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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

A Forever-home Rescue Foundation Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 431977921
VA · NTEE D20
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Maria C Cline, Executive Director / CEO ($60,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 414 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 77th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

414 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 414 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,399 total compensation of comparable organizations → $158,332 $60,000
$9,82610th
$20,51425th
$38,442Median
$58,04075th
$75,82990th
$60,000This org · 77th
p10$9,826
p25$20,514
p50$38,442
p75$58,040
p90$75,829
$60,000

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 VA 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
Happy Tails Rescue Foundation MN$312,524 Director $51,750 $51,440 2024
Here Today Adopted Tomorrow Animal MA$313,379 Director $2,725 $2,464 2024
Releash Atlanta Inc GA$311,821 Operations Manager $13,526 $13,681 2024
Sullivan County Humane Society NH$313,933 Vice President $4,628 $4,299 2024
Humane Society Of Southern Illinoisspca Inc IL$314,265 Shelter Manager $23,970 $23,706 2024
Russell Rescue Inc TN$310,926 President $22,998 $24,318 2024
Canines With A Cause UT$309,181 Executive Di $84,984 $90,083 2023
Indigo Rescue Inc OR$316,578 Executive Dir. $69,018 $64,477 2024
Silicon Valley Pet Project CA$308,572 Ceo $45,198 $39,261 2024
Dharma Voices For Animals CA$308,479 President $67,550 $58,678 2024
The Long Way Home Inc TX$316,953 Executive Director $61,500 $63,715 2023
A New Chance Animal Rescue Inc NY$318,086 President $65,000 $59,086 2024
Cats Meow WA$307,110 Executive Director $66,184 $61,370 2023
United Friends Of Homeless Animals Inc NY$306,784 Manager $12,707 $11,892 2023
Mccook Humane Society Inc NE$306,770 Consultant $19,400 $21,610 2023
Thurston County Humane Society WA$318,563 Executive Director $68,863 $62,021 2024
Fur-angel Foundation HI$318,660 President $27,000 $25,036 2023
Aruba Flight Volunteers Inc NY$319,071 President $49,980 $46,775 2023
The Nancy A Shaw Foundation Inc GA$319,572 Executive Di $35,000 $36,448 2023
Kamins Farm Sanctuary IL$319,817 Executive Di $58,000 $57,361 2024
My Pit Bull Is Family MN$319,945 Executive Director $53,830 $55,088 2023
Misplaced Mutts NC$305,275 Executive Di $41,315 $42,945 2024
For The Love Of Primates OH$304,798 Executive Director $20,000 $21,309 2024
Breeder Release Adoption Service CO$320,681 Director $14,400 $14,301 2023
Friends Of Normie Rescue CA$321,126 Managing Dir. $2,885 $2,506 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to VA 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 VA 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 default77th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)77th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted77th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted76th

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 (Maria C Cline) 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 414 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $60,000 is reasonable (approximately the 77th 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.