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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Social Compassion In Legislation

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 208923001
CA · NTEE D010
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Nickolaus Sackett, Executive Director / CEO ($103,200) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 98 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 99th percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

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

How comparable organizations were selected

98 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 98 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,364 total compensation of comparable organizations → $108,432 $103,200
$4,53910th
$9,92925th
$28,198Median
$44,81975th
$63,27590th
$103,200This org · 99th
p10$4,539
p25$9,929
p50$28,198
p75$44,819
p90$63,275
$103,200

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 CA 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
Jessica's Haven And Rescue CA$95,823 Secretary/coo/director $51,840 $51,840 2024
Animal Placement Agency Of The Windsors NJ$94,525 Manager $27,484 $29,257 2023
Reid Park Zoo Foundation AZ$93,430 Coo $25,715 $29,486 2023
Sylvan Lake Improvement Assoc IN$99,336 President $8,000 $10,058 2023
Feline Rescue Network CO$99,540 Secretary $6,901 $7,663 2024
Paws For Life Inc MD$92,903 Secretary/treasurer $9,150 $9,907 2024
Dogs In Danger Rescue Inc NY$99,837 President $5,200 $5,442 2024
Sophie Kerrigan For The Love Of OH$92,564 Executive Di $25,000 $31,570 2023
K9line Inc FL$100,283 Ceo/member $48,750 $53,036 2024
Contented Critters MN$92,288 Animal Rescue Director $36,540 $43,048 2023
Arizona Mule Deer AZ$100,758 Ceo Field Director $67,310 $77,181 2023
Puddy Tat Protectors Inc TN$101,133 President $48,100 $58,552 2024
Arm Sanctuary Inc FL$101,520 Vice Preside $13,200 $14,785 2023
National Turkey Federation Foundation DC$101,768 President $80,466 $81,773 2024
Dekati Giving CO$101,966 President $40,000 $44,418 2024
Sunrise Service Dogs Inc CO$102,293 Executive Director $61,045 $69,790 2023
Valley Shore Animal Welfare League CT$103,295 Treasurer $3,044 $3,403 2023
Country Roads Animal Rescue Society OK$103,547 Founder $5,000 $6,376 2024
Francis Halbrook Hensley Animal Shelter TN$103,574 Shelter Director $25,635 $31,205 2024
Mayor's Alliance For Nyc's Animals Inc NY$88,630 President/chairman $15,700 $16,430 2024
Pawsitive Beings Rescue Inc FL$87,943 President $7,079 $7,701 2024
Second Chance Rescue And Adoption Inc NJ$87,873 President $7,750 $8,250 2023
Pet Rescue Pilots CA$105,089 Executive Director $36,000 $37,063 2023
On Call Community Rescue For Animals OR$105,734 President $42,000 $46,504 2023
Leaders For Ethics Animals & The CA$106,134 Secretary & $100,000 $97,422 2025

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 CA 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 default99th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)100th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted99th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted94th

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 (Nickolaus Sackett) 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 98 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (D), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $103,200 is reasonable (approximately the 99th 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.