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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Be Frank Foundation

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 464204601
CO · NTEE A25
FY ending 2023-08-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Lech Usinowicz, Executive Director / CEO ($69,420) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 140 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 79th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Lech Usinowicz — reported title “MANAGING DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

140 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 140 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$155 total compensation of comparable organizations → $139,147 $69,420
$9,86710th
$25,67925th
$46,310Median
$64,81575th
$79,24990th
$69,420This org · 79th
p10$9,867
p25$25,679
p50$46,310
p75$64,815
p90$79,249
$69,420

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 CO 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
Emerald Coast Honors Orchestra Foundation Inc FL$256,242 Secretary $3,900 $3,821 2023
Bob Mizer Foundation CA$256,316 President $48,800 $42,685 2024
Belvedere Series VA$254,087 Artistic Director $33,000 $31,444 2025
The Institute For Art And Olfaction CA$257,075 Executive Director $43,650 $39,308 2023
Miano Academy Of Art Inc FL$257,897 President Non Voting Member $68,771 $65,443 2024
Borealis Art Guild MN$259,168 Director $8,000 $8,244 2023
Kalamazoo Book Arts Center MI$251,216 Director $40,000 $40,744 2025
The Peacock Players Inc NH$250,630 Executive Di $61,154 $57,200 2024
Photography Without Borders Inc PA$260,386 Executive Di $83,559 $86,901 2023
Greenwich Art Society Inc CT$260,507 President, Managing Direct $56,260 $53,434 2024
Active Cultures CA$249,844 Executive Director $74,250 $64,946 2024
Utah Youth Symphony Orchestra Assoc UT$260,676 Board Chair $3,290 $3,512 2023
Hunakai Studio Of Fine Arts Inc MA$261,687 President $64,649 $60,586 2023
Art Access UT$248,757 Executive Director $72,081 $74,730 2024
Girls Rock Charlotte NC$248,411 Executive Dir. $30,630 $33,006 2023
Southwest Music Education Association CA$262,512 President $6,000 $5,113 2025
North Fourth Art Center NM$247,942 Executive Dir. $67,964 $76,234 2023
Academy Of Music Outreach CA$265,455 Executive Director $84,000 $75,645 2023
Professional Artistic Research Projects OH$265,853 Executive Director $42,000 $45,061 2024
Compass Arts Creativity Project Inc NY$244,567 Executive Director, Secretary $56,109 $51,359 2024
Mountain Time Arts MT$266,610 Executive Dir. $86,068 $96,755 2023
Stemarts Lab NM$243,395 Executive Di $37,507 $40,864 2024
Chris Babcock Art Prep CA$267,281 President $64,835 $56,711 2024
Advocacy For The Visual Arts Inc WY$268,504 Executive Di $58,000 $64,771 2023
Center For Visual Artists Greensboro Inc NC$269,043 Director Of Operations $35,750 $37,418 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CO 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 CO 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 default79th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)79th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted79th
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 (Lech Usinowicz) 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 140 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A25), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $69,420 is reasonable (approximately the 79th 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.