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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Ahead With Horses Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 953165603
CA · NTEE E500
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Michelle Newman, Executive Director / CEO ($64,480) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 61 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 54th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

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

How comparable organizations were selected

61 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 61 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$307 total compensation of comparable organizations → $149,032 $64,480
$15,87610th
$25,55425th
$62,669Median
$75,06875th
$92,25790th
$64,480This org · 54th
p10$15,876
p25$25,554
p50$62,669
p75$75,068
p90$92,257
$64,480

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
Hopelife Regeneration Inc NC$329,601 President $23,088 $28,443 2023
Pure Living Recovery And Rehabilitation IL$324,689 Cfo $10,908 $12,419 2024
Community Supported Acupuncture KY$323,981 Executive Director $74,150 $92,257 2024
New Hope Equine Assisted Therapy TX$320,848 Executive Dir. $36,279 $40,944 2025
Two Bear Therapeutic Riding Center Inc MT$317,556 Executive Dir. $55,000 $70,687 2023
Berkeley Acupuncture Project Of Ca CA$316,423 President $54,937 $54,937 2024
Form5 Prosthetics Inc OH$314,173 Founder/ Ceo $55,000 $67,462 2024
Voices Of Hope For Aphasia Inc FL$341,264 Executive Director $58,920 $64,100 2024
School Of Service MO$310,410 Executive Director $39,046 $49,307 2023
Equi-kids Therapeutic Riding Program VA$344,773 Executive Director $23,750 $27,342 2023
Therapies For Hope Inc CO$344,783 Executive Di $5,600 $6,402 2023
Therapy And Counseling Services PA$346,088 Treasurer/clinical Director $41,769 $48,238 2024
Salt Lake Harm Reduction Project UT$347,236 Executive Dir. $62,500 $74,079 2024
Willowind Therapeutic Riding Center Inc ME$303,502 Executive Director $94,308 $109,362 2024
The Arc Of Whatcom County WA$357,296 Executive Director $63,711 $68,009 2023
Windhorse Equine Learning MT$358,139 Executive Director $55,000 $68,659 2024
Easter Seals Southwest Florida FL$361,813 President & Ceo $15,453 $16,812 2024
Grow Pediatric Therapy Services MO$291,608 Secretary $250 $307 2024
Manes And Motions Therapeutic Riding CT$291,123 President & Ceo $19,923 $21,633 2024
Boise Services Group Inc ID$287,658 President $65,828 $81,097 2024
Willow Creek Ranch Inc WI$287,616 Executive Director $32,261 $39,018 2024
Rascal Rodeo WA$287,600 Executive Director $76,664 $79,488 2024
Carrusel En La Sebastiana Corp PR$369,010 Executive Director $41,900 $43,138 2023
Watch Us Farm Inc IN$281,604 Executive Director $13,000 $15,876 2024
Childrens Therapy Clinic WV$281,494 Executive Director $51,325 $66,257 2023

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 default54th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)72nd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted54th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted44th

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 (Michelle Newman) 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 61 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (E50), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $64,480 is reasonable (approximately the 54th 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.