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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Washington County Leadership

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 203530981
MD · NTEE B990
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Tara Sargent, Executive Director / CEO ($94,136) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 349 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 85th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Tara Sargent — reported title “EXECUTIVE DI”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

349 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 349 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$202 total compensation of comparable organizations → $297,717 $94,136
$11,89310th
$31,58125th
$52,435Median
$79,85375th
$112,90290th
$94,136This org · 85th
p10$11,893
p25$31,581
p50$52,435
p75$79,853
p90$112,902
$94,136

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 MD 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
Pharmacy Leadership & Education MI$239,271 Board Member $6,515 $7,405 2023
Elim Childrens Center Inc MN$239,451 President/ceo $137,532 $145,359 2024
Unscripted Learning CA$238,654 Executive Director $40,009 $38,045 2023
Refugee Youth Solidarity Through Education RI$238,134 Executive Director $80,000 $82,051 2024
New York Theological Education Center Inc NY$237,887 President $65,081 $62,904 2024
Center For Learn Local MI$240,441 Cio $43,000 $48,876 2023
South Dakota Education Equity Coalition SD$237,679 Executive Director $146,490 $172,928 2024
Career Gear Houston TX$240,960 Executive Director $20,050 $22,086 2023
Litcamp CA$237,327 Executive Dir. $49,000 $44,091 2025
Alaska Society For Technology In AK$241,266 Executive Dir. $26,500 $26,401 2025
Building From Below NC$236,855 President $33,800 $37,356 2024
Youth Science Academy Inc GA$241,924 President And Ceo $13,292 $14,718 2023
Texas Youth Foundation TX$236,240 Founder & President $52,768 $56,460 2024
Books Are Wings RI$242,135 Executive Director $49,657 $52,435 2023
Tree Foundation Inc FL$242,588 Executive Director $50,000 $48,946 2025
Osiris Organization MN$235,558 Executive Director $41,250 $43,598 2024
Mental Health Association Of Portland OR$235,080 Secretary $41,232 $42,166 2023
Rising River Corporation OH$234,698 Manager $44,950 $50,924 2024
Inspiring Educators MA$244,106 Managing Director $86,000 $82,662 2024
Women In Data Science And Analytics Inc CA$244,455 President $101,265 $93,531 2024
Journalism And Women Symposium MI$233,838 Executive Director $54,667 $62,137 2023
Grand Valley Equine Assisted CO$233,800 President $17,769 $18,225 2024
Teachers Association Of Lee County FL$233,694 Vice President $2,099 $2,109 2024
New York State Science Olympiad Inc NY$233,412 Treasurer $13,500 $12,712 2025
Exhibit Envoy CA$245,263 Executive Dir. $63,629 $58,769 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MD 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 MD 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 default85th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)85th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted86th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted78th

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 (Tara Sargent) 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 349 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $94,136 is reasonable (approximately the 85th 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.