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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Iowa Citizens For Community Improvement

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 453279620
IA · NTEE K05
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Elisabeth Whelan, Executive Director / CEO ($18,703) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 415 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 18th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Elisabeth Whelan — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

415 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 415 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$11 total compensation of comparable organizations → $423,277 $18,703
$10,32710th
$27,97725th
$47,031Median
$66,58275th
$87,98390th
$18,703This org · 18th
p10$10,327
p25$27,977
p50$47,031
p75$66,582
p90$87,983
$18,703

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
South Corvallis Food Bank OR$388,150 Exectutive Director $33,959 $28,802 2024
Charity Series Of Poker NV$388,171 President $67,333 $63,462 2023
East Farm Commercial Fisheries RI$388,202 Executive Director $102,500 $92,415 2023
Mozell Sanders Foundation Inc IN$388,022 Ceo Director $18,500 $17,818 2024
Beef Bank Colorado Inc CO$388,431 Secretary $65,000 $56,923 2024
North American Vegetarian Society NY$389,680 President And Treasurer $50,800 $41,924 2024
Cleveland Park Village Inc DC$390,013 Executive Director $97,353 $78,023 2024
Wells For Life KS$390,266 Key Employee $66,000 $67,043 2023
Harvest Seed Project Foundation TX$390,355 Secretary $11,548 $10,550 2024
Meals Of Virginia Beach Inc VA$385,915 Executive Di $50,900 $44,885 2024
Livingston County Farm Bureau IL$390,754 Manager $99,955 $87,434 2025
Fresh Rx Inc FL$391,890 Secretary $4,590 $3,938 2024
Village Project OH$383,922 Executive Director $58,195 $56,293 2024
Valley Meals And More CO$392,440 Executive Director $65,270 $58,848 2023
Porch-hillsborough NC$383,696 Director $15,280 $14,845 2023
Fundamental Needs CO$383,569 Executive Director $37,170 $33,513 2023
Pine County Agricultural Society MN$383,025 President $1,200 $1,055 2025
Jk Community Farm VA$382,989 Executive Dir. $84,000 $74,073 2024
Farm To Table Buy Local PA$382,446 Executive Director $40,000 $36,431 2024
Gypsy Vanner Horse Society AL$382,298 Treasurer $41,000 $40,453 2024
Bushels Of Blessings NJ$382,269 Executive Director $15,217 $12,408 2024
Associated Water Users Of The Uinta And UT$394,923 River Commissioner $73,000 $68,236 2024
Grow Portland OR$381,184 Executive Di $38,834 $32,937 2024
Hardwick Area Food Pantry Inc VT$380,838 Executive Director $16,566 $15,228 2024
Lawrence Meals On Wheels Inc KS$380,378 Executive Di $54,457 $53,731 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to IA 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 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 default18th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)17th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted20th
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 (Elisabeth Whelan) 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 415 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (K), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $18,703 is reasonable (approximately the 18th 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.