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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Safety First Volunteer Fire Co

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 240711030
PA · NTEE M24
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Kurt Fisher, Executive Director / CEO ($33,120) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 29 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 93rd percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

How comparable organizations were selected

29 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 29 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$233 total compensation of comparable organizations → $38,675 $33,120
$46910th
$1,50025th
$3,546Median
$6,00075th
$16,61890th
$33,120This org · 93rd
p10$469
p25$1,500
p50$3,546
p75$6,000
p90$16,618
$33,120

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.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
North Franklin Township VolunteerPA $290,795$4,300 990
Lawrence Park Volunteer Fire DepartmentPA $275,652$2,720 990
Greensburg Fire Dept Board Of ControlPA $272,197$1,200 990
Primos-secane-westbrook Park FirePA $297,704$17,134 990
Factoryville Fire CompanyPA $299,732$3,600 990
Citizens Hook & Ladder Co No 1PA $265,819$5,828 990
Tri Clover Fire CompanyPA $260,691$3,546 990
Newburg Fire AssociationPA $257,271$16,489 990
Liberty Fire CompanyPA $255,298$849 990
Clintonville Volunteer FirePA $311,761$3,000 990
East Mead Volunteer Fire Company No 1PA $312,458$38,675 990
Penn Hills Volunteer FiremensPA $252,258$300 990
Bower Hill Volunteer Fire DeptPA $318,223$1,643 990
Fuller Hose Company No 1PA $240,021$400 990
Pocono Mountain Volunteer Fire CompanyPA $341,708$1,500 990
Volunteer Fire Company Of Mt Lebanon IncPA $346,736$6,270 990
Manor Volunteer Fire DepartmentPA $213,195$233 990
Option Independent Fire Company OfPA $212,217$6,000 990
Huntingdon Valley Fire CoPA $356,660$5,828 990
North Middleton Township VolunteerPA $207,824$2,074 990
Waynesboro Volunteer Fire Department IncPA $198,913$500 990
Conneaut Lake Volunteer FirePA $368,647$3,281 990
Biglerville Hose & Truck Co No 1PA $196,883$3,600 990
Nelson Volunteer Fire Company IncPA $195,943$34,102 990
Northampton Township Volunteer Fire Relief AssociationPA $378,327$2,210 990

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 default93rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)93rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted93rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted93rd

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 (Kurt Fisher) 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 29 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (M24) + PA + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $33,120 is reasonable (approximately the 93rd 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). 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.