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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Foundation For Western Fish And Wildlife

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 262849591
ID · NTEE D30
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Dr Zachary Lowe, Executive Director / CEO ($7,693) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 37 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 11th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

37 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 37 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$4,494 total compensation of comparable organizations → $143,353 $7,693
$7,71610th
$26,24825th
$52,256Median
$64,39875th
$88,61390th
$7,693This org · 11th
p10$7,716
p25$26,248
p50$52,256
p75$64,398
p90$88,613
$7,693

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 ID 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
Orca Conservancy WA$357,694 Executive Director $72,120 $60,698 2024
Northern Colorado Wildlife Center CO$380,828 Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitator $46,012 $41,474 2024
The Cloud Foundation CO$336,342 Executive Director $71,444 $64,398 2024
Lower Nehalem Community Trust OR$328,533 Executive Dir. $38,232 $33,375 2024
Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy VA$393,437 Executive Director (From 06/24) $47,874 $43,453 2024
Idaho Wildlife Federation ID$324,561 Executive Director (Jan-may) $44,235 $44,235 2024
Iowa Wildlife Center IA$323,654 Executive Dir. $5,000 $5,299 2023
Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation WY$313,455 Executive Director $70,417 $70,882 2024
Mzuri Wildlife Foundation CA$417,839 Executive Director (End 8/24) $120,340 $97,683 2024
Prairie Wildlife Research Inc WI$298,766 Executive Director $76,960 $75,555 2024
Philadelphia Metro Wildlife Center Inc PA$297,973 President $28,000 $26,248 2024
Open Door Bird Sanctuary WI$295,913 Executive Director $53,228 $52,256 2024
Orang Utan Republik Foundation Inc CA$295,262 President $12,000 $9,741 2024
Lois E Womer Foundation NJ$290,730 Co-trustee $6,893 $5,785 2024
Animal Education And Rescue Nfp IL$286,406 President $53,879 $49,793 2024
Global Conservation Force Inc CA$280,841 President $54,731 $44,426 2024
Alaska Nannut Co-management Council AK$438,406 At-large Member $5,250 $4,858 2023
Texas Foundation For Conservation TX$440,000 Executive Director $152,450 $143,353 2024
Raptor View Research Institute MT$442,311 Executive Di $82,928 $84,031 2024
Last Chance Forever TX$271,565 Director $30,004 $28,214 2024
Cougar Fund Inc WY$269,890 Managing Director $100,000 $100,661 2024
Inland Nw Wildlife Council WA$449,169 Executive Director $17,235 $14,505 2024
Beavers Northwest WA$264,826 Executive Director $65,006 $56,326 2023
The Science And Conservation Center Inc MT$455,472 Executive Director $94,233 $95,487 2024
Wildlife Rescue Center MO$461,084 Executive Director $61,410 $62,949 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to ID 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 ID 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 default11th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)11th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted0th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted97th

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 (Dr Zachary Lowe) 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 37 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D30), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $7,693 is reasonable (approximately the 11th 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.