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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 330527271
CA · NTEE C32Z
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Paul Weghorst, Executive Director / CEO ($50,970) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 20 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 90th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Paul Weghorst — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, WATER”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

20 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 20 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,645 total compensation of comparable organizations → $65,275 $50,970
$5,13810th
$8,65225th
$15,841Median
$34,86775th
$48,02890th
$50,970This org · 90th
p10$5,138
p25$8,652
p50$15,841
p75$34,867
p90$48,028
$50,970

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 CA 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
Ftf Foundation AK$29,654 Executive Di $10,914 $12,084 2023
Stonington Land Trust Inc CT$26,187 Exec Directo $24,000 $26,060 2023
Sustainable World Inc NY$25,372 President And Convenor $43,000 $43,707 2024
Save Cape Lookout Foundation Inc NC$32,842 Director $12,000 $14,359 2023
Western Alliance For Nature CA$24,042 Executive Director $10,050 $9,762 2024
Indian Creek Nature Center Charitable IA$34,071 Executive Director $5,723 $7,049 2024
One For Nature Inc PA$34,147 Director $15,000 $17,323 2023
Energy Services Coalition Corp VA$34,236 Exec Director $42,738 $46,418 2024
Save Honolua Coalition HI$34,393 Vice Preside $4,191 $4,221 2024
Mead Spl Site Custodial Trust WA$34,466 Trustee $27,826 $28,851 2023
Mlt Holdings Inc HI$22,994 President $8,503 $8,816 2023
Black Rock Forest Preserve Inc NY$21,992 Secretary $31,901 $32,426 2024
The Nuclear Decommissioning MA$35,802 President/director $61,845 $62,514 2024
Benison Resource Co GA$35,843 Chairman, Ceo $4,500 $5,240 2023
Ccl Farm Conservation Inc SC$36,128 Director $9,663 $11,340 2024
Msc Foundation PA$20,230 President $36,531 $42,189 2023
Joshua Tree National Park Council For The Arts CA$20,152 Exec Director $8,400 $8,159 2024
Aleli Environmental PR$20,076 Presidente $2,645 $2,645 2023
Center For Sustainable Agricultural FL$19,529 President $60,000 $65,275 2023
Keep Rowlett Beautiful Inc TX$39,949 Exec. Director $17,325 $19,494 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 CA 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 default90th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)90th
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 (Paul Weghorst) 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 20 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (C), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $50,970 is reasonable (approximately the 90th 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.