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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Hunterdon Helpline Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 222265896
NJ · NTEE F41Z
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Susan R G Lax, Executive Director / CEO ($105,274) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 716 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 87th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Susan R G Lax — reported title “Executive Director”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

716 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 716 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1 total compensation of comparable organizations → $276,868 $105,274
$18,19510th
$36,15625th
$62,894Median
$86,11875th
$113,68590th
$105,274This org · 87th
p10$18,195
p25$36,156
p50$62,894
p75$86,118
p90$113,685
$105,274

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 NJ 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
Dynamic Recovery MT$292,950 Executive Di $69,350 $83,727 2024
Brunan Inc NJ$293,046 Executive Dir. $50,000 $51,477 2023
The Peggie And Paul Shevlin Family PA$292,653 Executive Di $71,859 $80,261 2024
The Brian Dagle Foundation Inc CT$293,257 President $30,000 $32,435 2023
Crossings Counseling Center Inc GA$292,455 President $29,070 $32,738 2024
Project Safety Net CA$293,508 President & Ceo $112,896 $109,186 2024
Pureheart Ministries OR$293,530 Director $98,700 $102,659 2024
Bee Cave Recovery TX$292,182 Executive Di $65,624 $73,523 2024
Buehler Wellness Center Inc IL$291,955 Ceo $45,079 $49,637 2024
Anything Helps MN$294,114 Executive Director $16,808 $18,602 2024
Heaven Sent Group Home Inc NC$291,703 Executive Di $74,700 $89,002 2023
Iris Transitional Living GA$295,086 Cfo $36,400 $40,992 2024
Conneaut Human Resources Council Inc OH$295,111 Executive Director $33,000 $38,138 2025
Mental Health News Education Inc MA$290,736 Executive Di $103,219 $101,209 2025
Decatur Prevention Initiative Inc GA$295,167 Executive Director $98,998 $114,781 2023
How To Read Your Baby CO$295,443 Executive Director $88,620 $95,175 2024
The Reflect Organization PA$290,245 Chief Executive Officer $43,186 $49,661 2023
American Orthopsychiatric MA$290,240 Executive Of $88,180 $91,372 2023
Still Worthy Inc SC$295,655 Co-founder $13,790 $16,589 2023
Healing Clinical Counseling Center Inc CA$290,142 Ceo $63,892 $63,618 2023
City Of Refuge Hopewell Inc VA$296,103 Ceo $16,200 $18,037 2023
Center For Suicide Awareness Inc WI$289,606 Executive Di $45,058 $52,705 2024
Consuelo Inc IL$289,604 President $65,500 $74,254 2023
Nevada Coalition For NV$296,353 Ceo/president $77,000 $86,446 2024
Noble Choices Inc TX$289,499 President & Founder $186,594 $215,229 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to NJ 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 NJ 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 default87th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)91st
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted89th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted83rd

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 (Susan R G Lax) 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 716 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (F), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $105,274 is reasonable (approximately the 87th 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.