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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Hartford Food System Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 060991880
CT · NTEE K30Z
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Billie Scruse, Executive Director / CEO ($87,539) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 97 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 93rd percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Billie Scruse — reported title “Executive Dir.”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

97 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 97 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,069 total compensation of comparable organizations → $111,777 $87,539
$18,48710th
$32,28025th
$48,138Median
$66,06575th
$83,89190th
$87,539This org · 93rd
p10$18,487
p25$32,280
p50$48,138
p75$66,065
p90$83,891
$87,539

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 CT 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
Passion And Compassion Inc MD$279,365 Executive Dir. $57,000 $56,836 2023
Feed Our Streets CA$283,219 Ceo $31,000 $27,731 2024
Providence Northeast Washington WA$287,548 Executive Director $54,221 $51,775 2023
Canyon Hope Ministries TX$290,278 Executive Dir. $51,514 $53,382 2024
All In One Community Center Inc FL$290,282 Director $31,608 $30,760 2024
New Britain Roots Inc CT$290,839 Executive Director $56,846 $56,846 2023
360 Eats Inc FL$291,472 Executive Dir. $42,827 $42,910 2023
Lunches For Learning Inc GA$291,835 Executive Di $81,150 $87,024 2023
Jewish Relief Agency Inc NJ$294,035 Director $17,160 $16,341 2023
Patchwork TN$294,886 Founder/ceo $54,533 $61,136 2023
Forever Fed Inc GA$262,261 Director $3,005 $3,130 2024
Healthy Foods For Healthy Kids Inc DE$260,933 Executive Director $79,650 $83,179 2023
Outreach Program Of Brainerd Lakes MN$258,610 Executive Di $70,000 $73,770 2023
Storehouse Daily Bread Ministry NC$257,875 Executive Di $24,432 $26,152 2024
Love The Hungry Inc KY$257,284 Executive Director $54,096 $61,986 2023
Positive Community Kitchen OR$257,263 Executive Director $34,463 $34,134 2023
Now Serving Inc NC$256,898 Executive Director $80,859 $89,108 2023
Provo Farmers Market UT$256,114 Executive Dir. $33,500 $35,519 2024
Feed New Mexico Kids Inc NM$304,007 Executive Dir. $58,583 $65,274 2024
Soil2service Inc MI$254,394 Executive Director $1,000 $1,069 2024
Chef To The Shelters Inc TX$306,867 Executive Director $87,662 $93,524 2023
Feeding Charlotte Inc NC$307,435 Executive Dir. $40,833 $44,999 2023
Morning Star Fresh Food Ministry Inc CA$307,791 President $33,000 $30,392 2023
Colorado Farm To Table Inc CO$248,995 Executive Dir. $39,350 $39,088 2024
Petare-latam Foundation Inc FL$245,674 Treasurer $32,350 $31,483 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CT 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 CT 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 default93rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)95th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted93rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted93rd

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 (Billie Scruse) 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 97 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (K30), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $87,539 is reasonable (approximately the 93rd 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.