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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Ferndale Downtown Development Association

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 208688675
WA · NTEE S80
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Melissa O'brine, Executive Director / CEO ($71,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 19 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 95th percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Melissa O'brine — reported title “EXEC DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

19 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 19 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,019 total compensation of comparable organizations → $76,490 $71,000
$2,68210th
$8,47625th
$18,718Median
$50,22975th
$64,50390th
$71,000This org · 95th
p10$2,682
p25$8,476
p50$18,718
p75$50,229
p90$64,503
$71,000

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 WA 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
Tri Valley Medical Foundation NE$118,516 Foundation Director $56,751 $66,221 2024
Acercamiento Hispano SC$116,481 Executive Director $54,987 $64,073 2023
Center For Child And Family Achievement Inc NJ$115,891 Executive Director $17,680 $17,126 2024
Asian American Resource Foundation Inc GA$112,646 President $16,667 $18,718 2023
Santa Rosa Community Services Inc FL$126,025 Director $42,135 $42,943 2024
Chap Corporation MN$129,847 Vice President $12,000 $12,864 2024
Kane County Farm Bureau Foundation IL$104,203 Manager $14,168 $15,112 2024
Lions Sight Conservation Foundation Inc Of W Va WV$99,195 Secretary-treasurer $2,400 $2,746 2025
Westside Regional Medical Staff Inc FL$145,365 Chief Of Staff $1,000 $1,019 2024
Baxter Snowmobile Club Inc MN$88,161 Gambling Mgr $14,682 $15,739 2024
Robert J Min Md Pc NY$85,688 President $51,748 $50,730 2024
Estill County 21st Century Inc KY$83,022 Executive Director $41,440 $49,728 2023
Dade City Rod And Gun Club Inc FL$155,917 President $2,700 $2,752 2024
Midlands Mediation Center SC$162,078 Executive Director $38,958 $45,395 2023
Literacy Council Of Southwestern Pa PA$165,913 Executive Di $70,700 $76,490 2024
Northern Pine Riders MN$167,631 President $2,200 $2,428 2023
High Plains Community Development NE$170,051 Executive Di $54,326 $63,390 2024
Community Chest Of Cicero IL$173,650 Executive Di $27,000 $28,797 2024
The Committee Of 101 Inc KY$174,880 President $3,600 $4,088 2025

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to WA 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 WA 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 default95th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)100th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted95th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted84th

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 (Melissa O'brine) 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 19 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (S80), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $71,000 is reasonable (approximately the 95th 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.