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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Model Alliance Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 471601890
NY · NTEE J01
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Sara Ziff, Executive Director / CEO ($97,647) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 438 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 76th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

How comparable organizations were selected

438 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 438 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$30 total compensation of comparable organizations → $599,754 $97,647
$9,85310th
$26,39625th
$66,721Median
$96,78775th
$133,47990th
$97,647This org · 76th
p10$9,853
p25$26,396
p50$66,721
p75$96,787
p90$133,479
$97,647

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 NY cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
Local 470 Apprenticeship FundSC $346,177$68,934 990
Youths Unleashed CorpFL $347,605$45,440 990
Brewster Teachers AssociationNY $347,711$11,639 990
Southeast Keller CorporationTX $348,053$106,036 990
Sheet Metal Contracting IndustryPA $348,144$82,017 990
Suttons Support Services IncFL $344,964$86,337 990
International Hartford LtdCT $344,420$85,666 990
Jewish Labor CommitteeNY $344,292$75,000 990
Torrance Fire Fighters AssociationCA $349,127$6,682 990
Oakwood Arts IncVA $342,805$56,616 990
Bricklayers Local 1 Md Va & DcMD $351,202$39,484 990
Tech Frederick IncMD $341,979$114,588 990
Retail Wholesale Dc UfcwMI $340,811$80,292 990
Automotive Mentoring Group IncIL $340,495$100,079 990
Western Pennsylvania ApprenticeshipPA $340,147$78,499 990
Selfhelp FoundationIL $353,464$533 990
Long Island Jobs With Justice IncNY $339,645$73,962 990
Timberline Adult Day ServicesCO $339,071$89,316 990
Union Independiente De Empleados Telefonicos De P R IncPR $338,842$24,399 990
Hands On Employment Services IncFL $354,814$39,925 990
American Postal Workers Union 2577NY $337,706$55,333 990
United Brotherhood Of Carpenters &TN $337,605$484 990
Laborers Agc Apprenticeship Training &WA $337,413$74,783 990
Southern California Association OfCA $337,118$75,825 990
Cyber Proud IncCA $356,846$56,755 990

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 NY 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 default76th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)79th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted71st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted69th

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 (Sara Ziff) 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 438 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (J), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $97,647 is reasonable (approximately the 76th 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). 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.