(Photo: Cindy Trimm appearing in Bible study on YouTube.)
In 2021, Cindy Trimm received $984,549 in compensation from Cindy Trimm Ministries International. Meanwhile, the ministry generated almost $1.5 million in revenue while spending more than $2 million, resulting in a deficit of $580,607.
Trimm’s compensation was disclosed in a Form 990 filed with the IRS.
In 2020, Trimm received $72,000 in compensation, so in 2021 she received a 1,267% pay increase. However, the ministry failed to disclose how it determined Trimm’s compensation.
(Photo: No boxes were selected on Schedule J of the 2021 Form.)
Under normal circumstances a compensation study or compensation committee would recommend the salary for Trimm. During a board meeting, Trimm would recuse herself and the remaining board members would vote to approve or reject the compensation recommendation.
Why would Trimm receive such a large pay increase? Where did the money go?
In September 2021, Trimm purchased a home in McDonough, Georgia, for $775,000. According to the Redfin real estate website, the property is in a “gated golf course community” and now worth $1.8 million.
CEO Pay Ratio
The IRS typically defines excessive compensation for non-profit executives as compensation over $1 million but churches are exempt from excise taxes on compensation exceeding this amount.
To bring greater scrutiny of excessive compensation, Congress has required publicly traded companies to disclose CEO Pay Ratio, but non-profit organizations are not required to report this information to their donors.
How does Trimm’s compensation compare to her employees?
In 2021, Trimm was paid 18.8 times more than the average employee.
Calculations
Total compensation of all ministry employees:
72,000 + 1,061,056 + 8,642 = 1,141,698 (Figures come from 2021 Form 990 page 10 lines 5, 7 and 10.)
Subtracting Trimm’s compensation from the total:
1,141,698 – 984,549 = 157,149
Dividing the remaining employee compensation by total number of other employees:
157,149 ÷ 3 = 52,383
Dividing Trimm’s compensation by compensation of average employee:
984,549 ÷ 52,383 = 18.795