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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Ventura County Legal Aid Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 431956297
CA · NTEE I80
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Paul Bujold, Executive Director / CEO ($70,050) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 96 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 25th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Paul Bujold — reported title “Director”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

96 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 96 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,416 total compensation of comparable organizations → $471,140 $70,050
$43,79610th
$70,43825th
$96,622Median
$119,08275th
$150,67990th
$70,050This org · 25th
p10$43,796
p25$70,438
p50$96,622
p75$119,082
p90$150,679
$70,050

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 CA 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
Legal Assistance Center MI$406,111 Executive Di $100,570 $120,214 2024
People With Disabilities Foundation CA$409,253 President & $91,826 $94,538 2023
West Florida Center For Trafficking Advocacy Inc FL$391,812 Director $94,765 $103,097 2024
Volunteer Lawyer Program Of Northeast IN$409,557 Executive Dir. $84,500 $103,196 2024
Neighborhood Legal Support Of Kansas City MO$390,055 Executive Director $98,099 $120,326 2024
Court Appointed Special Advocates TX$387,568 Executive Di $66,867 $77,461 2024
Miracle Of Innocence Inc KS$413,890 President $45,000 $56,300 2024
Oklahoma Access To Justice Foundation OK$387,073 Executive Director $78,869 $100,574 2024
Legal Works Inc OH$385,248 Non Voting M $94,000 $118,705 2023
A Legacy Of Equality Leadership And Organizing WA$415,878 Executive Director $84,075 $87,172 2024
The Association Of The Federal Bar Of The State Of New Jersey NJ$384,805 Executive Director $64,700 $65,174 2025
Inner Banks Legal Services NC$417,113 Excutive Dir $61,439 $73,518 2024
Gallia County Defense Attorney Corp OH$420,000 President $122,959 $150,819 2024
The Liberty Initiative Inc AR$424,640 Executive Di $47,800 $62,223 2024
Arizona Senior Citizens AZ$424,724 Interim Dire $103,514 $115,289 2024
Financial Protection Law Center NC$370,385 President/e.d. $122,197 $150,539 2023
Iron Defense MI$367,750 Executive Director $106,570 $127,386 2024
National Veterans Benefits Attorneys Inc FL$365,619 Executive Director $48,750 $54,603 2023
Choosing Justice Initiative TN$436,697 President $101,093 $123,060 2024
Annapolis Immigration Justice Network Inc MD$437,410 Executive Director From June 2023 $52,613 $58,646 2023
Childrens Advocacy Center Of West Texas Inc TX$363,194 Exec Director $66,458 $76,987 2024
Monroe County Senior Legal Services MI$363,058 Executive Director $69,884 $83,534 2024
Voices For Children Inc MD$438,297 Executive Director $84,342 $88,963 2025
Pro Bono Organization For Native HI$362,223 Executive Di $80,000 $82,947 2024
Self Help Inc NM$358,462 Executive Dir. $60,320 $77,353 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 CA 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 default25th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)33rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted26th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted22nd

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 (Paul Bujold) 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 96 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (I80), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $70,050 is reasonable (approximately the 25th 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.