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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Learning Center Of Key West Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 205416637
FL · NTEE B99
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Palma Lopez, Executive Director / CEO ($60,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 15 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 60th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

15 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 15 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,039 total compensation of comparable organizations → $93,246 $60,000
$9,68110th
$36,23225th
$51,946Median
$77,25175th
$80,92090th
$60,000This org · 60th
p10$9,681
p25$36,232
p50$51,946
p75$77,251
p90$80,920
$60,000

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 FL 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
Ascension 33 Inc FL$208,942 Director $53,480 $51,946 2024
Logos Homeschool Academy Inc FL$207,287 Administrator $20,958 $19,832 2025
Coalition For Physician Well-being Inc FL$216,395 Executive Director $37,496 $37,496 2023
Seniors On A Mission Inc FL$217,177 Executive Director $79,159 $76,888 2024
Linking Community Now Inc FL$221,985 Executive Director $56,834 $55,203 2024
Teachers Association Of Lee County FL$233,694 Vice President $2,099 $2,039 2024
Tree Foundation Inc FL$242,588 Executive Director $50,000 $47,314 2025
The Home Team - Miami Inc FL$173,584 Director $79,425 $77,146 2024
Satvatove Institute Inc FL$158,205 Executive Di $83,160 $83,160 2023
The Penitent Thief Inc FL$270,246 President $36,000 $34,967 2024
Freedom Synergy Corporation FL$270,626 President $96,000 $93,246 2024
Wordwalk Inc FL$274,090 Executive Di $3,000 $2,914 2024
Ace Mentor Program Of Northeast Florida FL$276,952 Director $81,963 $77,559 2025
Management & Organizational Behavior FL$281,337 Executive Dir. $77,355 $77,355 2023
Association Of Independent Schools FL$307,514 Executive Director $52,091 $50,597 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to FL 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 FL 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 default60th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)60th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted60th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted53rd

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 (Palma Lopez) 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 15 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (B99) + FL + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $60,000 is reasonable (approximately the 60th 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.