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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Freedom For Great Apes Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 831850901
OR · NTEE D20
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Kim Helmer-dias, Executive Director / CEO ($26,618) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 429 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 23rd percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Kim Helmer-dias — reported title “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

429 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 429 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$136 total compensation of comparable organizations → $364,323 $26,618
$13,04710th
$28,83825th
$48,921Median
$66,73975th
$85,09190th
$26,618This org · 23rd
p10$13,047
p25$28,838
p50$48,921
p75$66,739
p90$85,091
$26,618

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 OR 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
S Nipped OR$471,924 Vet Assist $39,076 $37,955 2024
Macoupin County Adopt A Pet IL$472,529 Vp & Executive Director $23,400 $24,062 2024
Companion Animal Protection Society CA$471,804 President And Chair $52,176 $47,123 2024
All About Equine Animal Rescue Inc CA$473,172 President $18,000 $16,737 2023
Chequamegon Humane Association WI$470,331 Executive Di $47,898 $52,321 2024
Animal Refuge Foundation TX$475,195 Secretary $37,520 $39,256 2024
Sunny Skys Animal Rescue And Hospital WA$475,506 President $27,942 $26,165 2024
Second Chance Shelter AL$468,378 President $11,769 $13,691 2023
Almost Home Animal Rescue League MI$476,413 President $55,900 $62,131 2023
Pennsylvania State Animal Response Team PA$467,730 Executive Director $44,508 $46,423 2024
Camp Companion Inc MN$477,029 Executive Dir. $53,669 $57,105 2023
Horse Protection Association Of FL$465,948 President & $140,000 $141,623 2023
Alliance For The Earth NM$465,141 President $63,824 $71,799 2024
The Humane Society Of East Texas TX$479,258 Executive Di $1,500 $1,569 2024
Karma Rescue CA$464,824 Executive Director $87,166 $81,050 2023
Brownie Blondie Foundation Inc PR$464,435 President $23,100 $23,100 2023
Denkai Animal Sanctuary CO$480,162 President $34,747 $35,878 2023
Friends For Felines Inc NY$463,844 President $5,950 $5,623 2024
Progressive Animal Welfare Society OH$481,137 Op. Man. Non $28,288 $31,337 2024
Rawley Project OR$462,900 Executive Dir. $76,388 $74,196 2024
Bright Promises Foundation IL$461,402 Executive Director $109,992 $113,101 2024
Mustang Heritage Foundation TN$483,027 Interim Executive Director $88,747 $97,570 2024
Marion County Humane Society WV$484,308 Shelter Director $38,547 $42,528 2025
The Ferndale Cat Shelter MI$484,446 Executive Di $48,836 $52,722 2024
Humane Animal Care Coalition Inc FL$458,692 President $11,000 $10,808 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to OR 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 OR 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 default23rd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)24th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted24th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted23rd

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 (Kim Helmer-dias) 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 429 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $26,618 is reasonable (approximately the 23rd 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.