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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Ecological Insights

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 462111011
ND · NTEE K01
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Rebecca Phillips, Executive Director / CEO ($49,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 15 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 27th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Rebecca Phillips — reported title “EXECUTIVE DI”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

15 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 15 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$28,771 total compensation of comparable organizations → $140,610 $49,000
$44,55510th
$50,62525th
$59,199Median
$76,85075th
$89,13590th
$49,000This org · 27th
p10$44,555
p25$50,625
p50$59,199
p75$76,850
p90$89,135
$49,000

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 ND 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
Food Equality Initiative Inc KS$347,856 Ceo $90,000 $91,217 2023
Oregon Community Food System Network OR$342,656 Executive Dir. $72,438 $61,299 2024
Rail Yards Market NM$335,880 Executive Director $52,000 $52,470 2023
Triple Helix Institute For Agriculture NY$312,435 Executive Director $57,539 $48,779 2023
Renewable Farms CA$307,437 Ceo $73,077 $59,199 2023
Hunters Sharing The Harvest Inc PA$400,706 Executive Di $88,949 $80,830 2024
National Organic Coalition Inc MA$408,748 Executive Di $86,436 $72,869 2023
The Berry Good Food Foundation Inc CA$412,149 Board Member $36,565 $28,771 2024
New Orleans Food Policy Advisory Committee LA$417,093 Director $83,261 $86,011 2023
Food For The Spirit Inc NY$272,637 Executive Director $65,769 $54,156 2024
Indiana Agricultural Law Foundation Inc IN$264,055 President $45,552 $45,066 2023
Mission Marshall Inc TX$440,355 Executive Dir. $47,115 $44,215 2023
Freedmen Heirs Foundation Inc MD$463,088 Executive Dir. $165,050 $140,610 2024
Food Exploration And Discovery CA$463,277 President $87,580 $68,913 2024
Nc Ag Partnership Inc NC$501,265 Chairman $60,000 $58,162 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to ND 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 ND 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 default27th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)20th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted33rd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted20th

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 (Rebecca Phillips) 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 15 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (K01), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $49,000 is reasonable (approximately the 27th 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.