Live preview — download the board-ready PDF to attach to your minutes.Download the free PDF
Email yourself a copy:
PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Mesabi Humane Society

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 411341552
MN · NTEE D20
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Deb Andrews, Executive Director / CEO ($24,700) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 394 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 32nd percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

394 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 394 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,407 total compensation of comparable organizations → $159,286 $24,700
$9,55710th
$20,62425th
$37,507Median
$56,07275th
$73,39690th
$24,700This org · 32nd
p10$9,557
p25$20,624
p50$37,507
p75$56,072
p90$73,396
$24,700

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 MN 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
Tried By Fire Inc NC$292,938 Executive Director $21,735 $23,400 2023
Kitkat Playroom Inc NJ$291,928 Executive Director $11,000 $9,939 2024
Kitty Angel Rescue Inc GA$291,735 Director $55,000 $57,620 2023
Second Chance Ranch WA$291,056 President $8,585 $7,779 2024
Marshall County Humane Society Inc IN$294,054 Executive Director $56,788 $62,396 2023
Bird Ally X CA$294,077 Director $10,000 $8,997 2023
Laramie Peak Humane Society WY$288,502 Executive Director $52,539 $55,469 2025
East Coast Canine Rescue Inc CT$288,106 President $18,000 $17,585 2023
Best Friends Animal Rescue AK$297,024 President Founder $4,500 $4,483 2023
Bark About It Rescue PA$297,464 President $22,700 $22,910 2024
Almost Home Animal Rescue & Adoption Inc NY$297,472 Shelter Manager/director $28,155 $25,748 2024
Woof Gang Rescue Inc WI$287,325 Exec Dir/pre $35,000 $36,992 2024
Lamancha PA$297,632 Director $60,000 $60,554 2024
Twin Cities Pet Rescue MN$286,893 Executive Director $32,000 $32,000 2024
Vermont Companion Animal Neutering Inc VT$286,892 President $70,000 $73,411 2023
Josh And His Critters CA$298,046 President $70,000 $62,979 2023
4 Paws On Deck Inc CT$286,699 President $52,258 $51,052 2023
Paws With Possibilities Pet Rescue MO$298,281 President $17,654 $18,923 2024
Second Chance Spca TX$286,402 Director Of Operations $43,400 $45,234 2023
Showing Animals Respect & Kindness Inc IL$298,523 Vp And Secretary $80,000 $81,947 2023
Barking Lot CA$286,118 Director $15,000 $13,495 2023
Gsd Rescue Indy Inc IN$299,479 President $11,450 $12,220 2024
Pigs Peace Sanctuary WA$285,356 President $28,800 $26,095 2024
Ollies Angels Animal Rescue Inc NY$285,326 Founder/president $43,295 $40,763 2023
All About Elephantsinc FL$285,172 Director $8,050 $7,653 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MN 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 MN 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 default32nd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)34th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted33rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted32nd

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 (Deb Andrews) 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 394 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $24,700 is reasonable (approximately the 32nd 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.