Breaking News – Maybe? – on the TEC Budget. UPDATED

public domain image

Is the current budgeted amount for Formation in 2013-2015 (a 90% reduction from the previous triennium) an error?

Last night on the Deputy Online Forum for General Convention 2012, the following was posted by Deputy Steve Smith (my emphasis in last paragraph):

It seemed useful to share this message from the Rt. Rev Steve Lane, co-chair of PB&F, that he posted on several sites following presentation of the EC draft budget at the Province One Synod meeting.

At last week’s Province I Synod Pre-Convention meeting, I presented the draft proposed budget for 2013-2015. Present with me were Province I’s Executive Council members, members of Program, Budget and Finance, PB&F Chair Diane Pollard, the President of the House of Deputies, the Secretary of General Convention, and Del Glover, Chair of Executive Council’s subcommittee on finance. In the course of my presentation and the subsequent question and answer period, it became clear that there are a some internal inconsistencies and at least one error in the draft proposed budget.

The draft proposed budget is balanced at $104.9 million. However, there is an internal inconsistency related to the Development Office. The amount proposed as income for the Development Office is $3.7 million and the amount proposed for expense is $2.5 million. If the the two numbers are brought into alignment, either by decreasing income or increasing expense, then the budget will be unbalanced by about $1.2 million.

There is also an apparent inconsistency in the sum of the amounts proposed for Grants and Covenants. The total listed is $15 million. Adding the internal line items results in a sum of something less. When I do the math it’s about $14 million, but it’s not clear at this time if the active spreadsheet would correct this seeming error in the pdf copy of the draft proposed budget.

Finally, the amount of $286,438 for Formation and Vocation is an error. Although Executive Council was clearly reducing the amount for this part of the budget, the actual number was lost in the complex process of combining the 15% and 19% cases the Executive Council used to build the draft proposed budget. The budget was adopted and Executive Council adjourned before the error was discovered. Questions have been asked regarding what the “real” number might have been. Council members at the Province I Synod suggested something in the range of $1.9 million. Other knowledgeable persons suggested $1 million. PB&F will need to address this matter at General Convention. Restoring funds to Formation and Vocation will require taking funds from other places.

Deputy Smith, it is indeed useful to share this.  Here are some logical questions to ask in response:

1. To Deputy Smith: Where are the “several sites” on which this memo was posted?  A Google search for the quoted term “The draft proposed budget is balanced at $104.9 million.” returned zero results.  I do not find this document posted on the Program, Budget and Finance Blog, on the Rt. Rev. Steve Lane’s personal blog, or easily accessible on the Province 1 website.  It certainly seems like an important document to this conversation.  Could you refer us to the original?
2. To Program, Budget & Finance: Assuming that Deputy Smith is referring to an existing, public document, would you please make this document more public?  If Deputy Smith is not referring to an existing public document, would you please clarify whether the statements alleged to have been delivered by the Rt. Rev. Steve Lane are an accurate representation of the facts of the proposed budget?

It would be wonderful, for the sake of our common life in Christ, if these questions could be answered quickly–before the blogosphere lights up with more and bigger fireworks about the budget process.

My gratitude to the Rev. Stefani Schatz, a Deputy from the Diocese of Nevada, for bringing this item to my attention. 

UPDATE:

It’s been about three hours since I posted this, and lots has happened.  Most importantly, the questions have been answered.  Thanks to Sharon Ely Pearson in the comments for clarifying the situation.  The statement from Program, Budget and Finance Co-Chairs the Rt. Rev. Steve Lane and Ms. Diane Pollard is now publicly available on Building the Continuum and the Episcopal Cafe.

Of course, this all leads to a new series of even more significant questions.  Once again the Rev. Susan Snook is doing a fine job asking them (see the first comment on the Episcopal Cafe post.)