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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Rochester Public Radio

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 411949121
MN · NTEE A34
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Todd Brakke, Executive Director / CEO ($44,788) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 28 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 39th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Todd Brakke — reported title “PRESIDENT”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

28 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 28 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,819 total compensation of comparable organizations → $168,439 $44,788
$21,76510th
$35,19425th
$54,472Median
$84,04075th
$98,36090th
$44,788This org · 39th
p10$21,765
p25$35,194
p50$54,472
p75$84,040
p90$98,360
$44,788

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
Pennsylvania Public Radio Associates Inc PA$237,168 President $95,040 $95,917 2024
American Coalition For Public Radio DC$232,882 Director And President $30,048 $26,685 2024
Friends Of Community Radio NC$243,221 Executive Director $60,000 $62,742 2024
Tri-cities Broadcasting Foundation MI$231,020 President $93,220 $97,376 2024
Chicago Independent Radio Project IL$227,292 Executive Dir. $84,131 $83,706 2024
Kfug Community Radio Inc CA$250,385 Board Member $40,640 $35,515 2024
Spencer Cable Access Corporation MA$219,617 Treasurer $2,000 $1,819 2024
Southern Communication Volunteers Inc TN$215,690 Station Manager $38,242 $40,681 2024
Radio Salvacion Inc PA$212,434 Former Board Member $34,848 $36,208 2023
Wayword Inc CA$263,967 Ceo/officer $54,436 $47,571 2024
Mje Broadcasting Inc TN$264,501 President $142,986 $152,106 2024
Terminal Radio Inc AK$208,046 Director Of $60,500 $58,537 2024
Radio For The Blind & Print Handicapped LA$271,454 Executive Dir. $47,500 $52,933 2024
Open Source Media Inc MA$197,246 President & Director $73,462 $66,808 2024
Rise Up CO$196,473 Founding Director $168,594 $168,439 2023
Radio Eye Inc KY$181,296 Exec. Director $66,478 $74,416 2023
J C Maxwell Broadcasting Corporatio MS$294,860 General Manager $33,251 $38,586 2023
Christian Media Inc NE$300,084 General Director $49,044 $54,961 2023
Driftless Community Radio Inc WI$164,962 Treasurer $14,560 $15,389 2024
Poor People's Radio Inc CA$162,314 Treasurer $60,000 $53,982 2023
Harvest Broadcasting Company Inc CA$312,976 Member At Large $37,389 $32,674 2024
Womens Civic Improvement League OR$160,411 Executive Director $24,327 $22,863 2024
Kekahu Foundation Inc Dba Kkcr HI$320,448 General Manager $37,778 $34,230 2024
International Media Project CA$325,761 Executive Director $101,554 $88,747 2024
Sunrise Communications Inc NE$332,983 General Mana $57,348 $62,423 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 default39th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)39th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted39th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted36th

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 (Todd Brakke) 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 28 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A34), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $44,788 is reasonable (approximately the 39th 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.