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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Magnes Museum Foundation

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 946103646
CA · NTEE A500
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Lisa Tabak, Executive Director / CEO ($20,421) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 42 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 26th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Lisa Tabak — reported title “DIRECTOR, SECRETARY”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

42 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 42 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$2,363 total compensation of comparable organizations → $83,570 $20,421
$4,90910th
$20,21425th
$38,583Median
$47,55975th
$65,45490th
$20,421This org · 26th
p10$4,909
p25$20,214
p50$38,583
p75$47,559
p90$65,454
$20,421

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.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
International Royal Order Of Jesters Inc IN$124,859 Executive Director $11,040 $13,483 2024
Museum Of Broadcast Communications IL$127,961 Chairman/treasurer/ceo $36,539 $41,601 2024
Susan B Anthony Birthplace Museum Inc MA$124,399 Executive Director $70,000 $72,847 2024
The Living Bible Museum Inc OH$128,599 Trustee $12,020 $14,743 2024
Bluegrass Heritage Museum Inc KY$121,829 Executive-di $38,016 $47,299 2024
The Sam Houston Masonic Library And Museum Association TX$121,623 Treasurer $3,000 $3,386 2025
Mennonite Heritage & Agrcltr Museum KS$120,970 Museum Director/curator $18,915 $24,364 2023
Florida Association Of Museums FL$120,156 Executive Director $55,650 $62,331 2023
Water Mill Museum NY$119,739 Director/mgr $39,179 $41,000 2024
Aviation Hall Of Fame And Museum Of New Jersey NJ$116,623 Executive Director $40,700 $42,083 2024
Ct Vivian Foundation Inc GA$143,562 Executive Di $42,000 $47,645 2025
Nebraska Firefighters Foundation NE$104,208 Executive Director $31,800 $39,609 2024
Akin Hall Association NY$103,447 Curator $23,400 $25,210 2023
African American Heritage Society TN$149,506 Executive Dir. $27,440 $34,390 2023
Mauch Chunk Museum & Cultural PA$153,792 Secretary/tr $17,181 $19,842 2024
Stuart Heritage Inc FL$96,465 Recording Se $6,336 $7,097 2023
Silver Reef Foundation Inc UT$157,200 Director $20,350 $24,120 2024
Pa Museums PA$159,147 Executive Director, Ex Officio $49,500 $58,855 2023
The New Bedford Museum Of Glass Inc MA$161,979 President $27,622 $30,808 2022
Jenney House Museum Inc MA$162,953 President $78,000 $83,570 2023
Koshare Indian Museum Inc CO$89,322 Manger $50,000 $55,523 2024
Moclips By The Sea Historical Society WA$88,622 Director/curator $4,500 $4,666 2024
The Museum Of Carousel Art & History OH$163,984 Executive Director $52,100 $65,792 2023
Western Maine Play Museum ME$88,376 Executive Di $22,077 $25,601 2024
Buffalo Bill Museum Of Le Claire IA$164,459 Exec Director $21,500 $27,262 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA 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 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 default26th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)33rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted0th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted95th

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 (Lisa Tabak) 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 42 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A50), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $20,421 is reasonable (approximately the 26th 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.