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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

A Just World

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 871509228
WA · NTEE D20
FY ending 2024-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Varda Mehrotra, Executive Director / CEO ($58,224) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 290 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 76th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Varda Mehrotra — reported title “Org. Strategist”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

290 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 290 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$1,553 total compensation of comparable organizations → $645,595 $58,224
$9,55410th
$20,16225th
$35,716Median
$57,96575th
$74,85990th
$58,224This org · 76th
p10$9,554
p25$20,162
p50$35,716
p75$57,965
p90$74,859
$58,224

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 WA 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
Northern New Mexico Street Homeless NM$217,766 Executive Di $58,920 $72,873 2023
Coastal Pet Rescue Inc GA$219,522 Executive Dir. $25,961 $30,017 2023
Beagle Rescue Inc CA$219,695 Secretary/treasurer $43,700 $43,393 2023
Sea Biscuit Wildlife Shelter Inc NC$220,169 Executive Director $12,000 $13,492 2025
Southern Hope Animal Rescue & Education NC$216,858 President $16,800 $19,389 2024
Nowzad Dogs Nfp TX$216,388 President $55,254 $61,734 2024
Jp Farm Animal Sanctuary Inc CT$220,694 Vice President $38,290 $41,284 2023
Emmet County Animal Shelter Inc IA$220,878 Kennel Manager $19,385 $24,408 2023
Wisconsin Big Cat Rescue Education Center Inc WI$215,665 Treasurer $8,663 $10,404 2023
Second Chance For Homeless Pets UT$215,040 Executive Director $45,100 $51,556 2024
Great Pyrenees Rescue Society Inc TX$214,729 Director $33,000 $37,960 2023
Epic Outreach Inc FL$222,482 Director $44,400 $46,588 2024
Glacial Lakes Humane Society And Shelter SD$222,530 Executive Director $50,962 $64,676 2023
Richardson Rescue SC$223,100 Director/president $19,500 $23,393 2023
Catskill Animal Rescue Inc NY$223,313 Director $11,700 $12,158 2023
Passion 4 Paws Company VT$224,124 President $40,800 $45,868 2024
Fulton County Humane Society OH$224,188 Director $20,900 $24,725 2024
Nmdog Inc NM$212,517 President $19,900 $23,906 2024
The Pet Adoption Center Of O C CA$224,822 President $79,500 $78,940 2023
Gimme Shelter Animal Rescue Inc NY$225,632 Executive Dir. $70,000 $70,651 2024
Active K9 Rescue Foundation UT$225,732 Director/secretary $11,203 $12,807 2024
North American 3rs Collaborative Inc CO$225,826 Executive Director $120,350 $128,896 2024
Vicksburg-warren Humane Society MS$211,204 President $45,000 $55,979 2024
Animals First Aid Nfp IL$211,091 President $7,358 $8,080 2024
Nassau County Spca Inc NY$226,226 Executive Director $73,345 $74,027 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to WA 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 WA 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 default76th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)81st
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted76th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted75th

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 (Varda Mehrotra) 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 290 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (D20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $58,224 is reasonable (approximately the 76th 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.