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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Childrens Theatre Of Houston

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 760392202
TX · NTEE A65Z
FY ending 2024-07-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Timothy Fried-fiori, Executive Director / CEO ($44,584) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 136 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

Benchmarked executive: Timothy Fried-fiori — reported title “Officer”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

136 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 136 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$350 total compensation of comparable organizations → $118,034 $44,584
$3,72010th
$10,73325th
$23,774Median
$43,08675th
$56,20290th
$44,584This org · 76th
p10$3,720
p25$10,733
p50$23,774
p75$43,086
p90$56,202
$44,584

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 TX 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
My Nose Turns Red Theatre Company KY$167,457 Executive Director $43,720 $46,957 2024
Lucky Plush Productions IL$170,279 Secretary $3,443 $3,296 2025
Calliope Productions Incorporated MA$163,408 President $15,000 $13,873 2023
Ohlook Performing Arts Center Inc TX$173,927 Educational And Creative Director $36,000 $36,000 2024
Bay Area Theatresports CA$160,135 Executive Dir. $69,401 $59,909 2024
Whidbey Childrens Theater WA$174,519 Executive Director $37,000 $34,094 2023
Marva Theater Performing Arts Center Inc MD$175,093 Theater Manager $21,333 $20,527 2023
Grateful Crane Ensemble Inc CA$159,290 Exec Director $47,616 $41,104 2024
Oak Park River Forest Civic Theatre IL$175,886 Managing Director $28,501 $28,011 2024
Quincy Music Theatre Inc FL$158,540 Executive Di $12,606 $12,188 2023
Island Stage Left WA$157,842 Executive Di $49,666 $45,765 2023
The Nola Project Inc LA$176,949 Executive Director $8,177 $9,001 2024
Dunes Art Foundation Inc IN$176,991 Managing Dir $2,000 $2,108 2024
Iron Crow Theatre Company Inc MD$177,985 Director $3,620 $3,296 2025
Orange Park Community Theatre Inc FL$178,121 President $900 $845 2024
Pax Amicus Foundation NJ$155,661 President $12,000 $10,711 2024
Stage Left Theater Association WA$155,129 Managing Director $12,000 $10,740 2024
State Theatre Company TX$179,853 Secretary/ceo $9,664 $9,664 2024
Jion Academy CA$180,108 President $9,900 $8,546 2024
Heartwood Regional Theater Company ME$181,076 Executive Director $55,000 $53,637 2025
Knights Of Indulgence Theatre United Sta CA$153,332 Executive Dir. $42,000 $36,256 2024
Enchantment Theatre Company PA$152,282 Director $39,200 $39,079 2024
Milwaukee Ballet Orchestra Inc WI$151,804 Managing Director $3,460 $3,719 2023
Yara Arts Group NY$150,689 Artistic Director & Board Member $20,750 $18,744 2024
Origin Theatre Company Inc NY$184,758 Artistic Dir $67,500 $62,777 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to TX 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 TX 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)75th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted76th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted74th

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 (Timothy Fried-fiori) 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 136 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A65), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $44,584 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). 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.