Dear Arkansas Annual Conference,
Greetings from your Conference Council on Finance and Administration (CFA). We (CFA) want to update you regarding work that has been done on three items that are an outflow of Annual Conference 2023. You will recall the issues are: review and offer a recommendation regarding pastoral moving expenses, review of salaries for Conference staff, and the development of a budget that can be supported in the post-disaffiliation environment. Since we last communicated with you in October significant work has been completed on all three items.
Note that this report addresses items that CFA plans to propose during the 2024 Annual Conference. These proposals will not become effective until approved by the Annual Conference.
Let’s begin with the work on pastoral moving expenses. Policies on pastoral moving expenses were obtained from surrounding Conferences. After reviewing those policies, a decision has been made to propose a new policy that will increase the moving allowances. The proposed new policy is currently being drafted and the estimated impact has been included in the budget. The proposed effective date of the new policy is for moves coming from new appointments set at the 2024 Annual Conference.
Extensive work has been done looking at comparative salaries for Conference staff in other conferences and the Arkansas market. A new salary structure that establishes four levels for administrative staff, including district administrators, and salary ranges for each level is being proposed. For District Superintendents, Directors, and other Conference staff, the proposed maximum salary will be based upon the average salaries of the Conference’s thirty highest paid full-time appointed clergy. If approved, these changes will result in salary reductions for most of the Conference staff, ranging from 3 percent (3%) to 12 percent (12%).
The CFA is nearing the completion of a proposed budget. There are details still to be determined. However, we can give you the structure that will be proposed to obtain the approximate one-million-dollar ($1,000,000) reduction required. Approximately eighty percent (80%) of the reduction will come from the proposed new salary structure and restructuring of Conference staff positions.
The work of restructuring Conference staff positions began with reviewing the trajectory of the Conference and deciding what functions are required to support the trajectory. With that in hand, the work to decide how to utilize position elimination, converting some positions from full-time to part-time, decreasing hours in part-time positions, retirements, and outsourcing of some functions is underway. CFA recognizes the painful nature of this time in the lives of all our Conference staff members, and we commend them for their faithful and dedicated service. In order to provide time for employees to manage these transitions salary reductions will not go into effect until July 1, 2024. Also, all employees whose positions have been eliminated are receiving a severance package to assist them in transitioning to their next endeavor.
The next biggest area of reduction in the budget will be in General Conference apportionments. As you will recall, the Arkansas Conference reduced the current budget for General Conference apportionments proportionally to our anticipated decreased title income from the local congregations. CFA is proposing the same this year and that represents a reduction of approximately fifteen percent (15%).
The remaining reductions accumulating to five percent (5%) are spread across multiple lines. From a Conference budget point-of-view, these reductions are numerous and small.
The summary of everything that is before CFA to be approved and then presented to the Annual Conference is:
- Reached our budget goal of approximately $6,000,000
- 2nd consecutive year of 15% reduction (-30.98% 2-year total)
- 28% reduction in staffing costs (-$861,080)
- Eliminate 6 full-time and 2 part-time positions
- D.S./Directors salaries reduced -10.2%
- District and Conference Administrators placed on a 4-tier schedule based on tenure and responsibilities
- Conference portion of Lay Pension reduced -3% (-$29,317 reduction)
- Increase pastors’ moving expense reimbursement by nearly 4x the current amount
- Age-level ministries unchanged
- Wesley Foundation funding unchanged
- Ethnic ministry funding unchanged
Finally, the CFA is on schedule to include a full proposed budget in the pre-Conference Journal. The final decisions on items that are not yet final will be reflected in the pre-Conference Journal.
Grace and peace,
CFA