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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Ham Lake Fire Relief Association

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 237438941
MN · NTEE M11
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of James Drieman, Executive Director / CEO ($300) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 328 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 4th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

328 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 328 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$8 total compensation of comparable organizations → $241,433 $300
$58310th
$1,86925th
$12,362Median
$50,99875th
$81,41190th
$300This org · 4th
p10$583
p25$1,869
p50$12,362
p75$50,998
p90$81,411
$300

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 MN 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
Cambridge Fire Company Inc VT$276,680 Chief $4,079 $4,277 2023
Ausable Forks Fire Department Inc NY$277,098 President $500 $471 2023
Red Lightning AZ$277,286 President And Ceo $80,000 $77,864 2024
Lawrence Park Volunteer Fire Department PA$275,652 Treasurer $2,800 $2,826 2024
Waterfront Education CA$275,021 President $13,513 $12,657 2022
East Grand Lake Volunteer Fire MI$278,640 Chief $1,900 $2,043 2023
Emergency Chaplains Inc NC$274,523 President $77,946 $81,508 2024
Arlington Fire Relief Association MN$279,106 Treasurer $900 $900 2024
Long Lake Volunteer Firemen's Relief MN$279,258 President $500 $500 2024
Webster Volunteer Fire Department Inc NY$279,416 Treasurer $9,440 $8,888 2023
Lizton Union Township Hendricks Cou IN$274,066 Trustee $24,941 $26,618 2024
Bexar County Emergency Services Districts Association TX$280,000 Executive Director $17,150 $17,875 2023
4b Disaster Response Network TX$280,109 Executive Director $60,000 $62,535 2023
California Gun Rights Foundation NV$280,169 Executive Director $16,000 $16,231 2024
Yogashield Yoga For First Responders NM$273,421 Ceo $60,000 $65,310 2024
Cord Volunteer Fire Department Inc AR$272,906 Secreatary/treasurer $1,280 $1,499 2023
Signal Hill Fire Protection IL$272,876 Board Member $1,194 $1,188 2024
Ideal Firefighter Relief Assn MN$280,771 President $599 $617 2023
Canajoharie Volunteer Firefighters Inc NY$281,037 Treasurer $500 $457 2024
Greensburg Fire Dept Board Of Control PA$272,197 President - Station #6 $25 $26 2023
Greenville Area Parkinsons Society SC$271,642 Executive Director $81,000 $85,519 2024
Greensboro Police Foundation NC$282,325 Executive Director $37,084 $38,779 2024
Lake Placid Volunteer Fire NY$270,494 Deputy Secre $2,500 $2,286 2024
Safety First Volunteer Fire Co PA$283,305 Steward $33,120 $34,413 2023
South Haven Firemens Relief Association MN$283,323 Treasurer $1,200 $1,200 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MN 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 MN 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 default4th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)4th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted11th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted4th

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 (James Drieman) 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 328 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (M), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $300 is reasonable (approximately the 4th 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.