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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Thompson River Animal Care Shelter

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 205520480
MT · NTEE D20
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Delano Smith, Executive Director / CEO ($39,540) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 421 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 43rd percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

421 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 421 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$120 total compensation of comparable organizations → $323,138 $39,540
$11,34310th
$23,95725th
$42,913Median
$58,95475th
$75,90990th
$39,540This org · 43rd
p10$11,343
p25$23,957
p50$42,913
p75$58,954
p90$75,909
$39,540

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 MT 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
Pet Central Helps IL$452,430 President $53,000 $55,954 2021
Little Guild Of St Francis CT$452,636 Executive Director $110,000 $95,680 2024
Bradys K9 Fund OH$451,323 President $49,410 $48,549 2024
Helping Hands Humane Society KS$450,922 Trustee $9,523 $9,826 2023
Alliance For Contraception In Cats & Dogs MI$453,609 President $110,000 $105,329 2024
Friends Of Metro Animal Services Inc KY$453,895 Executive Director $42,294 $42,154 2024
Merwin Memorial Free Clinic For MA$450,427 Treasurer $36,868 $30,735 2024
Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory Inc MN$449,715 Executive Director $71,744 $65,765 2024
Union County Humane Society OH$455,085 Director $64,615 $65,365 2023
Carver Scott County Humane Society MN$455,164 Former Executive Director $83,244 $76,307 2024
French Bulldog Rescue Network MA$449,069 Treasurer $5,000 $4,168 2024
North Country Spca Inc NY$455,725 Executive Dir. $83,572 $70,058 2024
Potters Angels Rescue Inc VT$448,227 Executive Dir. $2,500 $2,334 2024
Ric Obarrys Dolphin Project FL$447,609 President $60,300 $54,103 2023
Progressive Animal Welfare Society WA$456,867 Executive Director $18,250 $15,606 2023
Strength Of Shadow Dog Rescue Inc CA$447,518 Ceo $10,803 $8,654 2024
Peace 4 Animals TX$447,109 President & $150,000 $139,198 2024
Catio Cat Lounge Inc TN$457,428 Secretary $6,133 $5,981 2024
Handover Rover AZ$446,799 Director $51,877 $46,284 2024
Humane Animal Care Coalition Inc FL$458,692 President $11,000 $9,586 2024
Humane Society Of Moultrie And GA$445,336 Director Of $41,916 $39,098 2024
Barrio Dogs Inc TX$445,165 President $64,668 $60,011 2024
Cove Animal Rescue Corporation NY$444,436 Executive Director $26,612 $22,309 2024
The Pet Connection Incorporated KS$443,913 President $12,000 $12,027 2024
Bright Promises Foundation IL$461,402 Executive Director $109,992 $100,316 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MT 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 MT 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 default43rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)39th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted43rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted42nd

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 (Delano Smith) 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 421 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $39,540 is reasonable (approximately the 43rd 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.