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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Sun Valley Opera Company

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 820530372
ID · NTEE A6A
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Robyn Watson, Executive Director / CEO ($60,667) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 950 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 87th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

950 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 950 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$244 total compensation of comparable organizations → $269,363 $60,667
$4,78210th
$13,97025th
$29,124Median
$48,73675th
$63,88590th
$60,667This org · 87th
p10$4,782
p25$13,970
p50$29,124
p75$48,736
p90$63,885
$60,667

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 ID 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
Beacon Performing Arts Center Ltd NY$139,715 Co-founder $28,846 $25,227 2023
Dorland Mountain Arts Colony CA$139,902 Executive Dir. $18,517 $15,031 2024
Natl Washington-rochambeau Rev Rt A MD$139,631 Executive Di $32,800 $28,826 2024
The William E Swigart Jr Automobile Museum PA$140,026 Treasurer $9,855 $9,238 2024
Ensemble Signal NY$139,458 Executive Director $36,522 $31,940 2023
Xyayx The Movement Inc NY$139,000 Program Leader $12,335 $10,787 2023
Design Sacramento CA$140,644 Executive Director $24,900 $20,212 2024
Soul's Harbor Inc ME$140,687 President $63,700 $59,961 2024
Tucson Pops Orchestra AZ$138,790 President $1,140 $1,061 2023
Twilight Theatre Inc KS$138,595 Executive Director $27,373 $27,799 2024
12 Dunemere Inc NY$138,477 Executive Director $17,651 $14,994 2024
Medical Physics Publishing Corporation WI$138,456 General Manager $57,105 $56,062 2024
Scottsboro-jackson Heritage Center AL$141,493 Director $20,196 $20,510 2024
The Chicago Club Preservation Foundation IL$141,514 Management Representative $29,859 $27,595 2024
Hillforest Historical Foundation Inc IN$137,979 Executive Director - Left Mid-year $28,697 $28,448 2024
Opera Cultura CA$141,727 President $52,000 $42,210 2024
Youth Excellence Performing Arts Workshop OH$137,763 Executive Director $29,565 $29,436 2024
Third Coast International Audio Festival IL$141,853 Frmr Co-direct. $76,224 $70,444 2024
Film Festival Alliance DC$141,976 Executive Di $54,000 $45,861 2023
Santee Summer Ministry Inc SC$137,549 Pastor $10,000 $9,807 2024
York County Honors Choirs Inc PA$137,484 Executive Director $26,000 $24,373 2024
Michigan Fiber Festival Inc MI$142,147 Festival Coordinator $17,779 $17,251 2024
Dstl Arts CA$137,332 Founder, Executive Director; President $14,325 $11,628 2024
Exit 12 Dance Company Inc NY$137,207 Executive Director & Board Director $4,956 $4,210 2024
Mistral Music Inc MA$137,198 Artistic Director $20,250 $16,665 2025

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to ID 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 ID 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 default87th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)84th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted89th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted83rd

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 (Robyn Watson) 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 950 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (A), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $60,667 is reasonable (approximately the 87th 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.