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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

International Society Of Limnology-sil

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 986008060
NC · NTEE C32Z
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Dr David Hamilton, Executive Director / CEO ($5,000) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 31 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 6th percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Dr David Hamilton — reported title “EDITOR IN CHIEF-INLAND WATERS”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

31 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 31 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$485 total compensation of comparable organizations → $119,193 $5,000
$11,27310th
$33,59325th
$48,082Median
$61,40875th
$75,82590th
$5,000This org · 6th
p10$11,273
p25$33,593
p50$48,082
p75$61,408
p90$75,825
$5,000

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 NC 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
Wentworth Watershed Association NH$145,870 Executive Director $77,861 $69,579 2024
The Downstream Project VA$145,658 Executive Director $65,076 $60,811 2024
The Pennsylvania Pink Zone PA$148,218 Executive Director $50,085 $47,092 2025
Altamaha Riverkeeper Inc GA$148,849 Executive Director $77,920 $75,825 2024
Fish Reef Project CA$140,925 Executive Director $27,000 $22,564 2024
Coastal Watershed Institute WA$138,944 Executive Director $560 $485 2024
Streets Run Watershed Association PA$153,299 Executive Director $88,000 $84,931 2024
Werkin Outdoors NC$153,506 Committee Chair $28,037 $28,037 2024
Nansemond River Preservation Alliance VA$157,999 Presidentceo $79,500 $74,289 2024
Truckee River Foundation NV$132,667 Executive Director $111,826 $108,483 2024
Brodheads Watershed Corporation PA$159,342 Executive Director (Until 10/2023) $53,190 $52,851 2023
Seaside Sustainability Inc MA$132,364 Executive Director $65,631 $58,765 2023
Westlake Aquatic Center Inc MO$161,905 Staff $7,457 $7,644 2024
Upstream Watch ME$163,974 Executive Director $63,000 $61,054 2024
Storm Drain Protection Act Inc FL$124,705 Executive Di $79,500 $72,280 2024
Pennsylvania Lake Management Society PA$168,728 Executive Director $54,815 $52,904 2024
Tennessee Riverkeeper AL$174,228 Executive Di $114,000 $119,193 2024
Idaho Association Of Soil Conservation ID$176,628 Executive Director $42,000 $44,518 2023
Friends Of The Shiawassee River MI$177,141 Exec Directo $46,752 $48,082 2023
Watershed Restoration Coalition For The MT$112,825 Secretary/bookkeeper $10,496 $11,273 2023
Lake Worth Lagoon Environmental Defense FL$180,852 Executive Direc $15,701 $14,697 2023
Pozo De Agua Inc PR$181,070 President $21,020 $21,020 2024
Friends Of Palm Beach Inc FL$188,309 President $60,000 $54,551 2024
Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper PA$198,212 Executive Di $57,120 $55,128 2024
Save Our Saluda SC$200,079 President $61,170 $61,761 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to NC 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 NC 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 default6th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)6th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted6th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted6th

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 (Dr David Hamilton) 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 31 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (C32), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $5,000 is reasonable (approximately the 6th 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.