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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Lewistown Art Center

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 810330277
MT · NTEE A200
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Mary Baumstark, Executive Director / CEO ($31,346) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 133 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 51st percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Mary Baumstark — reported title “EXECUTIVE DI”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

133 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 133 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$838 total compensation of comparable organizations → $258,200 $31,346
$5,24710th
$16,99425th
$31,123Median
$53,27375th
$64,65990th
$31,346This org · 51st
p10$5,247
p25$16,994
p50$31,123
p75$53,273
p90$64,659
$31,346

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
Tyler Park Center For The Arts Inc PA$157,663 Executive Director $15,000 $13,479 2024
Frank Theatre MN$156,939 Secretary $60,000 $53,422 2024
Oklahoma Mural Syndicate OK$158,724 President $3,998 $4,084 2023
West Nebraska Arts Center NE$155,385 Executive Di $43,358 $42,021 2024
Fremont Center For The Arts CO$159,801 Executive Director $13,884 $12,350 2023
Waterloo Arts OH$161,096 Executive Di $43,333 $41,356 2024
Lightbox Film Center PA$153,749 Board Director $21,000 $18,871 2024
National Storytelling Membership Association Inc MO$163,293 Operations $11,598 $11,069 2024
Bruce Lee Foundation Inc CA$149,396 Executive Director $100,248 $80,305 2023
Artseed CA$165,991 Exec Dir/secty $39,874 $31,025 2024
District One Community Education PA$148,914 Executive Di $35,000 $30,640 2025
Viva Voices Choral Organization Inc KY$166,955 President $49,250 $46,450 2025
City College Center For NY$167,400 Managing Director $71,969 $58,600 2024
Classic Planning Instit ME$167,461 Social Media $9,515 $8,585 2024
Center For Arts & Learning Inc VT$168,343 Executive Director $28,411 $26,529 2023
Granary Art Center UT$146,593 Executive Director $60,000 $53,907 2025
Ne Sculpture Gallery Factory MN$168,662 Secretary $59,833 $53,273 2024
Appalachian Arts Craft Center Inc TN$168,701 Executive Director $48,115 $45,573 2024
Walking Shadow Theatre Company MN$169,065 Executive Director $6,500 $5,638 2025
Fundacion Nacional Para La Cultura Popular PR$169,885 Administratror $9,000 $8,742 2024
Island Community House Inc VA$144,658 Executive Director $65,960 $59,082 2023
Theater Resources Unlimited Inc NY$144,204 Executive Direc, President $24,150 $20,245 2023
Collaborative Institute Of Cultural Arts IL$144,152 Director $9,520 $8,683 2023
88 International Corp NY$171,603 President $23,650 $19,256 2024
Betti Ono Foundation CA$143,415 Ceo/presiden $193,948 $155,365 2023

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 default51st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)44th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted52nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted47th

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 (Mary Baumstark) 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 133 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $31,346 is reasonable (approximately the 51st 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.