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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Whitelaw Volunteer Fire Department

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 821454417
WI · NTEE M24
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Eric R Braun, Executive Director / CEO ($1,808) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 112 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 56th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Eric R Braun — reported title “PRESIDENT”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

112 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 112 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$10 total compensation of comparable organizations → $133,099 $1,808
$34210th
$56825th
$1,427Median
$5,69275th
$16,44090th
$1,808This org · 56th
p10$342
p25$568
p50$1,427
p75$5,692
p90$16,440
$1,808

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 WI 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
York Beach Volunteer Fire Dept ME$151,575 Treasurer/captain $2,250 $2,102 2025
Hilton Fire Department NY$151,132 Board Treasurer $9,975 $8,631 2024
Port Jefferson Volunteer Firemens Benevolent Association Inc NY$155,788 Secretary $750 $668 2023
Friendship Hose Co 1 PA$149,162 Vice President $4,500 $4,297 2024
Winhall Fire Department Inc VT$147,391 Chief $9,709 $9,357 2024
Montezuma Fire Department Inc OH$147,032 Fire Chief $1,500 $1,521 2024
Eagle Fire Engine & Hose Company No 1 2 NY$160,506 President $100 $89 2023
Decorah Volunteer Fire Department IA$160,745 Chief $778 $840 2023
Duval District Volunteer Fire Department WV$145,689 Treasurer $1,800 $1,866 2024
West Tisbury Volunteer Firemen's Civic Association Inc MA$143,210 President $1,500 $1,329 2023
Volunteer Fire Company Of Mill Hall PA$142,468 Treasurer $1,120 $1,101 2023
Spencerport Volunteer Firemens Assoc Inc NY$164,917 President $2,000 $1,782 2023
Volunteer Engine Company No 2 Inc NJ$141,436 President $300 $256 2024
Goshen Volunteer Fire Department NC$165,526 President $786 $778 2024
Auburn Fire Company Ambulance Service PA$139,575 President $13,000 $12,780 2023
Gale Hose Co No 1 Inc PA$167,151 Billing/privacy Officer & Chief 10-70 $6,000 $5,898 2023
Indian Mills Volunteer Fire Company NJ$167,729 President $717 $631 2023
St Paul Blvd Fire Association Inc NY$138,653 President $500 $446 2023
Hundred Club Of Genesee Shiawassee MI$137,895 Executive Di $15,000 $14,825 2024
Cottage Grove Vol Fire Department WI$169,568 President $4,030 $4,149 2023
Granville Rural Fire Department NC$170,290 Board Member $1,215 $1,238 2023
Summit Township Volunteer Fire PA$136,277 Financial Sec/tresurer $8,622 $8,233 2024
Bethany Volunteer Fire Company Incorporated NY$135,338 Treasurer $1,200 $1,038 2024
Brooklyn Hose Company No 3 PA$135,242 Secretary $28,802 $28,315 2023
Silver Creek Volunteer Fire Department WI$171,764 President $1,525 $1,525 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to WI 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 WI 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 default56th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)56th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted57th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted56th

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 (Eric R Braun) 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 112 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (M24), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $1,808 is reasonable (approximately the 56th 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.