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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Pittsburgh Earth Day

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 843820862
PA · NTEE C19
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Ronda Zegarelli, Executive Director / CEO ($26,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 481 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 21st percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Ronda Zegarelli — reported title “PRESIDENT &”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

481 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 481 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$622 total compensation of comparable organizations → $414,091 $26,000
$11,68910th
$30,68925th
$54,067Median
$75,46175th
$100,13390th
$26,000This org · 21st
p10$11,689
p25$30,689
p50$54,067
p75$75,461
p90$100,133
$26,000

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 PA 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
Land Health Institute PA$211,124 Executive Di $20,443 $20,443 2024
Ashland Climate Collaborative OR$211,127 Executive Director $42,758 $39,818 2024
The Firefly Gathering Inc NC$211,169 Executive Director $24,805 $26,461 2023
Whaleman International Ltd HI$211,410 President Director Treasurer $59,750 $53,643 2024
Mundo Gardens CA$212,039 President $75,000 $66,860 2023
Gorge Rebuild-it Community Project OR$209,834 Vice Chairexecutive Director $76,500 $69,403 2025
Dixie Fire Canopy Project CA$209,783 Executive Dir. $12,750 $11,040 2024
Ocean Agency RI$209,769 President & Ceo $105,173 $101,128 2024
Bucks Beautiful Inc PA$212,217 Executive Di $40,083 $40,083 2024
Maricopa Trail & Park Foundation AZ$209,689 Director $18,430 $17,316 2025
Valley In Motion PA$212,338 President $89,675 $89,675 2024
Rail-trail Council Of Northeastern PA$212,660 Executive Director $26,088 $26,088 2024
New Mexico Recycling Coalition NM$209,215 Executive Director $96,382 $107,022 2023
Philadelphia Community Farm Inc WI$212,883 President $4,548 $4,763 2024
Outdoor Inclusion Coalition PA$212,979 President & $80,000 $80,000 2024
Monterey Audubon Society CA$208,868 Executive Director $27,221 $22,963 2025
Native Lands Restoration Collaborative KS$208,857 Executive Director $51,875 $56,198 2024
Spokane River Forum WA$208,638 Executive Dir. $46,376 $40,563 2025
Jacobs Creek Watershed Association PA$208,570 Executive Director $40,240 $41,429 2023
Illinois Water Environment Association IL$208,392 Executive Manager $72,700 $71,671 2024
Kittitas Environmental Education Network WA$213,581 Environmental Education Director $33,804 $30,349 2024
Indiana Land Protection Alliance IN$213,769 Executive Director $77,500 $84,376 2023
Friends Of Deckers Creek Inc WV$208,060 Exec. Director $41,273 $44,812 2024
Treasure Valley Canopy Network Inc ID$214,161 Executive Director $52,734 $57,915 2023
I-20 Wildlife Preserve & Jenna Welch TX$214,236 Executive Dir. $59,249 $61,187 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to PA 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 PA 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 default21st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)20th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted22nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted19th

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 (Ronda Zegarelli) 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 481 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (C), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $26,000 is reasonable (approximately the 21st 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.