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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Arts Council Of Lake Oswego

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 931278854
OR · NTEE A20
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Nicole Nathan, Executive Director / CEO ($97,734) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 321 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 91st percentile of comparable organizationsabove the 90th percentile — board review recommended

Benchmarked executive: Nicole Nathan — reported title “EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

321 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 321 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$303 total compensation of comparable organizations → $244,776 $97,734
$12,02110th
$33,29925th
$56,284Median
$77,83075th
$92,95690th
$97,734This org · 91st
p10$12,021
p25$33,299
p50$56,284
p75$77,830
p90$92,956
$97,734

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
Danzantes Unidos De California CA$369,632 Executive Director $50,000 $45,293 2025
Millburn Institute Of Talent NJ$373,033 Principal $7,510 $7,034 2025
Handmade Arcade PA$369,502 Executive Director $64,500 $69,263 2024
Hawthorne Arts Collaborative ME$373,179 Executive Dir. $60,000 $64,696 2024
Beta-local Inc PR$369,234 Co-director $30,000 $30,886 2023
Stecoah Valley Arts Crafts & NC$369,110 Executive Di $47,020 $50,968 2025
Diaspora Arts Connection Inc CA$368,688 Executive Dir. $6,310 $5,867 2024
We Players CA$368,436 Artistic Director $55,000 $51,141 2024
Sage Studio & Gallery TX$367,809 President $65,292 $72,408 2023
Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Inc CA$375,574 Executive Dir. $92,700 $86,196 2024
New City Arts Initiative VA$364,446 Executive Director $83,276 $84,352 2025
Carpe Diem Arts Inc MD$364,301 Executive Director (Thru 8/3/25) $50,000 $49,039 2025
Legends Do Live TX$364,008 Director $27,083 $29,173 2024
Camden Fireworks Incorporated NJ$363,657 Executive Director $62,414 $61,780 2023
The Wonderseed Foundation CA$379,075 Executive Direc $59,725 $57,175 2023
Roxy Bremerton WA$363,396 Executive Director $72,459 $69,857 2024
Statement Arts Inc NY$379,950 Secretary $60,818 $59,179 2024
Luma 8 IL$362,280 President $121,752 $128,892 2024
The Spark CO$362,046 Ed $12,190 $12,587 2024
Ugly Duckling Presse Ltd NY$381,176 Press Manager $58,125 $56,558 2024
Tx Bicycle Coalition Education Fund TX$381,303 Executive Director $7,913 $8,524 2024
Father Matters Inc AZ$381,907 President/ceo $62,770 $65,005 2024
Mid India Christian Mission FL$360,298 Executive Director $91,008 $94,782 2023
Summit Artspace OH$359,966 Executive Di $69,197 $81,252 2023
Space On The Farminc NY$359,689 Executive Director (Left 2024) $70,750 $68,843 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 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 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 default91st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)93rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted87th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted90th

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 (Nicole Nathan) 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 321 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A20), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $97,734 is reasonable (approximately the 91st 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.