Executive Director / CEO
This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Jessica Karjala, Executive Director / CEO ($74,004) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 198 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.
Compensation sits at approximately the 94th percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended
Benchmarked executive: Jessica Karjala — reported title “FORMER EXEC”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.
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 MT cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.
| Organization | State | Revenue | Matched title | Comp (reported) | Comp (adjusted) | FY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Path Of Hope Rescue | WA | $167,266 | Founder And Director | $39,000 | $32,392 | 2024 |
| Rocky Mountain French Bulldog Rescue | CO | $166,483 | President And Director | $602,793 | $536,212 | 2024 |
| Petvet Relief Inc | TX | $165,046 | President | $1,500 | $1,392 | 2024 |
| Southern Paw Partners | SC | $163,903 | President | $45,000 | $43,552 | 2024 |
| Golden Oldies Cat Rescue | CA | $171,033 | Exec Dir Board Member | $27,250 | $22,474 | 2023 |
| Mother Mayflower's Animal | OH | $171,122 | President/se | $40,000 | $40,463 | 2023 |
| Hardin County Pet Protection Inc | KY | $171,788 | President | $45,964 | $45,812 | 2024 |
| One Step For Animals | AZ | $171,897 | Executive Director | $36,542 | $31,762 | 2025 |
| Animal Rez-q Inc | AZ | $172,881 | Founding President | $4,762 | $4,249 | 2024 |
| The Ryan Animal Rescue Foundation | RI | $160,925 | Executive Director | $36,100 | $33,061 | 2023 |
| Remiatte Foundation | CA | $160,908 | Secretary | $66,500 | $53,271 | 2024 |
| Animal Rescue Connections | TX | $160,585 | Vice President | $9,548 | $8,860 | 2024 |
| Illinois Horse Rescue Of Will | IL | $173,383 | President | $26,780 | $25,146 | 2023 |
| Maumee Valley Save A Pet | OH | $173,463 | Treasurer | $21,800 | $22,053 | 2023 |
| Utah Animal Adoption Center | UT | $173,845 | Manager | $33,683 | $31,981 | 2024 |
| Happy Paws Foundation | TN | $159,943 | Director | $29,664 | $29,781 | 2023 |
| Mostly Mutts Inc | PA | $174,650 | President | $42,000 | $38,855 | 2024 |
| Sixteen Hands Horse Sanctuary Inc | FL | $158,857 | President | $11,232 | $9,789 | 2024 |
| Canine Classmates | TX | $175,054 | Ceo | $69,833 | $64,804 | 2024 |
| Vets To Vets United Inc | NC | $158,379 | Executive Di | $38,502 | $37,996 | 2023 |
| Institute For Animal Happiness | NY | $175,867 | Executive Director | $3,100 | $2,599 | 2024 |
| Mastiffs To Mutts | PA | $178,237 | V.p./foster Mgr | $9,400 | $8,696 | 2024 |
| Kingman County Humane Society | KS | $178,866 | Shelter Manager/director | $26,084 | $26,142 | 2024 |
| Second Chance Animal Refuge Society | KS | $178,970 | President | $18,000 | $18,040 | 2024 |
| Jans Rails To Trails Rescue Sanctuary | CA | $179,982 | Board Member | $24,565 | $19,678 | 2024 |
Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MT cost of living and 2024 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.
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 MT 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.
Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:
| Basis | Subject percentile |
|---|---|
| Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default | 94th |
| Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments) | 91st |
| Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted | 95th |
| All sources (D + E + F), adjusted | 93rd |
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.
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
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.