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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Northwest Montana United Way Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 810304856
MT · NTEE T70Z
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Jodie Cross, Executive Director / CEO ($29,600) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 117 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 19th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Jodie Cross — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

117 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 117 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$18 total compensation of comparable organizations → $145,452 $29,600
$13,66610th
$34,79325th
$48,739Median
$63,99775th
$79,16390th
$29,600This org · 19th
p10$13,666
p25$34,793
p50$48,739
p75$63,997
p90$79,163
$29,600

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 MT 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
United Way Of Mcpherson County Inc KS$332,669 Executive Director $39,849 $38,792 2024
Jewish Community Center And Federation GA$332,699 Executive Director $38,462 $34,848 2024
United Way Of Grays Harbor WA$332,853 Executive Director $79,600 $66,113 2023
United Way Of Carlton County Inc MN$331,291 Executive Director $40,250 $36,896 2023
Branch County United Way Inc MI$334,091 Executive Di $49,855 $46,369 2024
Perry County Community Health Task Force MO$328,753 Director $50,688 $48,376 2024
United Way Of Pekin IL$328,737 Executive Dir. $50,310 $43,419 2025
United Way Of 1000 Lakes MN$326,308 Executive Director $63,093 $57,835 2023
United Way Of Eastern La Salle County IL$338,512 Executive Dir. $62,400 $53,853 2025
United Way Of Columbia County Inc AR$320,695 Executive Di $5,003 $5,067 2024
United Way Of Illinois Valley IL$319,703 Vice President $61,969 $53,482 2025
Mecosta - Osceola United Way Inc MI$318,621 Executive Di $50,000 $46,504 2024
The American Amusement Machine IL$313,105 Executive Director $15,517 $13,391 2025
United Way Of Hood County Inc TX$312,480 Exec Dir $71,000 $63,997 2024
Earthshare Chapters Inc DC$352,363 Ceo $45,046 $35,619 2024
Community Shares Of Greater Cincinnati OH$311,349 Chief Executive Officer $79,454 $78,069 2023
United Way Of Harvey And Marion Counties Inc KS$311,045 Executive Director $68,453 $66,637 2024
Sanctuary In The Ordinary MO$353,515 Executive Director $82,209 $78,458 2024
Alleghany Memorial Hospital Foundation Inc NC$310,604 Executive Director $13,679 $12,736 2024
Burlington County Farm Fair Inc NJ$356,297 Manager $12,000 $9,654 2024
United Way Of Southeast Georgia GA$359,491 Executive Di $55,200 $50,012 2024
River Ridge Farm Trust OH$301,820 Trustee $36,125 $34,477 2024
United Way Of Danville-pittsylvania VA$362,518 President/ceo $73,847 $62,593 2025
Community Coalition PA$299,944 Executive Director $97,506 $90,206 2023
United Way Of White County Inc AR$299,403 Executive Director $45,000 $45,579 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to MT cost of living and 2023 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 MT 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 default19th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)18th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted25th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted14th

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 (Jodie Cross) 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 117 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (T70), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $29,600 is reasonable (approximately the 19th 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.