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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Atlantean Gardens

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 465098741
CA · NTEE V21
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Robert Sepehr, Executive Director / CEO ($21,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 29 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 21st percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

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

How comparable organizations were selected

29 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 29 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,000 total compensation of comparable organizations → $185,684 $21,000
$8,74810th
$21,80025th
$51,804Median
$80,51075th
$116,99990th
$21,000This org · 21st
p10$8,748
p25$21,800
p50$51,804
p75$80,510
p90$116,999
$21,000

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 CA 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 Lincoln Institute Of Public PA$172,988 Chairman $82,900 $95,739 2024
American Federation Of Astrologers Inc AZ$163,230 Executive Secretary $48,582 $54,108 2024
Upaya Organization For CO$155,927 Director/pre $30,950 $34,369 2024
Texas Council For The Social Studies TX$184,601 Director Of Publications $4,500 $5,367 2023
Cg Jung Study Center CA$186,683 President $21,800 $21,800 2024
Association For Safe International Road MD$189,415 Executive Director $24,240 $25,568 2025
Institute For Patent Studies Inc NY$148,207 President $109,967 $115,077 2024
Goodwill Industries Big Bend Foundation FL$192,038 Ceo $21,793 $23,709 2024
Peace Creations CA$193,417 Executive Director $78,200 $80,510 2023
Law And Civics Reading And Writing Institute IL$200,000 President/admin Dir $17,533 $21,394 2022
Virginia Civics Education Inc VA$200,542 Co-executive Director $45,000 $51,804 2023
Functional Behavior Interventions VA$137,082 Executive Di $63,086 $72,624 2023
Community Alliance For Global Justice WA$201,882 Executive Director $62,610 $66,833 2023
The Beautywell Project MN$131,188 Executive Director $85,134 $100,298 2023
The National Institute For Play CA$210,919 Officer $30,000 $30,000 2024
Jeannette Rankin Peace Resource Ctr MT$213,886 Executive Di $51,044 $65,603 2023
Foundation Of The Energy Law Journal DC$122,322 Chief Executive Officer $20,492 $20,825 2024
Paramount Health Data Project Inc IN$222,000 Ceo, Vice Chair $131,400 $165,213 2023
Senior Resources Of Freeborn County MN$224,325 Ex. Director $54,704 $64,447 2023
Mcdevitt Research Initiatives Inc NC$225,758 Director $26,625 $31,039 2025
Seminar On The Acquistion Of Latin NY$227,045 Co-exec Dire $9,167 $9,593 2024
New Jersey Center For Civic And NJ$228,972 President $68,167 $70,483 2024
Society For Neuroeconomics $232,120 Director $1,000 $1,000 2024
Georgia Council For Social Sciences GA$234,171 Executive Director $12,000 $13,973 2024
Massachusetts Institute For MA$234,189 Director Of Admin & Commun $84,000 $87,416 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 CA 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 default21st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)24th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted24th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted17th

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 (Robert Sepehr) 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 29 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (V), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $21,000 is reasonable (approximately the 21st 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.