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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Cair National Legal Defense Fund Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 820922964
DC · NTEE R20
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Lena Masri, Executive Director / CEO ($25,927) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 59 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 10th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Lena Masri — reported title “DIRECTOR/SECRETARY”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

59 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 59 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,882 total compensation of comparable organizations → $148,520 $25,927
$29,09210th
$46,30825th
$70,979Median
$85,55475th
$113,91390th
$25,927This org · 10th
p10$29,092
p25$46,308
p50$70,979
p75$85,554
p90$113,913
$25,927

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 DC 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
Carroll County Casa Inc GA$247,723 Executive Dir. $63,840 $71,263 2025
Central Georgia Casa Inc GA$253,174 Executive Di $70,000 $78,140 2025
Muslim American Leadership Alliance IL$246,473 Chairperson $75,617 $84,716 2024
Sampson County Child Advocacy NC$246,315 Executive Di $52,670 $62,017 2024
Casa Of Southwest Georgia Inc GA$254,994 Executive Di $54,288 $64,042 2023
Muslim Justice League MA$256,525 Executive Director $87,374 $87,167 2025
Casa Partners 4nmkids Inc NM$256,941 Executive Director $45,000 $55,155 2024
Casa Of Southern Illinois Inc IL$240,246 Executive Dir. $67,056 $73,188 2025
Loud And Proud MI$238,733 Executive Director $20,313 $23,893 2024
Strategic Advocacy For Human Rights Inc CA$261,338 Co-executive Director $33,723 $34,164 2023
Court Appointed Special Advocate Of CA$264,947 Former Executive Director $76,923 $75,693 2024
Moveon Education Fund OR$265,211 Executive Director $7,769 $8,222 2024
Rappahannock Casa Inc VA$233,323 Executive Director $62,658 $70,979 2023
Casa - 15th Judicial Circuit IL$266,550 Executive Director $71,250 $79,823 2024
Fw Black Collective WA$232,327 Executive Director $70,758 $72,191 2024
Massachusetts Casa Association MA$231,759 Executive Director $106,716 $112,508 2023
The Buffalo Trace Casa Program Inc KY$268,498 Executive Dir. $72,431 $86,392 2025
People Engaged In Active Community Efforts Inc FL$230,087 Lead Organizer $60,000 $66,129 2023
Palm Beach Fellowship Of Christians And FL$270,435 Executive Director $78,350 $83,876 2024
Casa Of North Arkansas AR$221,089 Executive Director $25,831 $32,234 2025
Casa Of Midwest Kentucky Inc KY$220,428 Executive Di $59,788 $71,312 2025
Eddy County Casa Auxiliary NM$218,495 Executive Di $56,333 $69,045 2024
The Diverse Future Foundation Inc NY$215,800 Director $40,000 $42,406 2023
Before Racism MN$284,539 Vice President & Secretary $30,795 $35,700 2023
National Organization For The Reform Of DC$285,744 Board Member $23,500 $23,500 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to DC 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 DC 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 default10th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)12th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted7th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted100th

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 (Lena Masri) 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 59 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (R20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $25,927 is reasonable (approximately the 10th 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.