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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Association Of Iowa Fairs Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 420690241
IA · NTEE S41
FY ending 2025-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Thomas V Barnes, Executive Director / CEO ($13,500) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 411 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 12th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

411 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 411 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1 total compensation of comparable organizations → $262,047 $13,500
$11,33310th
$35,53225th
$59,078Median
$81,58475th
$115,14790th
$13,500This org · 12th
p10$11,333
p25$35,532
p50$59,078
p75$81,584
p90$115,147
$13,500

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 IA 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
Downtown Las Vegas Alliance NV$209,890 Executive Di $110,000 $103,365 2024
Unitedc3 Inc TX$209,835 Co-executive Director $63,450 $61,258 2023
Dickinson Area Economic Development MI$209,927 Executive Director $107,194 $103,723 2024
Bath-brunswick Regional Chamber ME$210,199 Executive Di $88,500 $83,077 2024
Reflective Insulation Manufacturers Assn VA$210,409 Executive Direc $84,000 $78,279 2023
Black Business Association Of La CA$210,410 President $49,500 $41,253 2023
Mountain Counties Water CA$209,216 Executive Dir. $102,000 $85,007 2023
Professional Bail Agents Assn Of Ms MS$210,582 Executive Di $48,675 $50,821 2024
Alafave Inc TX$209,157 Executive Director $54,000 $50,639 2024
Rosemont Illinois Chamber Of IL$208,577 Executive Di $81,326 $74,953 2024
Michigan Association Of Airport MI$211,414 Executive Di $40,500 $39,189 2024
Elkhart Lake Chamber Of Commerce WI$212,172 Exec Direct $54,594 $53,450 2024
Apparel Industry Board Inc IL$207,450 Exec Director $41,667 $39,536 2023
Society For Cardiovascular Angiography DC$207,107 Chief Executive Officer $64,914 $54,979 2023
Fishermans Wharf Association CA$206,829 President & Ceo $12,000 $9,714 2024
Sonoma Alliance For Vineyards And CA$212,922 Executive Dir. $86,996 $72,503 2023
Oakland Vietnamese Chamber Of Commerce CA$206,602 Executive Director $75,000 $60,712 2024
Storm Lake United IA$213,673 Executive Di $33,350 $34,232 2024
Birch Bay Chamber Of Commerce WA$213,931 Executive Director $43,290 $37,407 2023
Medical Staff Of Research MO$205,781 President $20,000 $20,445 2023
Americans For Food And Beverage Choice DC$205,591 Principal Officer $158,319 $130,241 2024
Wall & Ceiling Industry Advancement Fund MO$205,355 Executive Director $36,684 $37,500 2023
Platte Chamber Of Commerce Inc SD$214,573 Executive Director $53,169 $55,010 2024
Moorhead Business Association Inc MN$214,949 Executive Director $74,380 $70,934 2023
Des Moines Downtown Chamber Of Commerce IA$204,780 Executive Director $28,700 $30,330 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to IA cost of living and 2025 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 IA 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 default12th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)10th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted15th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted11th

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 (Thomas V Barnes) 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 411 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (S41), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $13,500 is reasonable (approximately the 12th 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.