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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Worcester Public Library Foundation

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 200066770
MA · NTEE T22
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Christine M Murray, Executive Director / CEO ($100,957) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 35 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 91st percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Christine M Murray — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CLERK”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

35 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 35 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$216 total compensation of comparable organizations → $145,358 $100,957
$5,42710th
$10,74925th
$30,437Median
$70,40775th
$97,96490th
$100,957This org · 91st
p10$5,427
p25$10,749
p50$30,437
p75$70,407
p90$97,964
$100,957

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
Parson Of The Hills Foundation Inc NC$373,789 Ceo Director $52,008 $61,567 2023
Zarlengo Foundation CO$362,095 Executive Dir. $95,000 $101,371 2024
Abny Foundation Inc NY$382,348 Ceo & Secretary $8,750 $9,058 2023
Ironworkers Local 782 Joint KY$382,411 Trustee $906 $1,083 2024
Ridgecrest Foundation Inc IA$383,077 Ceo $45,574 $54,099 2025
Jimmie Johnson Foundation NC$383,978 Executive Director $81,953 $94,233 2024
Hope Christian Services Foundation Inc NJ$388,812 Ceo $16,806 $16,698 2024
Hand Up For Women TN$351,607 Executive Director $68,870 $82,939 2023
The John And Clara Brady Family LA$397,568 Director $58,114 $71,211 2024
Leadership Perimeter Inc GA$339,391 Executive Di $90,600 $101,375 2024
Norman A & Susan L Pappas Family MI$330,349 Secretary $26,189 $30,081 2024
Blackacre Conservancy Inc KY$326,500 Executive Director $70,000 $86,163 2023
Terrebonne Foundation For Academic LA$326,465 Executive Director $56,000 $68,621 2024
The Trauma Foundation WA$417,300 Executive Dir. $60,000 $61,544 2023
Msda Charitable And Educational MD$322,375 Executive Director $5,360 $5,576 2024
Chris Evert Charities Inc FL$419,846 Director $39,899 $41,711 2024
Clearwater Clear Lake Food Shelf MN$426,854 Director $10,400 $11,436 2024
The Schweitzer Family Foundation TX$427,102 Treasurer $29,957 $33,347 2024
Grantmakers Of Oregon And Sw Washington OR$310,685 President/ceo $136,621 $145,358 2023
Delaware Preservation Fund Inc DE$304,850 Program Director $4,890 $5,328 2024
Bonny Lea Charitable Foundation $294,876 Executive Director $98,872 $98,872 2024
Cassie Hines Shoes Cancer Foundation Inc MI$294,164 Vice President - Executive Director $13,350 $15,787 2023
Southeastern Pa Intergroup PA$286,727 Office Manager $62,720 $69,603 2024
Sauganash Foundation NY$280,083 Trustee $29,400 $30,437 2023
Mt Helix Park Foundation CA$460,546 Executive Director $7,130 $6,851 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 default91st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)97th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted86th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted63rd

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 (Christine M Murray) 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 35 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (T22), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $100,957 is reasonable (approximately the 91st 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.