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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Georgia Canine Rescue And

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 421734842
GA · NTEE D20
FY ending 2024-08-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Heather Zaresky, Executive Director / CEO ($17,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 422 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 17th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

422 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 422 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$705 total compensation of comparable organizations → $346,424 $17,000
$10,70310th
$23,94825th
$44,067Median
$60,72375th
$79,40990th
$17,000This org · 17th
p10$10,703
p25$23,948
p50$44,067
p75$60,723
p90$79,409
$17,000

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 GA 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
Illinois Valley Animal Rescue IL$414,708 Executive Dir. $15,640 $15,292 2024
Animal Food Bank Services PA$414,647 Executive Director $53,619 $53,179 2024
Humane Society Of Wichita County TX$413,080 Executive Dir. $61,624 $61,307 2024
Roscoe Animal Retreat IL$412,847 Secretary $23,107 $23,261 2023
Stephens County Humane Society OK$418,092 Executive Director $61,500 $65,615 2025
Heart Of Phoenix Equine Rescue Inc WV$418,666 Secretary $9,000 $9,692 2024
Family Dogs New Life Shelter OR$418,681 President $53,754 $51,113 2023
Trio Animal Foundation IL$419,671 President/di $103,600 $101,295 2024
Southern Arizona Animal Food Bank AZ$419,782 Secretary $11,093 $10,610 2024
Determined To Rise Animal Foundation IL$410,735 Executive Director $18,000 $18,120 2023
Friends Forever Animal Rescue NY$420,623 964 Auburn St, Hannibal Ny 13074 $90,610 $81,431 2024
Pickens County Humane Society SC$420,687 Executive Director $48,576 $50,400 2024
Alamo Animal Encounters TX$421,016 President $59,500 $60,942 2023
Humane Society Of Clinton County IN$409,596 Executive Di $48,263 $50,619 2024
Dubois County Humane Society IN$421,080 Executive Director $25,395 $27,421 2023
Canine Inspired Change MN$409,154 Executive Director $53,000 $53,622 2023
Eastern Pa Animal Alliance PA$421,575 President $104,000 $103,147 2024
Two Pups Wellness Fund AZ$408,975 Secretary $42,000 $40,172 2024
Marion Animal Resource Connect TN$421,872 Manager $62,400 $65,233 2024
Arkansans For Animals Inc AR$422,270 Executive Director $59,615 $66,645 2024
Toledo Animal Shelter Association OH$422,702 Executive Director $65,308 $68,794 2024
Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation WA$407,890 Director Of Development $106,364 $97,507 2023
Luv2howl Animal Rescue NJ$422,847 President $14,000 $12,799 2023
Rockbridge County Spca VA$423,103 Executive Director $49,534 $47,566 2024
Dodge County Humane Society Inc WI$423,409 Executive Director $31,200 $33,364 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to GA 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 GA 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 default17th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)17th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted17th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted16th

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 (Heather Zaresky) 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 422 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $17,000 is reasonable (approximately the 17th 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.