wfn.org | [ENS] Executive Council proposed budget heads for General Convention

["Matthew Davies" <mdavies@episcopalchurch.org>]

Thursday, January 12, 2006

Executive Council proposed budget heads for General Convention
Funding of Anglican Consultative Council retained

By Mary Frances Schjonberg

ENS011206-04

[Episcopal News Service] The Executive Council approved a $151,986,107
proposed budget for the 2007-2009 triennium at the end of its meeting in
Des
Moines, Iowa, on January 12.

The budget now goes to the General Convention's Joint Standing Committee
on
Program, Budget and Finance Committee (PB&F) for hearings and possible
revision and then will be presented to General Convention for approval
in
June.

The budget is about $10 million, or three percent, larger than the
current
triennium budget.

The largest amount of debate was spent on the eventual decision to meet
a
request by the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) that all members of
the
Anglican Communion increase their giving to the Communion in the coming
three years. Those increases amount to $550,000, making the Episcopal
Church's total contribution $2.350 million.

The draft budget did not include those increases but instead kept the
church's contribution to the ACC at $1.8 million. The version of the
budget
that came to the council from its Administration and Finance Committee
(A&F)
contained an unallocated line item of $550,000. The intention was for
the
General Convention to decide whether the church should comply with the
ACC's
full request.

"What we were trying to do is present the issue to General Convention
and
frame that issue to General Convention," Bishop Stacy F. Sauls of
Lexington
told the council.

Josephine Hicks, a member of the church's ACC deputation, urged the
council
to meet the ACC's request in the version of the budget it gives to PB&F.
Saying she understood the idea of asking the Convention to decide, Hicks
countered that the council needed to make "a leadership statement" and
tell
PB&F that it believes the request should be honored.

Some council members asked if the ACC had justified its request for more
money. Church treasurer Kurt Barnes said that the ACC for the last two
years
has given the Episcopal Church the audits, budgets and budget narratives
that the church asks of all its block grant recipients.

While Hicks said the ACC has said it needs more money to pay for the
newly
formed Panel of Reference and the listening process advocated by the
Windsor
Report, she also said she thought that it was "immaterial" why ACC
needed
the money.

"I think it's important for our relationship with the ACC not to nitpick
and
ask what do you need it for," she said.

Hicks and Sauls said that meeting the ACC's request was similar to what
congregations ask of their members and dioceses ask of their
congregations.

"If we don't do this I think we will have lost a large amount of moral
authority," Sauls said.

Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold agreed. "If we don't model it, how can
we
expect people to meet our own askings," he said.

The $550,000 came from other domestic and international mission
programs,
including eliminating a $180,000 increase in funding to the covenant
with
Liberia, $136,000 for grants and meetings of domestic mission partners,
and
a $108,000 increase from the budget for historically black colleges;
zeroing
out $75,000 for the Commission of Religion in Appalachia and $42,000 for
the
Episcopal Appalachian Ministries; and taking $9,000 from the contingency
fund for overseas dioceses.

Some council members objected to cutting mission programs, especially
domestic ones, to pay for an increased contribution to the ACC. But
Sauls,
who first proposed the cuts in the council's Administration and Finance
Committee, said he did not think that the ministries in Appalachia would
be
hurt and might be helped. Sauls also said that sometimes sacrifices must
be
made at home for the good of the larger community.

After the council approved the $550,000 increase, Catherine Roskam,
bishop
suffragan of New York and a member of the council's ACC deputation, told
the
council that she had abstained from the vote because she "couldn't think
clearly enough" because of the strong feelings she still has about the
way
the deputation had been treated at the last ACC meeting in Nottingham.
She
said she also thought that the council had not had a full enough
discussion
on a decision that had "a lot of implications."

She said that no matter how the question was decided, it would be
interpreted in various ways by people on all sides of the issue of the
Episcopal Church's relationship with the Anglican Communion. "I don't
think
how we're seen is a very good criterion for making decisions," she said.

The 2007-2009 budget assumes increases in diocesan revenue commitments
of
2.5 percent, three percent and three percent in the consecutive years of
the
period. (Church canons require a balanced budget.)

The budget assumes a five percent draw on endowment funds, which is one
half
percent less than that in the current triennium. The half percent
amounts to
about $3 million. The budget also anticipates receiving a net rental
income
of $2.2 million for space in the newly renovated Church Center in New
York
City.

The budget also promises to reduce staff costs by $825,000 during the
three
years through attrition and retirements.

In terms of expenses, major increases involve:

+ repayment of the line of credit used to pay for the $34 million
renovation
of the Church Center

+ the Church Deployment Office, for research and development and
administering the Fresh Start program for clergy and parishes

+ increased rent and the addition of a digital content manager for the
Archives of the Episcopal Church

+ reserves for presiding bishop transition costs every nine years

+ increased support for the Pastoral Leadership Search Effort (PLSE)

+ increased spending for missionaries and the Young Adult Service Corps
(YASC)

+ a two percent increase in staff salaries each year

+ increased Jubilee Grants

+ expanded special assistance grants for Episcopal Migration Ministries.

The council on January 12 also approved a revised budget for 2006, the
final
year of the 2004-2006 triennium, of $50,078,679. The triennial budget
total
is $141,998,422, including a projected surplus estimated at $18,730.

The 2006 budget reflects $29.2 million in income from diocesan
commitments
both in signed pledges and indications of pledges. That amount is a two
percent increase from 2005. Among the signed pledges, 25 dioceses will
meet
the church's asking of 21 percent of income.

The budget assumes increases in expenses due to General Convention, the
transition and installation of the 26th Presiding Bishop, increased use
of
translators and a joint meeting of all committees, commissions, agencies
and
boards (CCABs) in November 2006. Mission program increases are in line
with
income growth. Staff salaries will see an overall three percent
increase.

As part of its report on the 2004-2006 triennial budget, the A&F
committee
told the council that the church is more than meeting the United
Nations'
call for directing 0.7 percent of income in support of its Millennium
Development Goals (MDG). Out of a triennium revenue of $124,476,418,
some
$8,182 million of direct spending can be attributed to MDG initiatives.
Contributed services such as utilities, mail services,
telecommunications
and information technology amount to another $1,768,546 ,for a total of
$9,950,546, or eight percent of income.

In other actions, the council:

+ Authorized a $3 million increase in the cost for renovating the Church
Center at 815 Second Avenue in New York to pay for change orders
required by
unforeseen costs.

+ Authorized the creation of the Episcopal Church Diocesan Emergency
Fund
(ECDEF) to help dioceses in emergency situations meet salary and
insurance
needs of clergy and lay staff (NAC-041) and said the fund should provide
relief to Gulf Coast dioceses as promptly as possible. The Rt. Rev.
George
Packard, Bishop Suffragan for Chaplaincies and one of the leaders of the
church's recovery efforts on the Gulf Coast, said that clergy and lay
staff
who live through traumatic events need "compassionate sustainment" as
they
sort out whether they can and will stay in place or look for new jobs.

Amid warnings that changes in the climate will mean future disasters
such as
those that struck the Gulf Coast, church treasurer Kurt Barnes urged the
council to have the fund investigate whether dioceses and congregations
should have business-contingency insurance rather than expect ECDEF to
cover
such expenses.

The council asked for a report at its March meeting in Philadelphia on
the
progress towards providing relief and setting up ECDEF.

+ Passed resolution AF-102 that recommends to PB&F that it tell the
Convention that resolutions with funding requests and implications that
are
passed by the Convention but not included in the budget will not be
considered for funding in the coming triennium. If there is a surplus at
the
end of that triennium, it would reimburse the endowment if the previous
triennium's budget drew more than five percent from those funds. If the
draw
was at the normal five percent, or if money remains after a needed
reimbursement, a committee would be set up to consider new mission
initiatives.

+ Heard a statement from its National Concerns Committee urging the
Presiding Bishop to share as much information as he can about pastoral
and
legal efforts the church has undertaken in the last three years "to
support
the church's unity and future well-being." Those efforts mainly concern
parishes troubled by the actions of the 2003 General Convention. The
committee's statement said clergy and lay people are anxious about
relationships within the church and that learning about what is being
done
would help ease that anxiety. It also asked that the information be
disseminated widely before the coming General Convention in June.

+ Commended to dioceses and individual Episcopalians the call for mutual
listening on matters of human sexuality by provinces of the Anglican
Communion, urging that those listening experiences involve gay and
lesbian
Anglicans, and directed the church treasurer to identify discretionary
and
other money that might help financially strapped dioceses to participate
in
those conversations. Proposals to provide money from the church and have
the
program administered through the Office of the Presiding Bishop were
taken
out of the resolution that eventually came to the full council.

+ Approved the Episcopal Church's membership in the Religious Coalition
for
Reproductive Choice. The membership had caused some controversy during
the
last General Convention. In a related resolution (NAC-040), the council
asked for a report at its March meeting regarding "membership of or on
behalf of the Episcopal Church in external organizations." The National
Concerns Committee is considering whether the church needs a more
specific
policy on membership in such organizations.

+ Heard from Bishop Michael Ingham of New Westminster, the Anglican
Church
of Canada's partner representative on the Executive Council. Ingham told
the
council that he was gratified by the 15-year partnership between the
Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church that he said has
helped
to "reestablish the common mission of Christ we all share." Speaking
about
the division of North America after the American Revolution, he told the
council that this renewed relationship is a good example of how it
"takes
courage for future generations to overcome our own histories."

Administration and Finance Committee

A&F 092: All resolutions passed by the Executive Council shall be
deemed, as
appropriate, to have been passed by the Board of Directors of the
Domestic
and Foreign Missionary Society.

A&F 093: Affirm the recommendations of the Commission on Theological
Education for Latin America and the Caribbean, and approve the following
requests in the total amount of $428,690 from the income of Trust Fund
#809.

A & F 094: Appoint to the Investment Committee the Rev. Maurice
Goldsmith,
replacing Jean Sheridan.

A & F 095: Adopt revised official Travel Guidelines for the Domestic and
Foreign Missionary Society, effective 01/01/06.

A & F 096: Set dividend rate for 2006 for the DFMS Trust Fund portfolios
available to support the operating budget of DFMS at $1.05 per share;
and
set he dividend rate for 2006 for Trust Funds in the DFMS Endowment
Portfolio that are not available to support the operating budget of DFMS
be
set at $1..05 per share.

A & F 097: Approve the 2006 revised budget for The Episcopal Church.

A & F 098: Approve the proposed budget for the Episcopal Church for the
2007-2009 triennium, as amended.

A & F 099: Set formulas for clergy housing allowances for DFMS staff
clergy..

A & F 100: Set 2006 parsonage allowance for Presiding Bishop Frank T.
Griswold.

A & F 101: Establish Trust Fund #1007 to hold and invest funds from the
Bishop Gray Inns Foundation, Winter Park, Florida.

A & F 102: Recommend to the Joint Standing Committee on Program, Budget
&
Finance that they include in the budget presentation at General
Convention
(GC) that resolutions with funding requests/implications that are passed
by
GC, but not included in the budget, will not be considered for funding
by
the council once GC has concluded, except under a process outlined in
the
resolution for dealing with triennium surpluses.

A & F 103: Amend resolution AF-031 (project budget for the renovation of
the
Episcopal Church Center} not to exceed $34 million.

Congregations in Ministry Committee

CIM 041-a: Amends CIM 041 to remove mention of a publication so that
cost of
providing that publication would not be incurred.

CIM 043: Requests that, since liturgy celebrates the common life of the
church, the planning, the worship leaders, the languages, the music, and
the
visual imagery for the worship of the General Convention reflect the
full
diversity of church.

CIM 044: Approve the proposal of Ministry with Young Adults and Youth to
support General Convention 2006 youth and young adult activities with a
grant of $108,885 from the Constable Fund.

International Concerns Committee

INC 060: Welcomes and encourages the call for mutual listening on
matters of
human sexuality by provinces of the Anglican Communion.

INC 061: Commends the Diocese of Dominican Republic and the Diocese of
Haiti
for their plans to convene a Consultation on Mission in Port au Prince
in
September for the purpose of increasing mutual understanding and working
toward reconciliation and peace between their countries and allocated
$10,000 in support.

INC 062: Commends the Diocese of Haiti for its initiative in
establishing
the Desmond Tutu Center for Peace and Reconciliation in Port au Prince,
Haiti, and agrees to send thee council members to the opening on
February
12.

INC 063: Agrees to convene in an Episcopal diocese outside the United
States
for at least one of regular council meeting in the 2007-09 triennium and
suggests the Diocese of Haiti, the Diocese of Venezuela, or one of the
two
dioceses in Ecuador, in that priority order.

INC 064: Commends to the church "Eradicating Global Poverty: a Christian
Study Guide on the Millennium Development Goals," a study guide produced
by
the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA

INC 065: Approves a resolution to present to General Convention
recommending
study of "A Covenant for Communion in Mission" developed by the
Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Mission and Evangelism.

National Concerns Committee

NAC 017: Approve the Episcopal Church membership in the Religious
Coalition
for Reproductive Choice.

NAC 038: Changes a proposed General Convention resolution to change the
date
for dioceses to report on the issues of Episcopal Church involvement in
slavery.

NAC 039: Reviews Jubilee Grants made.

NAC 040: Requests information from Church Center staff for its March
2006
meeting regarding membership of or on behalf of TEC in external
organizations.

NAC 041: Authorizes creation of the Episcopal Church Diocesan Emergency
Fund
(ECDEF).

-- The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is national correspondent for the
Episcopal News Service.

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