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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Murdock Fund

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 046029917
MA · NTEE T30
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Keith Barrows, Executive Director / CEO ($1,500) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 155 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 1st percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Keith Barrows — reported title “TREASURER”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

155 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 155 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,100 total compensation of comparable organizations → $300,106 $1,500
$6,96710th
$21,68325th
$41,135Median
$65,22075th
$104,17090th
$1,500This org · 1st
p10$6,967
p25$21,683
p50$41,135
p75$65,220
p90$104,170
$1,500

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 MA 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
Steps Together A Nj Non Profit NJ$175,905 Executive Director $15,400 $15,753 2023
Deron Cherry Charitable Foundation MO$176,208 Executive Dir. $30,000 $35,359 2024
Texas Christian Foundation TX$173,694 Relationship Manager $103,507 $115,221 2024
Rogers Public Library Foundation AR$178,304 Executive Director $44,000 $55,038 2024
The Alex Fund Inc NY$179,799 President $8,333 $8,379 2024
The Professional Peace Officers Star And CA$171,548 President $2,490 $2,393 2024
Isaiah House Inc CA$182,904 President $7,700 $7,617 2023
Wallance County Foundation KS$168,299 Chairperson $5,088 $6,117 2024
Swfl Children's Charities Inc FL$183,837 Executive Director $105,385 $113,425 2023
Oberry Center Foundation Inc NC$167,433 Executive Director $55,635 $63,971 2024
The Fatherhood Comission Inc AL$184,615 Executive Di $72,000 $89,117 2023
Eaton Rapids Medical Center Foundation MI$184,658 President $19,871 $23,498 2023
Sertoma International Nashville TN$167,054 Executive Director $25,000 $28,490 2025
The Maqasid Institute TN$185,144 President $84,716 $99,095 2024
Bay Area Chamber Foundation Inc FL$185,200 President/ceo $35,289 $36,891 2024
Rotary Club Of The Villages Foundation Inc FL$166,275 Treasurer $1,200 $1,222 2025
Oak Hills Memorial Foundation Inc MN$165,636 Administrator $31,555 $34,698 2024
The Community Foundation For St CT$186,361 Director $2,083 $2,173 2024
United Way Of Rockingham County NC$186,647 Executive Di $77,112 $88,667 2024
Berkeley College Foundation NJ$164,413 Executive Director $43,966 $42,558 2025
The Above And Beyond Foundation IL$164,349 Treasurer $1,590 $1,740 2024
Good Neighbor Network OR$188,192 Board Member $11,667 $12,057 2024
Royal Promise MN$163,641 President $3,000 $3,299 2024
Women In Charge MO$163,296 Co-executive Director $9,756 $11,499 2024
Canoeing For Kids SC$162,581 Exexcutive Dir $31,500 $36,570 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MA cost of living and 2024 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 MA 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 default1st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)1st
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted30th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted1st

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 (Keith Barrows) 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 155 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (T30), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $1,500 is reasonable (approximately the 1st 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.