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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

The 88 Project

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 822241028
IL · NTEE Q70
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Ben Swanton, Executive Director / CEO ($95,413) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 31 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: Ben Swanton — reported title “Executive Dir”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

31 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 31 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$7,141 total compensation of comparable organizations → $153,314 $95,413
$17,35110th
$31,10825th
$57,890Median
$81,61775th
$102,54690th
$95,413This org · 87th
p10$17,351
p25$31,108
p50$57,890
p75$81,617
p90$102,546
$95,413

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 IL 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
International Tibet Network CA$307,132 Executive Director $48,336 $42,455 2023
Rescue Pink Inc TX$302,677 President $66,000 $67,154 2023
Friends Of The Congo DC$291,634 Executive Director $8,000 $7,141 2023
South Texas Human Rights Center Inc TX$283,213 Board Treasurer $23,333 $23,060 2024
Smex Usa Inc DC$282,710 Ceo And Vice President Of The Board $22,000 $19,074 2024
If Americans Knew CA$331,563 President $71,108 $62,456 2023
Alight Alliance To Lead Impact In Global CO$333,478 Executive Director $118,421 $112,188 2024
Project Suma Inc GA$277,482 Intl Director $36,996 $36,753 2024
Africa School Assistance Project CO$276,789 Executive Director $90,600 $85,831 2024
Inhr MI$273,808 Mr $9,555 $10,032 2023
Foundation For Freedom WA$339,971 President $72,000 $63,688 2024
Dark Bali CA$342,650 Executive Dir. $64,618 $55,128 2024
Identify Inc GA$268,339 Director $78,000 $79,775 2023
Accessibility Accelerator Inc NY$344,297 Executive Director $64,642 $57,710 2024
Hope Outreach International FL$345,598 Executive Director $38,400 $36,693 2023
Bay Area Anti-trafficking Coalition CA$256,892 President $120,200 $102,546 2024
Hostage Families Alliance DC$358,534 President $28,334 $24,565 2024
Amnistia Internacional-seccion De Puerto Rico Inc PR$238,927 Executive Director $59,600 $57,890 2024
Siamak Pourzand Foundation MD$374,715 Executive Director $80,556 $74,408 2024
Eg Justice DC$379,194 Executive Dir. $93,500 $83,458 2023
Allies Inc IN$227,662 Executive Di $60,830 $65,250 2023
Guatemala Human Rights Commission U S A DC$226,075 Advocacy Director $61,919 $55,269 2023
Women's Rights Without Frontiers MD$386,272 President $165,982 $153,314 2024
Cuba Independiente Inc FL$223,167 President $12,000 $11,138 2024
Advocates International Inc VA$218,160 President $108,270 $106,335 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to IL 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 IL 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)87th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted90th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted87th

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 (Ben Swanton) 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 31 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (Q70), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $95,413 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.