Innovation in GC’s triennium budget.

A few days ago, PB&F sent a message to both houses warning us that the budget was being pared down and that almost every area of the budget would be affected.  They even had a few ideas for us for ways to pare down the cost of 2012’s General Convention meeting.

They weren’t kidding.

The 2010-2012 budget for TEC is a budget that reflects a commitment by the church to live within its means.  AS PB&F Chair Pam Adams-McCaslin reminded us, “We cannot spend what we will not give.”  PB&F presented a balanced budget that reflected the mission of the church, based on our budget priorities for the new triennium.  While not every resolution with budget implications was funded, there were a few new areas of ministry that PB&F honored.  Specifically they added funding for Hispanic ministries, which offered a bold new visioning of their ministry in TEC; there is increased funding for Jubilee Ministries who’s programs will focus on domestic poverty issues; and there was a new piece of the budget offering help to new seminarians with debt relief.  While this last piece might seem a bit self-serving, helping out our new brothers and sisters entering into the call to priesthood is both economically responsible as the debt from seminary can be quite extensive, and it will allow new priests to be able to accept a wider range of calls to parishes who may not have the financial bases of larger churches, but who would like new vision in how their churches might grow.  In short, our seminarians can serve in the churches that need them most with some financial help from TEC.  These three new budget items as well as the few others increased show a new commitment to funding programs that are an outward sign of the mission of our church!

PB&F made some pretty decisive changes in the way we will do business in the next Triennium.  They made cuts across the board to programs in the purview of the budget, including eliminating 30 church staff positions and consolidating some programs, while eliminating others that our currently being or can be served in other areas of our TEC body.  They have also cut the budget for the CCABs (Committees, Commissions, Agencies, and Boards), which continue to do the work of the church during the triennium.  PB&F is calling for fewer meeting of CCABs, budgeting for only two face-to-face meetings over the next three years.  The first meeting of 2010 will provide training for all members of the CCABs on how to use online technology and conference calls to run meetings as a low-cost alternative for the work to be done between those budgeted meetings.  It’s a necessary move if we are going to be good stewards of our time and resources.  With the infrastructure in place, we have no good reason to delay using our technology in this way. 

PB&F is also asking for some major re-visioning of how we run General Convention, an entity which has much environmental and financial impact on our church and world.  The first area of major impact is the calling for GC 2012 to be as paperless as possible.  The implications for environmental stewardship are vast! PB&F is advocating a paperless Bluebook for that convention, where the Bluebook would be an online resource, instead of a paper book.  While not specifically discussed, I am confident that there will be bound copies of the Bluebook for those who do not have computer or Internet access.  This year, our Bluebooks included a CD copy of the resolutions, which I used almost exclusively while preparing for convention.  This move to wireless seems a step in the right direction for conserving paper.  Worship and the business of the floor are also going to be as paperless as possible in Indiana.  PB&F has asked that GC 2012 provides wireless Internet for the floor of both houses during convention to allow for the saving of some paper resources during the meeting.  While the details are not worked out yet, I am excited for the possibilities of new ways of doing our work.  The environmental impact of making 800+ copies of hundreds of pages of resolutions, worship bulletins, and various other pieces of paper is staggering at the least. 

PB&F also heard the wishes of the church to continue to show our commitment to the Millennium Development Goals.  They put back into the budget a .7% line item to go to the MDGs.  As the chairs told us, this is sign to the world of the Episcopal Church’s priorities.

PB&F has also tried to respond to the hard economic times that our churches and Dioceses are facing across TEC by proposing reduced asking percentages this triennium.  The 2010 Diocesan asking will remain at 21%, 2011 is 20% and 2012 is 19%.  Additionally, PB&F has proposed changing the formula for assessment of asking so that dioceses are able to keep more money in their own budget by increasing the amount not included in the formula from $100,000 to $125,000. PB&F is hoping that by leaving more money in a Diocese’s budget, more of our Diocese will in turn pay their full (or close to their full) asking to TEC.  It’s a bold move, as many Dioceses do not come close to the 21% now.  However, it is honoring the struggles we all have during this economic turn.  On another note, I am proud that our Diocese pays our 21% every year.  It’s empowering to know that we are helping to live out the mission of the church through our financial contribution even when times are tight!

 While the budget is never going to be perfect, or make everyone happy, this current budget shows a commitment by TEC to live as a financially responsible entity, supporting the mission we are called out to live in our world.  It reflects a prayer-filled process of pruning the tree so that we can grow to bear more fruit.  The Rt. Rev. Andrew Smith, vice-chair of PB&F, said, “We believe that this budget is responsive to the Gospel, the voice of the convention, and the economic realities of our time.” As a deputy who has spent a bit of time in both the House and PB&F hearings, I couldn’t agree more. 

 As a young adult trying to find my own way through our new economic situation, I am proud to be a member of a church who is modeling budgetary prudence and finding creative ways to live within its means.  A church that not only gives when it lives in abundance, but which gives when it is challenged with scaricity.