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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Yellowstone Theological Institute

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 461549605
MT · NTEE X20
FY ending 2024-07-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Rev Dr Jay Smith, Executive Director / CEO ($77,016) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 1055 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 74th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Rev Dr Jay Smith — reported title “President”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

1,055 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 1,055 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1 total compensation of comparable organizations → $268,361 $77,016
$13,67410th
$27,33025th
$50,004Median
$78,81375th
$107,30190th
$77,016This org · 74th
p10$13,674
p25$27,330
p50$50,004
p75$78,813
p90$107,301
$77,016

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 MT 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
The Barnabas Group-silicon Valley CA$303,958 Managing Partner $16,000 $12,817 2024
Msc Family Restoration Center CO$304,046 President/ Exec. Director $107,432 $95,566 2024
Worship Catalyst Inc FL$304,061 Executive Director $119,243 $106,989 2023
Christian Adventures International Inc FL$303,855 President Director $35,750 $31,156 2024
Bridge Of Blue Springs Inc MO$304,153 President $8,400 $8,254 2024
Falcos Children Africa Inc OK$303,773 President/treasurer $12,539 $13,187 2023
Theodyssey Group CA$303,665 President & Ceo $110,196 $85,999 2025
Open Door Ministries Of Mt Pleasant Inc SC$304,337 President $36,000 $34,841 2024
Redeeming Grace Ministries AL$304,446 Executive Di $20,917 $21,583 2023
One Lifeline Ministry Inc GA$304,469 President $63,539 $59,268 2024
Partners India International Inc OH$303,456 President $78,000 $76,641 2024
Overcoming Obstacles Ministries TX$303,267 President $74,500 $71,177 2023
Street Love Ministries Inc GA$304,741 Ceoboard Chair $29,167 $27,206 2024
Unpackin It Ministries Inc NC$305,093 President $145,504 $139,474 2024
Hidden Harvest International Inc FL$302,723 President $98,000 $91,534 2022
Life Pathway AK$302,407 President $68,000 $60,311 2024
Higher Ground Usa Inc GA$302,393 Executive Director $113,669 $109,160 2023
Pioneer Clubs IL$305,696 President $110,200 $100,506 2024
Young Living Stones TX$305,712 Executive Director $13,750 $13,137 2023
We Love Our City TX$302,276 Director $75,100 $71,750 2023
Behind The Wire Ministries Inc IN$302,244 President $20,400 $19,957 2024
Mission To Seafarers WA$302,189 Operations Director $75,721 $61,270 2025
Lighthouse Biblical Counseling KY$306,022 President $48,133 $47,973 2024
In The Streets-hands Uphighministry TX$306,260 Officer $22,333 $20,725 2024
Phare Warrior IN$301,626 Director $13,500 $13,207 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MT 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 MT 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 default74th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)69th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted81st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted73rd

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 (Rev Dr Jay Smith) 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 1055 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (X20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $77,016 is reasonable (approximately the 74th 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.