Detroit pastor and gospel singer, Marvin Winans, is all hard pushing back against a recent report concerning nearly the sum of $540,000 in compensation attributed to him by a nonprofit organization he leads.
The controversy here is centered on Perfecting Community Development Corporation (PCDC), a Detroit-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit Org. that simply describes its mission as community revitalization, economic growth, education, transitional housing and youth recreation or in one words, development. The organization was reportedly founded in 1992 and received federal tax-exempt status in 1997, about 28-years ago.
According to the organisations most recent IRS Form 990, Which covers the fiscal year ending December 2025, Marvin Winans is reportedly listed as the organization’s president with $538,955 in reportable compensation. The filing was submitted to the IRS in 2026. ProPublica’s nonprofit database, which uses IRS data, also lists the exact figure of $538,955.
NOTE; That figure is the source of the now widely circulated “$540,000” or “$545,000” descriptions. The actual amount which appears publicly available filing is the $538,955, not $545,000.
The controversy about the said amount became particularly notable because Winans’ position with PCDC was described in the reporting as a half-time position. The Center Square calculated that the reported compensation worked out to approximately $518 per hour, based on the organization’s description of the job as half-time.
Although, Winans has publicly disputed the characterization. A later report which is circulating through Joy105 says Winans is pushing back hard against the claim that he personally received the sum of $538,955 as reported, calling the circulating report false and attributing the figure to an accounting error. This is Winans’ position; the publicly available 2025 Form 990 currently lists $538,955 as compensation for Marvin Winans.
The Nonprofit’s 2025 finances
PCDC has reported the sum amount of $893,898 in total revenue for 2025. Of that reported amount, $893,410 came from contributions, gifts and grants, while only $488 was reported as program-service revenue. Government grants accounted for $389,743, while other contributions and grants totaled $503,667.
The organization then reported $936,068 in total expenses, leaving it with the sum total of $42,170 deficit for the year.
According to the available record, the nonprofit ended 2025 with $224,556 in net assets and reported no liabilities. Its assets approximately included $7,149 in cash, along with $213,550 in net land, buildings and equipment and $3,857 in other of its assets.
From the said amount calculated above, Winans’ reportedly received compensation of $538,955 represented approximately 57.6% of the nonprofit’s total expenses and was classified as program-related compensation on the filing. The filing also lists $87,229 in employee benefits and the sum of $39,426 in payroll taxes, Note; those amounts should not be automatically described as the additional salary that was paid to Winans personally.
The nonprofit further listed four people in its officer/key-employee section. Winans was the president and he received the reported compensation, while Marquida Herron, Cynthia Williams and Eric Whitted were listed at $0 compensation.
Winans’ compensation history
Here’s the break down of the $538,955 figure representing a dramatic increase from the compensation reported in earlier years.
According to the nonprofit’s IRS filings, Winans’ reported compensation in 5-years was:
– 2020: $205,224
– 2021: $240,921
– 2022: $276,560
– 2023: $340,622
– 2024: $444,234
– 2025: $538,955
This shows that, the reported compensation increased by $333,731 between 2020 and 2025, rising from $205,224 to $538,955. The break down report represents an increase of roughly 162.6% over the five-year period.
Looking at it, the 2025 figure was also $94,721 higher than his reported 2024 compensation of the sum of $444,234.
His 2024 compensation was itself $103,612 higher than the $340,622 reported for 2023.
Government funding
The compensation controversy has also drawn massive public attention because PCDC on the other hand has received government funding.
In 2024, Michigan announced a $500,000 Community Center Grant for Perfecting Community Development Corporation. The state’s official grant listing identifies PCDC as a $500,000 recipient in Detroit.
The Center Square then reported that the grant was initially connected to a broader $64 million Community Center Grants program which was announced by Michigan in 2024. Further Report indicated that the grant money was connected to federal pandemic-relief funding.
Here’s an important part of it, a spokesperson for Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Erica Quealy, told The Center Square that the department had no evidence that Winans had misused the grant money and said the state’s reporting records showed the organization was spending the grant appropriately.
That statement is from him is very much significant because it distinguishes questions about the size or structure of compensation from an allegation that grant funds were illegally or improperly used. The available reporting does not establish that Winans misused government money.
Other government and nonprofit funding
PCDC’s IRS records show that its funding has come from multiple sources. The nonprofit’s filings indicate grants or support involving the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the federal Emergency Food and Shelter Program, Michigan’s Out-of-School Time Grant Program, and private organizations.
HUD records, for example, show a $57,547 2024 Continuum of Care award for a PCDC rapid-rehousing project called “Perfect Correct RRH Home FY2024.”
Michigan education records also show PCDC receiving an Out-of-School Time grant. For the 2023-24 program, the listed amount was $136,800, with $112,800 shown in the relevant funding column.
A later Michigan grant record lists PCDC for $66,240 in the 2024-25 Out-of-School Time program, and a school-district check register shows a $66,240 grant-award payment to PCDC on December 20, 2024.
The $867,000 figure
The Center Square reported that government grants to PCDC during the two years preceding its report totaled approximately $867,000, while Winans’ reported compensation during those same two years was just under $1 million.
That comparison has fueled discussion about the relationship between government funding and executive compensation. But the figures should not be interpreted as meaning that the government directly paid Winans $1 million. The nonprofit receives funding from multiple sources, and its Form 990 reports compensation separately from its revenue sources.
The nonprofit’s employees
Another detail highlighted in the reporting is that PCDC previously had substantially more paid employees.
According to the IRS filings discussed by The Center Square, the organization had 11 paid employees in earlier years. Beginning in 2020, the organization reported paying Winans a salary while no other employees were listed as paid employees. Instead, the organization reported 15 volunteers.
The nonprofit currently reports no full-time employees in some nonprofit databases, while Winans remains listed as its compensated president.
Who determines Winans’ salary?
The reporting states that Winans’ compensation is determined by a four-person oversight board, and Winans is himself a member of that board. PCDC told the IRS that compensation was based on local market rates and the organization’s ability to pay salaries.
The nonprofit’s governance filing also lists four voting board members, all four identified as independent voting members, and says the organization had a conflict-of-interest policy. However, the same nonprofit data indicates that the top official’s compensation was not independently reviewed.
The separate church salary
It is important not to combine Winans’ nonprofit compensation with his compensation from Perfecting Church.
Winans is also the pastor of Perfecting Church in Detroit. Churches generally do not have to file the same detailed Form 990 reports that many other nonprofits file, meaning his compensation from the church is not publicly disclosed through the same federal filing. The reported $538,955 therefore concerns his role with Perfecting Community Development Corporation, not an established total salary from every organization or ministry with which he is associated.
The church’s unfinished building
The controversy also comes amid fundraising for a large unfinished Perfecting Church complex.
The project was proposed in the early 2000s and was originally estimated by Winans to cost approximately $60 million. Construction began in 2004 but stalled during the 2008 financial crisis.
In 2023, the City of Detroit sued Perfecting Church over the unfinished property. The church later agreed to complete the project and indicated that the work could potentially be finished by the end of 2026.
The church subsequently held fundraising efforts, including a Day of Giving in October 2025. Winans asked congregants to give $1,000 of their own money plus another $1,000 raised from others, creating a requested total of $2,000 per participant.
One woman’s $1,235 contribution became the subject of a viral controversy after Winans questioned why she had not brought the full requested amount. Winans and the woman later said the interaction had been misunderstood, with the woman explaining that she had approached at the wrong time during the giving process.
Tyler Perry subsequently gave $100,000 to Perfecting Church following the controversy, according to reporting cited by The Center Square.
What is established and what is disputed?
The clearest distinction is this:
Established by the public IRS filing: PCDC’s 2025 Form 990 lists Marvin Winans as president and reports $538,955 in compensation for him. The organization reported $893,898 in revenue and $936,068 in expenses that year.
Reported by The Center Square: The president’s position was described as half-time, and the publication calculated an effective rate of approximately $518 per hour.
Disputed by Winans: A later report says Winans rejects the characterization that he received the reported $538,955 and says an accounting error was responsible for the figure.
Not established by the available evidence: There is no evidence in the sources reviewed that Winans personally misused the $500,000 Michigan grant. A state spokesperson specifically said the department had no evidence of misuse and that its records showed the grant was being spent appropriately.
Therefore, the most precise description is not simply that Winans “was paid $545,000.” The public filing currently reports $538,955, while Winans disputes the accuracy of that reported compensation and attributes the figure to an accounting error. The discrepancy between the filing and his denial is the central unresolved issue in the story.
