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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Children's Advocacy Center Of Erie

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 330995418
PA · NTEE P99
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Michael Gaines, Executive Director / CEO ($71,813) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 192 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 58th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Michael Gaines — reported title “EXECUTIVE DI”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

192 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 192 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$758 total compensation of comparable organizations → $554,262 $71,813
$20,63110th
$38,98825th
$66,438Median
$86,67775th
$117,73490th
$71,813This org · 58th
p10$20,631
p25$38,988
p50$66,438
p75$86,677
p90$117,734
$71,813

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 PA 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
A Touch Of Understanding CA$461,630 Executive Dire $63,407 $56,526 2023
Lawrence Ltd MA$461,183 Vp $96,600 $89,618 2023
Stand In Peace International CA$459,834 Ceo $93,000 $82,907 2023
Compassionate Sharing Inc OK$464,459 Director $31,500 $35,809 2023
Kings Daughters Ministry NC$464,639 President Founder $12,000 $12,800 2023
Ignis Community Inc - Sunyang Hana TX$464,774 Us Operations Manager & Secretary $23,671 $23,744 2024
Payee Services Inc WI$457,007 President $2,463 $2,579 2024
Micronesia Climate Change Alliance Inc GU$456,651 Director Of Adminitrative Affairs $28,000 $28,827 2023
The Dawson Community Empowerment Corporation GA$466,722 President $18,000 $18,685 2023
United Steelworkers Union Local 13-12 LA$453,386 Business Manager $79,897 $88,221 2024
Project Sweet Peas RI$469,835 Executive Dir. $35,000 $33,654 2024
The Unforgettables Foundation CA$452,164 President & Ceo $84,072 $72,798 2024
Revive & Thrive Project MI$471,002 Executive Director $78,000 $80,732 2024
Hope Diamond Services Inc GA$472,606 Director $15,060 $15,633 2023
Ally S Wish Inc TX$450,435 President $112,000 $112,346 2024
Homeless Angels MI$472,709 Director $22,432 $23,218 2024
John Hobson Ministries Inc KY$473,480 President $88,200 $95,022 2024
Penfield Hope Inc NY$449,331 Secretary $41,310 $38,538 2023
Lend A Hand Foundation CA$473,847 Executive Dir. $62,330 $53,971 2024
City Lights Ministry NC$476,444 President $39,520 $42,157 2023
The River Center Family & Community NH$479,096 Executive Director $59,710 $55,287 2024
Loudoun Cares VA$443,401 Executive Di $72,333 $72,104 2023
Order Our Steps CA$479,696 Owner $80,000 $71,318 2023
Pennsylvania Head Start Association PA$480,077 Executive Di $97,728 $97,728 2024
Taunton Community Access & Media Inc MA$440,530 President $9,000 $8,110 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to PA 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 PA 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 default58th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)56th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted53rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted53rd

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 (Michael Gaines) 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 192 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (P99), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $71,813 is reasonable (approximately the 58th 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.