75$47,460
p90$89,926
$10,000

Comparable organizations

Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to NY cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
Barnett Family Support Foundation MI$359,690 Treasurer $25,219 $28,806 2023
Providence Benedictine Nursing Center OR$358,837 Executive Director $38,780 $39,854 2023
Bethany Manor Foundation Inc IA$355,620 Ceo $8,128 $9,566 2024
California Foundation For Commerce CA$365,791 President $78,818 $73,157 2024
Pipkin Charitable Foundation CA$366,135 Board Member $34,044 $32,532 2023
Alliance Initiatives Fund Inc IN$367,694 President & Ceo Cfa $13,510 $15,767 2023
Nalc Disaster Relief Foundation DC$347,720 President $37,805 $34,741 2025
Katzman Family Support Foundation MI$344,290 Treasurer $26,189 $29,057 2024
Camphill Soltane Foundation PA$344,082 President $19,932 $21,997 2023
United Way Of Lincoln And Lancaster NE$379,956 Executive Director $19,636 $22,116 2025
Texas Fallen Officer Foundation TX$387,292 President $50,805 $54,627 2024
Toulouse Commercial Inc LA$388,480 Secretary $11,380 $13,470 2024
St John's Community Services Foundation DC$329,005 President & Ceo $87,229 $82,279 2024
The Hoffer Family Foundation AZ$400,217 President $11,071 $11,444 2024
Pearlstone Family Fund Inc MD$400,400 President & Public Dir. Until 07/24 $30,197 $30,346 2024
Marjorie M & Lawrence R Bradley Endowment Fund NC$318,157 President & Ceo $40,250 $44,704 2024
Roy Maas' Youth Alternatives Foundation TX$405,649 Chief Executive Officer $8,822 $9,766 2023
Ach Landowner TX$308,576 Ceo $25,128 $27,817 2023
Make-a-wish Foundation Guam GU$416,583 President Ceo $72,931 $70,839 2024
Spencer Wilson Charitable Trust WY$300,545 Trustee $108,000 $124,310 2024
Franklin County Foster Closet MO$297,686 President $38,500 $43,831 2024
Real Estate Charitable Foundation MO$294,355 Executive Director $38,697 $44,056 2024
Peggy & John Garson Family Foundation OH$425,359 Treasurer Thru 10/6/2022 $40,331 $47,273 2023
Hillcrest Healthcare Foundation TN$292,853 President $10,586 $11,960 2024
Powerquest Worldwide Ltd NC$426,209 President $85,000 $97,194 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to NY cost of living and 2023 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.

Methodology

Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to NY cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.

Sample, role match & sensitivity

Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:

BasisSubject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default14th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)14th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted0th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted21st

If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.

Rebuttable presumption of reasonableness · 26 CFR 53.4958-6

Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:

Draft board minutes — executive compensation

  1. The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Valerie Ainsworth) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
  2. Prior to its determination, the authorized body obtained and relied upon appropriate comparability data, namely the PeerBasis Compensation Comparability Determination dated June 9, 2026, comparing compensation against 57 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (T11), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $10,000 is reasonable (approximately the 14th percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].

Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). Every figure traces to an original public filing — click any organization above to verify it on ProPublica. PeerBasis is a service of Prismind Analytics; its methodology is published, was commissioned for independent adversarial review, and discloses its own limitations. This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 9, 2026.