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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Rockford Area Strategic Initiatives

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 270964918
IL · NTEE S43
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Caitlin Pusateri, Executive Director / CEO ($13,565) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 42 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 5th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

42 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 42 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$9,272 total compensation of comparable organizations → $254,444 $13,565
$22,48510th
$54,53025th
$85,153Median
$114,44075th
$133,47890th
$13,565This org · 5th
p10$22,485
p25$54,530
p50$85,153
p75$114,440
p90$133,478
$13,565

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
Startupaz Foundation AZ$359,966 President Executive Dir Thru 01/2024 $136,843 $133,865 2024
Nonprofit Solutions CA$361,828 Executive Director $89,238 $80,696 2023
Womens Venture Fund Inc NY$366,243 President & Ceo $159,200 $146,328 2024
Danville Boyle County Development KY$349,771 Director $29,583 $33,284 2023
Growco Columbia Inc SC$367,881 Executive Director $101,778 $108,003 2024
Iowa Center Loan Fund IA$369,185 President $9,756 $10,586 2025
The Warehouse Business Accelerator CO$370,791 Executive Dir. $80,032 $80,365 2023
Tolani Lake Enterprises Inc AZ$345,199 Executive Director $53,820 $52,649 2024
Black Wall Street Business Center OK$379,211 President & Ceo $19,500 $21,841 2024
Madison Village For Advanced GA$380,784 Executive Dir. $29,167 $29,831 2024
Adventist Health Policy Association FL$381,710 President $16,962 $16,687 2023
The Biotechnology Incubator At Nymc Inc NY$389,283 President, Ceo & Trustee $268,885 $254,444 2023
Anti Entropy TX$393,476 President $65,000 $70,881 2022
Niche Inc IN$322,461 Executive Director $120,000 $125,402 2025
International Union Uaw Local 1284 MI$393,983 President $8,831 $9,272 2024
Commonwise Education Inc NY$314,772 Executive Dir. $30,769 $28,281 2024
Eastern American Economic NJ$406,656 President $98,670 $89,609 2024
Ab Community Inc NC$406,875 Executive Director $86,875 $94,003 2023
Cohabitat Foundation Inc LA$304,436 Executive Director $65,000 $74,953 2023
Alabama Capital Network Inc AL$430,100 Executive Officer $114,000 $128,973 2023
Enterprise Development Corporation MO$285,548 Executive Dir. $100,680 $108,467 2024
Kukolu HI$435,911 Executive Dir. $125,462 $114,256 2024
Vida Mejor Capital Inc NM$279,345 President $55,000 $60,171 2024
Launch Inc NC$278,208 Executive Di $111,779 $114,453 2025
Piedmont Business Capital NC$446,116 Executive Director Ceo $132,440 $139,196 2024

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 default5th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)5th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted0th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted95th

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 (Caitlin Pusateri) 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 42 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (S43), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $13,565 is reasonable (approximately the 5th 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.