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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Collaborative Earth Institute

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 874788872
CA · NTEE U20
FY ending 2023-12-31
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Aaron Hirsh, Executive Director / CEO ($23,500) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 110 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 18th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

How comparable organizations were selected

110 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 110 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,819 total compensation of comparable organizations → $330,019 $23,500
$12,25110th
$31,25025th
$60,248Median
$110,34675th
$143,26490th
$23,500This org · 18th
p10$12,251
p25$31,250
p50$60,248
p75$110,346
p90$143,264
$23,500

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 CA cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
Us Technology Leadership CouncilVA $261,639$155,311 990
Other Internet Research InstituteNY $261,816$33,486 990
Campersand CoNM $260,814$12,098 990
Institute For Workforce AdvancementNY $260,315$143,039 990
Bible Archeology Search And Exploration FoundationCO $263,551$21,769 990
White Dwarf Research CorporationCO $258,403$170,106 990
Climate Law And Policy Project IncMD $266,745$191,684 990
Mining And Minerals Education FoundationAZ $267,071$42,157 990
Black Girls Do Engineer CorporationTX $267,106$61,778 990
Institute For Leadership In Capital ProjectsTX $267,428$64,029 990
Bluechip Ratings IncDE $255,635$28,348 990
California Ocean AllianceCA $267,850$16,784 990
Rocks Build America FoundationVA $254,249$64,496 990
Owner-operator Independent DriversMO $254,002$126,822 990
Assoc Of Computer Science Leagues IncRI $253,725$64,099 990
The Soul Phone FoundationOH $251,286$58,876 990
Engineering Change Lab - UsaNE $251,213$77,724 990
Nebraska Coalition For Life Saving CuresNE $272,121$119,775 990
Transparency Coalition Action FundWA $250,168$31,105 990
Cyberdrone ChallengeMD $250,002$10,516 990
Boston Groundwater TrustMA $273,315$124,197 990
Kacyra Family FoundationCA $273,688$25,649 990
Cultural Heritage ImagingCA $249,370$62,094 990
The Micropaleontology PressNY $247,984$52,855 990
Acpa FoundationIL $277,234$38,886 990

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 CA 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 default18th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)19th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted24th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted14th

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 (Aaron Hirsh) 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 110 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE major group (U), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $23,500 is reasonable (approximately the 18th 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). 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.