2011 Budget takes center stage at Adjourned Session
8/26/2010
A $10.7 million budget will take center stage when clergy and lay members of the Upper New York Annual Conference meet in a special Adjourned Session Saturday, Sept. 11 at the Empire State Plaza in Albany, NY.
The administrative and benevolence budget was drafted by members of the Council on Finance and Administration and the four senior executives of the conference. According to the memo from Conference Treasurer Sherri L. Mackey and Director of Connectional Ministries William Gottschalk-Fielding, the budget was created to “carry us through our first full year with sufficient funding to continue operations, meet pressing needs, support inspiring programming, and grow the mission and ministry areas into which God is leading us.
“God is leading all of us to something new, on a path to living out our vision,” the memo states. “Through the necessity of funding this budget, we, as the Upper New York Annual Conference, are positioning ourselves to say ‘Yes!’ to God’s call to us, to love God, and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.”
The proposed budget reflects the reality that the conference, which opened July 1, is starting new, and that ministries, programs and missions will be created over the next year to meet the needs of the local churches and the communities around them. It also covers the costs of adding permanent staff at the conference level to support and provide resources for the local churches.
In addition, the United Methodist Book of Discipline mandates ministry areas that are funded by the budget. Emerging ministry funds will be overseen by the Conference Leadership Team, which was elected at the Uniting Conference.
The conference budget is funded by Ministry Shares (or apportionments), received from local churches. According to the memo accompanying the budget, the Council on Finance and Administration and the Management Team decided that the churches Ministry Shares will remain constant for 2011. However, the memo stated, “it is expected that each and every church will meet its Ministry Share obligation in 2011.”
The memo adds that, by approving the budget, the members of the conference recognize the obligation of the churches to fully participate in supporting the connection through payment of their Ministry Shares.
Members attending the Special Session in Albany on Sept. 11 are being asked to download and print copies of the budget packet, and all other materials posted on the Annual Conference Session web page.
Download the budget packet.
Read the Director of Connectional Ministries blog about the budget packet.
