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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Philadelphia Volunteer Lawyers For The Arts

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 232066564
PA · NTEE A900
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Kenneth Metzner, Executive Director / CEO ($91,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 16 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 94th percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Kenneth Metzner — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

16 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 16 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,957 total compensation of comparable organizations → $117,544 $91,000
$6,83110th
$34,55625th
$46,014Median
$59,00975th
$67,97890th
$91,000This org · 94th
p10$6,831
p25$34,556
p50$46,014
p75$59,009
p90$67,978
$91,000

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 PA 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
Side By Side Studio Inc KY$211,784 Executive Director $47,999 $50,228 2024
Patronus Group Inc TX$218,550 Secretary $29,319 $29,409 2023
Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield CT$219,315 Executive Di $71,000 $66,755 2023
American Master Chefs Orders KS$230,244 Executive Director $61,200 $64,398 2024
Roswell Museum & Art Center NM$230,692 Executive Director $34,700 $37,425 2023
Hatch Workshop CA$190,649 Executive Dir. $43,125 $36,271 2024
Strawtown Art & Garden Studio Inc NY$242,648 Exec Director $133,552 $117,544 2024
Chester County Bar Foundation PA$244,364 Executive Di $2,957 $2,957 2023
Arts On Site Nyc Inc NY$245,657 Executive Director $4,800 $4,349 2023
The Foundation For The Spiritual Practice Of Creativity CA$248,898 President Ceo $62,192 $53,852 2023
Tri-county Arts Council Inc NY$269,033 Executive Dir. $63,140 $57,213 2023
Music Education & Performing OR$282,582 Executive Di $10,000 $9,312 2023
North Dakota Bar Foundation Inc ND$300,885 Secretary/treasurer $37,378 $39,953 2024
Detroit Artists Market MI$305,171 Director $40,385 $41,800 2023
Harvestworks Inc NY$312,557 Executive Dir. $58,576 $51,554 2024
Humanities Amped LA$316,573 Co Director $66,229 $69,201 2025

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to PA 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 PA 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 default94th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)94th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted94th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted81st

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 (Kenneth Metzner) 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 16 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A90), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $91,000 is reasonable (approximately the 94th 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.