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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Startup Columbus Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 844442524
GA · NTEE S30
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Ben Macminn, Executive Director / CEO ($98,329) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 193 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 60th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Ben Macminn — reported title “Executive Dir.”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

193 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 193 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$207 total compensation of comparable organizations → $450,385 $98,329
$26,70810th
$55,05025th
$87,684Median
$119,63475th
$150,61890th
$98,329This org · 60th
p10$26,708
p25$55,050
p50$87,684
p75$119,634
p90$150,618
$98,329

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 GA 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
Sustainable Communities Fund CA$474,274 Chief Executive Officer $269,537 $231,476 2024
Built Oregon OR$474,305 Director $15,000 $13,854 2024
Laurel District Association CA$468,876 Executive Dir. $52,083 $44,728 2024
Industry University Research Center Inc PR$467,060 Executive Director $140,176 $140,176 2024
North Central Montana Economic MT$479,833 Executive Direc $80,000 $88,298 2023
Civstart Corp DC$465,744 Ceo $96,900 $87,067 2023
Economic Development Corporation UT$465,280 Director $107,039 $112,173 2023
Michigan Economic Developers MI$463,953 Executive Di $117,108 $123,767 2023
Greater Sarasota Chamber Of Commerce FL$484,842 President $27,727 $26,671 2023
Buffalo Niagara Film Commission Inc NY$459,494 President $110,892 $99,659 2024
Division Midway Alliance For OR$458,798 Executive Dir. $90,189 $83,298 2024
Identity Clark County WA$458,605 Policy And Projects Coordinator $2,143 $1,964 2023
Arlee Community Development Corporation MT$488,173 Executive Director $75,000 $82,779 2023
Gibson County Economic Development Corporation IN$457,365 Executive Director $107,796 $113,057 2024
St Hope Development Company CA$490,629 Ceo $234 $207 2023
San Diego North Economic CA$491,997 Ceo $176,358 $151,455 2024
Economic Development Corporation Of New CT$453,860 Administrator $127,844 $119,214 2024
Downtown Management Corporation Of Fort FL$453,787 President $109,750 $102,539 2024
Prospera Georgia Llc GA$452,756 Ceo/president $44,863 $44,863 2024
Operation Reboot CA$452,245 Chief Executive Officer $169,982 $150,291 2023
Las Vegas Employment Project NV$451,865 President $16,195 $15,729 2025
Grow Licking County OH$451,225 Executive Director $120,000 $130,138 2023
Kahua Paa Mua Inc HI$495,746 Mr $30,990 $27,594 2024
Xcelerate Women OR$450,105 Executive Dir. $94,938 $87,684 2024
Franklin Southampton Economic VA$449,138 President $95,605 $91,807 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to GA 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 GA 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 default60th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)60th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted64th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted49th

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 Macminn) 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 193 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (S30), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $98,329 is reasonable (approximately the 60th 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.