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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Water Underground

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 471938005
CA · NTEE Q19
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Justin Arana, Executive Director / CEO ($46,250) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 613 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 43rd percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Justin Arana — reported title “Founder CEO Director”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

613 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 613 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$775 total compensation of comparable organizations → $294,010 $46,250
$12,13110th
$28,42425th
$55,313Median
$86,98775th
$119,88190th
$46,250This org · 43rd
p10$12,131
p25$28,424
p50$55,313
p75$86,987
p90$119,881
$46,250

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
Grow Ahead Foundation OR$293,206 Executive Director Board Pre $21,000 $23,251 2023
Interfaith Peace Builders DC$293,845 Managing Director (Thru 11/22) $78,218 $81,836 2023
Mobilization Resources AL$292,269 Executive Director $22,000 $27,524 2024
Friends Of The Congo DC$291,634 Executive Director $8,000 $8,370 2023
American Institute For Indonesian Studies NY$294,662 Executive Director $62,000 $66,797 2023
West African Mercy Ministries Inc WI$291,476 Executive Director $76,579 $92,619 2024
Gulf Coast Citizen Diplomacy Council Inc FL$291,084 Executive Director $70,965 $77,204 2024
Ceiba Vida International Inc TN$295,550 School Proprietor $27,090 $33,950 2023
Equitarian Initiative MN$290,595 Executive Director $78,600 $89,943 2024
Hope On A String MA$295,811 Executive Director $71,135 $76,214 2023
Sanitation And Health Rights In India LA$295,850 Founding Dir. $48,500 $61,847 2024
Adventure Travel Conservation Fund WA$289,855 Executive Dir. $91,539 $94,911 2024
Gc Ministries Inc NC$289,428 Officer $56,000 $68,989 2023
Catalyst Ministries TX$297,395 Executive Dir. $56,261 $65,175 2024
Campaign For Human Rights Inc NY$297,928 Executive Dir. $224,053 $234,464 2024
Ecf International CA$297,935 President/ceo $94,143 $94,143 2024
Center For Global Strategies Ltd SC$298,414 Executive Director $60,000 $72,489 2024
American Friends Of Peer Hatalmud Inc NY$298,626 Director $15,000 $16,161 2023
Epic Foundation Inc NY$299,012 Assistant Treasurer & Assistant Cfo $3,912 $4,094 2024
Rise Together International Inc NC$299,336 President $16,200 $19,958 2023
Vera Aqua Vera Vita TX$286,608 Executive Director $90,500 $104,838 2024
Native Future ME$286,586 President $62,500 $72,477 2024
Big Picture Soccer PA$299,633 Executive Director $70,000 $83,229 2023
Nuclear Truth Project Inc NY$286,557 Secretary And Co-coordinator $24,000 $25,115 2024
Middle East Policy Council DC$286,336 Executive Director $160,000 $167,402 2023

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 default43rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)48th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted46th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted41st

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 (Justin Arana) 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 613 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (Q), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $46,250 is reasonable (approximately the 43rd 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.