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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The Cappies Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 311803517
VA · NTEE A99
FY ending 2023-08-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Adam Campbell Zahn, Executive Director / CEO ($20,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 17 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 35th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Adam Campbell Zahn — reported title “TECHNOLOGY OFFICER/CFO”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

17 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 17 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$641 total compensation of comparable organizations → $114,860 $20,000
$3,34010th
$10,31825th
$29,669Median
$46,96075th
$80,72790th
$20,000This org · 35th
p10$3,340
p25$10,318
p50$29,669
p75$46,960
p90$80,727
$20,000

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 VA 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
Textile Society Of America Inc MD$101,200 Director At Large Communications $4,043 $3,915 2023
Indigenous Peoples' Day Philly PA$96,719 Cofounder, I $9,990 $10,318 2023
Australian International Screen FL$89,964 Executive Director $121,541 $114,860 2024
Art In The Atrium Inc NJ$110,017 Ceo $54,985 $49,386 2024
Peaceweavers Inc NY$89,254 President $24,100 $21,908 2024
Susquehanna Museum Of Havre De MD$111,710 Executive Di $48,866 $45,958 2024
Sephardi Voices Usa Inc FL$86,014 President/tr $7,250 $6,851 2024
Spirit Of Harmony Foundation Inc IL$85,413 Executive Di $30,000 $29,669 2024
Decentered Arts CA$114,614 Treasurer $78,692 $68,356 2024
Center For Austin Independent Journalism TX$115,103 Board Member $46,667 $46,960 2024
Alianta Inc DC$121,565 Chair $2,725 $2,477 2023
Continuing Education Program Inc MA$76,768 Director (Ex-officio) (Hmfp Ceo) $109,829 $99,283 2024
Gordon Education Initiatives For TX$123,161 Executive Di $30,170 $30,359 2024
Tomah Area Historical Society Inc WI$73,348 Ex Director $20,000 $21,633 2023
Jamaica Plain Arts And Civic Center MA$127,606 Executive Director $709 $641 2024
Suzuki Collaborative Of Cps OH$131,697 Executive Dir. $41,141 $42,705 2025
Dorland Mountain Arts Colony CA$139,902 Executive Dir. $18,517 $16,085 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to VA cost of living and 2023 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 VA 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 default35th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)35th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted41st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted29th

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 (Adam Campbell Zahn) 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 17 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $20,000 is reasonable (approximately the 35th 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.