Finance and Administration Committee

Within the Global Methodist Church, the primary role of the annual conference is to “connect clergy and laity for shared ministry and accountability across a geographical region.”  (¶610, 2023 TBDD)  The annual conference is key in creating a program of ministry in their geographic region that can fulfill the mission of the church and enhance its witness, encouraging and facilitating the work of the ministers and laity within that region.  To aid in this endeavor, the purpose of the Finance and Administration Committee is “to develop, maintain, and administer a comprehensive and coordinated plan of fiscal and administrative policies, budgets, procedures, and management services for the annual conference.” (¶612.3, 2023 TBDD)  This mission statement drives the work of our committee. 

Our budget philosophy as the Global Methodist Church, and an Annual Conference, is to create a budget to support the work of the conference, including the costs of its bishop, while making the effort to minimize conference funding in order to allow maximum resources to remain in local churches.  Ministries within and beyond the annual conference should not be included in our budget (and the connectional funding percentage) but be raised as mission giving from individuals and local churches.  (¶613, 2023 TBDD)  In this endeavor, as the Transitional Book of Doctrines and Disciplines (TBDD) allows for a connectional funding percentage of no more than 5% of local church operating income, the North Carolina Provisional Annual Conference is requesting 3% of local church operating income to be remitted in support of our creation of a Global Methodist program of ministry in North Carolina for the calendar year 2024, continuing the connectional funding percentage utilized in 2023.

The Finance and Administration Committee proposes the following financial policies for the North Carolina Provisional Annual Conference:

1.     For 2024, the connectional funding percentage is to be set at 3% of local church operating income.  This funding percentage will be evaluated each year.

2.     The Annual Conference will maintain an Unrestricted Fund Balance at a goal level of no less than 25% of the current annual funds received from the local churches.

3.     Any new programs or emergency and/or additional funding for the current year which were not funded in the current budget approved by the Annual Conference shall be referred to the Finance and Administration Committee for review of budget needs and supplemental funds available.  If the item is approved, it will be recommended to the Board of Directors for approval to amend the current year’s budget.

4.     The Finance and Administration Committee is charged with setting the salary and benefits for all Conference staff within the approved total salary budget.

5.     Any conference-related travel expenses of Conference employees and members of Conference committees will be reimbursed through an accountable reimbursement program based on the mileage reimbursement rates provided by the Internal Revenue Service.  These reimbursements will not be factored into any compensation package by the Committee.

6.     The Finance and Administration Committee is authorized to appoint a conference auditor.

7.     The payments of connectional funding for the calendar year of 2024 should be received by the conference treasurer no later than January 30, 2025. (¶349, 2023 TBDD)

8.     The Conference will operate on a fiscal year which begins January 1 and ends on December 31.

9.     The Finance and Administration Committee is responsible for designating depositories for conference funds and investments.

10.  The Finance and Administration Committee will be responsible for the collection of annual statistical reports from each local church at the end of every year. (¶330, ¶339.10, 2023 TBDD)

Jennifer Burton Lineberry, Chair