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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Aqus Community Foundation

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 472940838
CA · NTEE S20
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of John Crowley, Executive Director / CEO ($36,667) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 138 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

How comparable organizations were selected

138 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 138 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,288 total compensation of comparable organizations → $182,626 $36,667
$13,27510th
$33,66525th
$55,992Median
$83,31675th
$107,42890th
$36,667This org · 27th
p10$13,275
p25$33,665
p50$55,992
p75$83,316
p90$107,428
$36,667

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.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
The Advance Community Outreach Center IncFL $152,939$3,730 990
Racine Revitalization Partnership IncWI $151,925$89,554 990
Desour Valley Edc IncND $151,738$6,354 990
ServeriePA $151,244$106,080 990
Main Street Greenwood IncMS $154,618$51,783 990
Keep Ohio Beautiful IncOH $150,982$86,419 990
For Good PghPA $154,812$50,478 990
The Good Deed ProjectNV $155,782$44,595 990
Florida Alliance For Community Solutions IncFL $155,796$49,461 990
Peacedale Global Arts IncNY $157,222$31,476 990
Alamogordo Main StreetNM $157,250$57,313 990
Community Foundation Of Grant CountyIN $148,126$61,114 990
Action Baybrook IncMD $147,421$15,350 990
Main Street Martinsburg IncWV $160,986$81,971 990
Central Florida Utility & Transport Contractors Association IncFL $144,559$39,838 990
Acres Home Chamber For Business AndTX $161,208$27,802 990
Wilmington Works IncVT $161,614$48,174 990
Sac Economic & Tourism DevelopmentIA $161,772$80,519 990
The Greater Beloit Economic DevelopmentWI $161,789$47,334 990
Brewery District Community Urban Redeveloment CorporationOH $162,110$75,487 990
Abayomi Community DevelopmentMI $162,260$69,663 990
Worldnets Synergy Foundation IPR $143,000$83,589 990
Cambridge Main Street IncMD $164,326$70,777 990
Willow Apts Group Home IncKY $164,382$70,117 990
Downtown Natchez AllianceMS $164,494$49,594 990

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 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 default27th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)30th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted31st
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted24th

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 (John Crowley) 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 138 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (S20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $36,667 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). 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.