ELCA NEWS SERVICE

November 18, 2003

ELCA Council Sets 2004 Churchwide Spending; Programs, Staff Reduced
03-208-JB

     CHARLOTTE, N.C. (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) adopted a 2004
current-fund spending authorization of $81.5 million, a reduction
from the $84.3 million budget adopted by the 2003 ELCA Churchwide
Assembly.  As a result, 25 positions within the ELCA churchwide
organization are directly affected, including 13 employees who
were in those positions. In addition, funding for some programs
will be eliminated, and there will be no pay increases for
churchwide employees, mission developers and missionaries in
2004.
     The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and
serves as the legislative authority of the church between
churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 13-16 at the
invitation of the ELCA North Carolina Synod, and joined in a
celebration of the synod's 200th anniversary Nov. 15 at Wake
Forest University, Winston-Salem, N.C.  Churchwide assemblies are
held every other year; the next is Aug. 8-14, 2005, in Orlando,
Fla.
     The council adopted a spending authorization of $16.25
million for the ELCA World Hunger Program for 2004 -- the same as
the budget adopted by the churchwide assembly.  The ELCA's 2004
fiscal year begins Feb. 1.
     In a report to the council, Linda J. Brown, council member
and chair of the council's budget and finance committee,
Moorhead, Minn., said estimates for 2004 had to be revised from
what the churchwide assembly approved.  She cited projected
declines in two key areas -- mission support from congregations
through synods and investment income -- as the reasons to revise
current fund spending down $2.8 million.
     The ELCA's 10,721 congregations are organized into 65 synods
across the United States and Caribbean.
     Mission support for 2004 is projected to be $67.2 million, a
decline of nearly $2.3 million, and investment income is
projected to be $900,000, a $400,000 decline, she said.
     A "short-term response" was needed to address the revised
estimates, Brown said.  She also said she is confident that a
reorganization of the ELCA churchwide offices, expected in about
one year, will help its overall health.
     To meet the income projections, the presiding bishop's
planning team -- made up of churchwide officers and executive
directors of churchwide units -- agreed to reduce spending in
each unit by 3.41 percent, said the Rev. Charles S. Miller,
executive for administration and executive assistant to the
presiding bishop, ELCA Office of the Presiding Bishop.
Reductions in programs and personnel, when necessary, were to be
accomplished with the church's strategic directions and
priorities in mind, he said.
     Miller explained that the equivalent of 20.05 full-time
positions will be eliminated as a result of the council's action.
Eight employees were affected by involuntary terminations or
reductions in full-time status to part-time; five employees chose
to leave or offered to become part-time employees, he said.  The
remaining positions eliminated were vacant, he said.
     To achieve the $2.8 million spending reduction for 2004,
$1.3 million was saved through the policy of no salary increases,
$1 million was saved through position reductions, and $500,000
was saved through specific program cuts, Miller said.  Those cuts
included travel costs, grants for specific ministries and
elimination of programs.
     In a second related action, the council set aside $100,000
in a designated fund from the church's general treasury to cover
"separation pay and accrued, unused vacation days for staff whose
positions may be eliminated" in 2004.  Any money remaining in the
fund after Feb. 29, 2004 is to be returned to the general
treasury, the council said.
     A much more comprehensive plan to reorganize the churchwide
organization and address declines in income was announced Sept.
15 by the Office of the Presiding Bishop.  However, the Rev. Mark
S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, withdrew the plan Oct. 18 after
heavy criticism and concerns about the process were raised
throughout the church.   But the projected income declines for
2004 remained, necessitating the across-the-board reductions.
     Following their action, some council members wanted to talk
about how to reverse the decline in mission support to the
church.
     "I would welcome that," said Hanson.  "Our mission is
overshadowed by these cuts.  We need to hold one another
accountable for finances and mission. You (council members) are
key to helping turn this around."
     When the church's elected council members talk to elected
leaders in synods about mission support funds, those
conversations are "different" than similar conversations between
churchwide and synod staff, Hanson said.
     "Are you exercising fully your responsibility as church
council elected leaders?" Hanson asked.  "I just want to push you
a little bit here."
     "I feel that we have allowed staff to bear the burden of
this," said Earl L. Mummert, council member, Harrisburg, Pa.  "As
a council, we have not assumed responsibility for this."  Synod
bishops and council members should work together to "solve this
problem," he said.
     "We have a collective responsibility to work with the
[presiding] bishop and others to effect a plan about how we do
our business," said Grieg L. Anderson, council member, Portland,
Ore.
     Janet Thompson, council member and chair of the council's
planning and evaluation committee, Eagan, Minn., said the
committee already plans to bring a plan to the council in April
to address synodical-churchwide consultations and ongoing contact
as they apply to mission support concerns.

Treasurer Reports 'Disappointing' 2003 Financial Results Through
September
     For the current fiscal year through September 2003, $2
million less than was anticipated was contributed to the ELCA
churchwide organization, said Christina Jackson-Skelton, ELCA
treasurer.  Most of the loss was attributed to a drop in mission
support from congregations through synods and investment income,
she reported.  Mission support through September was $40.8
million, a decrease of $1.4 million compared to one year ago, and
investment income was off $500,000 from the same time one year
ago, Jackson-Skelton said.
      Mission support from "many, many synods" is down, the
treasurer said, but she added she is still hopeful the churchwide
organization can close the fiscal year Jan. 31 with little or no
operating deficit as a result of careful spending.
     "Our focus at this point through the end of the year is on
mission support," Jackson-Skelton said.
     By contrast, the ELCA World Hunger Appeal is "having a good
year," she said.  Contributions through September totaled $7.8
million, an increase of $500,000 from the same period in 2002.
What has helped was a project of the ELCA Youth Gathering this
past summer to raise funds for world hunger programs.  The
project contributed more than $700,000 to the World Hunger and
Stand With Africa appeals, she said.
     Jackson-Skelton also noted that the overall performance of
the ELCA's Mission Investment Fund (MIF) through September
"exceeded our expectations."  The MIF assists ELCA congregations
and related institutions by providing building funds through low-
interest loans.  Lower rates and more loan availability in 2003
have benefited congregations, she said.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://www.elca.org/news