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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Monticello Christian Social Services Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 411668149
MN · NTEE P20Z
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Mary Gardner, Executive Director / CEO ($63,240) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 25 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 44th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Mary Gardner — reported title “Executive Dir.”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

25 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 25 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$5,051 total compensation of comparable organizations → $98,065 $63,240
$20,43610th
$51,08925th
$66,778Median
$83,16375th
$93,97090th
$63,240This org · 44th
p10$20,436
p25$51,089
p50$66,778
p75$83,163
p90$93,970
$63,240

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
Love Inc - Heartland MN$460,269 Executive Di $74,119 $71,993 2024
Minnesota Youth Ski League MN$426,240 Executive Director $69,054 $67,073 2024
Elevate Hope House MN$424,123 President Fo $10,000 $9,463 2025
Ebenezer Ridge Point Apartments Inc MN$419,868 President, End 9-2024 $70,974 $68,938 2024
Southwest Options For Women MN$488,826 Executive Director $100,962 $98,065 2024
Oasis Central Minnesota Inc MN$492,322 Executive Director $46,184 $44,859 2024
Brothers Empowered MN$410,701 Executive Director And Board Chair $65,000 $65,000 2023
Leonardo's Basement MN$403,541 Co-executive Director $68,750 $66,778 2024
Settled Incorporated MN$506,185 Ceo $54,900 $54,900 2023
Mending The Sacred Hoop MN$513,458 Executive Director $93,205 $90,531 2024
The Organization Of Liberians In Minnesota MN$513,606 Executive Director $57,081 $55,443 2024
Aitkin County Care Inc MN$384,563 Executive Di $52,598 $51,089 2024
The Man Up Club MN$375,696 Executive Dir. $40,000 $38,852 2024
Innovative Soulutions MN$357,353 Executive Director $36,400 $35,356 2024
Breakthrough Ministries Inc MN$356,206 President & Ceo $72,000 $72,000 2023
Nursing Heart Inc MN$334,147 Executive Director $70,000 $67,992 2024
Lakes Life Care Center Inc MN$317,595 Director $10,800 $10,490 2024
Atlas Of Rock County MN$316,230 Director $53,166 $53,166 2023
Ayada Leads MN$592,402 Executive Director $97,709 $94,906 2024
Common Cup Ministry Inc MN$309,122 Executive Di $60,500 $60,500 2023
Trust Inc MN$597,743 Executive Di $96,048 $93,292 2024
Irreducible Grace Foundation MN$607,944 Executive Director $97,211 $94,422 2024
Kicking Bear Foundation MN$613,927 President $85,619 $83,163 2024
Minnesota Hockey District 8 Inc MN$652,138 District Director Coordinator $5,200 $5,051 2024
Douglas County Car Care Program MN$664,413 Executive Director $84,484 $84,484 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MN 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 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 default44th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)44th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted48th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted44th

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 (Mary Gardner) 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 25 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (P20) + MN + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $63,240 is reasonable (approximately the 44th 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.