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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Lake County Lightning

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 263835352
IL · NTEE N99
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Jeremy Lutz, Executive Director / CEO ($33,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 67 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 40th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Jeremy Lutz — reported title “Director of Operations”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

67 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 67 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,534 total compensation of comparable organizations → $170,333 $33,000
$5,05510th
$15,93925th
$40,322Median
$70,65975th
$96,64090th
$33,000This org · 40th
p10$5,055
p25$15,939
p50$40,322
p75$70,659
p90$96,640
$33,000

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 IL 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
Union Cultural Center WA$355,661 Artistic Director $68,177 $62,088 2024
East Side Riders Bike Club CA$351,579 President/chair $33,876 $29,754 2024
Amateur Athletic Union Of The Club South Volleybal TX$360,732 President $39,801 $40,497 2024
Fit Houston Inc TX$364,566 President, Exec. Dir. $104,500 $106,328 2024
Oregon Sports Action Inc OR$365,992 President $66,000 $62,344 2024
Supporters Of Olympia Community Sailing WA$342,129 Executive Director $70,392 $64,105 2024
Learnin The Ropes LA$336,481 President $112,000 $129,150 2023
Girls Leading Girls CA$376,064 Executive Director $78,970 $71,411 2023
Completely Pristine TN$376,080 Director $35,546 $38,005 2024
Club Cherokee Inc MN$331,459 Board Member $7,200 $7,237 2024
The New Way Circus Center Inc NY$380,251 Executive Director $146,900 $139,011 2023
Inclusive Sports And Fitness Inc NY$381,526 Coo $50,000 $45,957 2024
Bike Instructor Certification Program WA$325,909 Secretary $8,725 $8,181 2023
Cm Baseball League AZ$386,571 President $79,500 $77,770 2024
Ball-out Academy Inc CA$322,717 Founder And Chief Executive Officer $30,243 $26,563 2024
Dreamland Boxing CA$322,684 President $22,154 $19,459 2024
Student Athlete Community Service Network FL$321,974 Secretary Director $9,350 $9,198 2023
Quality Sports Authority Inc LA$319,266 President $36,000 $40,322 2024
Chestnut Hill Fathers Club PA$393,517 Director $4,562 $4,764 2023
Diamond Barwalnut Valley Soccer League Inc CA$394,617 President $3,750 $3,294 2024
Girls On The Run West Michigan MI$394,987 Executive Director $71,000 $74,542 2024
Blackpackers CO$397,798 Executive Di $86,281 $84,154 2024
Naples Flag Football League Inc FL$398,954 Vice Preside $74,750 $73,538 2023
Elite Aquatics Sports Team Inc CA$403,657 Ceo $41,265 $37,315 2023
Athletic Equipment Managers VA$405,686 National Off $72,184 $69,066 2025

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to IL 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 IL 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 default40th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)36th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted40th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted40th

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 (Jeremy Lutz) 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 67 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (N99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $33,000 is reasonable (approximately the 40th 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.