D063 On Mandatory Diocesan Assessment
Whereas Canon I.4.6 Sec. 6 section f. The Executive Council “has the power to grant waivers from the full annual assessments of dioceses within the limit established by the General Convention. Any diocese may appeal to the Executive Council for a waiver of the assessment, in full or in part, based on financial hardship, a stated plan for working toward full payment, or other reasons as agreed with the Executive Council. Effective January 1, 2019, failure to make full payment or to receive a waiver shall render the diocese ineligible to receive grants or loans from the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society unless approved by the Executive Council.”
The Executive Council process for granting diocesan waivers for fair share assessments has been perceived as discriminatory, arbitrary, and disconnected from dioceses' economic realities. The mandatory Assessment refers to the proportionate amount each diocese is expected to contribute to the wider church based on its financial capacity.
We must acknowledge that not all dioceses are equally resourced and that while some have endowed funds that pay for the bishop and diocesan staff, offer grants to small congregations, pay clergy health care, or provide other services, others do not. Paying the churchwide assessment means cutting services and the diocesan staff in dioceses with fewer resources. In these dioceses, paying the churchwide assessment can accelerate the Episcopal Church's decline, reducing the Diocese’s capacity to support struggling Episcopal Churches and fund essential and canonically required diocesan functions.
It is also essential to recognize the difference between dioceses willing to pay their fair share but unable to do so due to financial constraints and those refusing to pay their fair share as a means of protest. There is a significant distinction between a diocese that has the means but chooses not to pay and one that wants to contribute but can only do so by compromising essential ministries. Often, dioceses genuinely trying to pay their fair share and facing hardships are unfairly treated like dioceses who won’t pay.
Explanation
Whereas Canon I.4.6 Sec. 6 section f. The Executive Council “has the power to grant waivers from the full annual assessments of dioceses within the limit established by the General Convention. Any diocese may appeal to the Executive Council for a waiver of the assessment, in full or in part, based on financial hardship, a stated plan for working toward full payment, or other reasons as agreed with the Executive Council. Effective January 1, 2019, failure to make full payment or to receive a waiver shall render the diocese ineligible to receive grants or loans from the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society unless approved by the Executive Council.”
The Executive Council process for granting diocesan waivers for fair share assessments has been perceived as discriminatory, arbitrary, and disconnected from dioceses' economic realities. The mandatory Assessment refers to the proportionate amount each diocese is expected to contribute to the wider church based on its financial capacity.
We must acknowledge that not all dioceses are equally resourced and that while some have endowed funds that pay for the bishop and diocesan staff, offer grants to small congregations, pay clergy health care, or provide other services, others do not. Paying the churchwide assessment means cutting services and the diocesan staff in dioceses with fewer resources. In these dioceses, paying the churchwide assessment can accelerate the Episcopal Church's decline, reducing the Diocese’s capacity to support struggling Episcopal Churches and fund essential and canonically required diocesan functions.
It is also essential to recognize the difference between dioceses willing to pay their fair share but unable to do so due to financial constraints and those refusing to pay their fair share as a means of protest. There is a significant distinction between a diocese that has the means but chooses not to pay and one that wants to contribute but can only do so by compromising essential ministries. Often, dioceses genuinely trying to pay their fair share and facing hardships are unfairly treated like dioceses who won’t pay.