Delegates adopt $21.2 million budget, insurance provisions

By Alice M. Smith
Wesleyan Christian Advocate
alice@wcadvocate.org

AUGUSTA_North Ga. UMs adopted a $21.2 million budget for 2003 and approved changes in paying for clergy health insurance that don't represent increased dollar amounts to churches or pastors but do bring the conference into compliance with the IRS regulations and the denomination's Judicial Council.

"The net amount [for insurance] really won't change," Jack Edmunds, a member of Hartwell First UMC and incoming chair of the Conference Council on Finance and Administration (CFA), told lay delegates during an orientation session on the opening day of conference. "It will just come from a different line item in your church's operating budget."

Under the new plan, deductions from clergy payrolls will go toward their current health insurance in order for the deductions to be taken on a pre-tax basis and to meet IRS regulations. Under a plan previously adopted by the annual conference, clergy reductions helped pay a portion of the unfunded liability for a Medicare supplement for conference retirees. The unfunded liability is estimated at $35 million.

In order to deal with unfunded liability, a new apportionment category, area 13 called "future retiree medical insurance," has been created in the conference budget. This action brings the conference into compliance with Judicial Council ruling decision 923, which said that funding for future retirees medical insurance must come from either apportioned funding, a capital funding drive or other fundraising done by the annual conference. The area 13 apportionment for 2003 is $1.2 million.

Another change, also mandated by the Judicial Council ruling, is that family coverage will not be mandated for clergy; instead they will be able to select one of three options: employee, employee and one dependent, and family. The changes will go into effect July 1.

"It's complicated," Edmunds said, "and the addition of area 13 is a `stop-gap' measure. It's putting a band-aid on the problem. Our goal this year is to make us comply with the IRS and Judicial Council, but we need better long-term solutions."

The overall budget for next year is a 14.4 percent increase over 2002, with about 63 percent of the increase coming from two items relating to retired clergy_the new health insurance category and the cost of providing pension benefits for clergy for their service prior to 1982, when the current denomination-wide pension program was adopted.
General and jurisdictional apportionments account for 13.5 percent of the increased budget for next year.

With regard to general church apportionments, the Rev. John Simmons, out-going CFA chair, noted that North Georgia was one of just 22 annual conferences that paid more than 95 percent of its apportionments last year, despite an economic recession and more than $900,000 in donations to the United Methodist Committee on Relief's "Love in the Midst of Tragedy" offering to aid victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
In the only change delegates made to the proposed budget from CFA, the amount for Cantemos, the conference youth choir, was increased from $8,000 to $20,000.

In another action by the conference, the insurance committee and the pensions board are being merged to reflect the structure at the denominational level, where pensions and insurance are lodged in the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits.

In some really good news for the conference, treasurer Keith Cox noted the conference's membership increase in 2001 was 7,404 for a total membership of 322,125. Professions of faith grew by 913 to 7,734, while worship attendance was up 4,661 for a total of 133,749.

What's more, he said, apportionments are up this year through May 31 by approximately $550,000 over 2001.