With an eye toward possible adoption of the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force report at the upcoming annual meeting of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, the convention’s Executive Board approved two versions of the 2012 SCBC budget and reviewed proposed changes to convention bylaws.
The Executive Board met at White Oak Conference Center on Oct. 10-11.
The GCR task force report is expected to be the focal point of the convention’s annual meeting Nov. 15-16 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. The task force, appointed by outgoing SCBC president Fred Stone shortly after the 2010 annual meeting, will present its report for messengers’ consideration at the Tuesday evening session.
The Executive Board prepared a report for convention messengers with the knowledge that the GCR vote could impact the 2012 budget. Upon the recommendation of its budget, finance and audit (BF&A) committee, the board approved a 2012 budget of $28.6 million, down $940,000 from the 2011 budget of $29.54 million. The reduction, said committee chairman Mendel Stewart, reflects a 2.8 percent shortfall in Cooperative Program receipts from churches through September 2011.
At its Monday session, prior to Tuesday morning’s meeting of the full board, the BF&A committee decided to bring a separate GCR budget for board approval. Stewart said the decision was to ensure that messengers would be able to vote on a budget at the November meeting, eliminating the need for a special convention at a later date to approve a budget should the GCR report be adopted. The proposed GCR-impacted budget is also for $28.6 million, with line items adjusted to reflect the GCR report’s recommendations.
Marshall Blalock, pastor, First Baptist Church, Charleston, brought a motion to “approve the GCR contingent budget should the GCR pass in November (at the annual meeting) provided that the GCR budget is vetted by the BF&A committee to ensure it fits within the rules of the convention, and (if GCR is approved by messengers) the GCR (budget) will stand as the recommended budget of the Executive Board.”
The motion was approved.
Committee chairman Stewart praised the convention staff, which has kept expenses $980,000 below receipts in 2011. The approved budget includes a convention staff pay increase of $1,500 per position. It is the first salary bump since 2008. The budget did not include a $40,000 request from the scholarship committee to increase scholarships for students called to vocational Christian service.
The Executive Board will present its budget report on Wednesday morning’s session of the annual meeting, which will allow it to follow Tuesday evening’s GCR report consideration.
The convention’s bylaws committee, also preparing for possible approval of the GCR report, asked the Executive Board’s planning and ministries committee to review proposed changes.
John Keye, chairman of the planning and ministries committee, brought his committee’s recommendations to the full board. The board’s action is for information only and not binding on the convention’s bylaws committee.
The board approved the planning and ministries committee’s decision to receive and review a suggested bylaws change allowing for out-of-state trustees of convention institutions.
The board also approved the planning and ministries committee’s decision to endorse a suggested bylaws change that a minimum of four-fifths of an institution’s trustees must be South Carolina residents who are members of a cooperating South Carolina Baptist church, and that these trustees affirm the Baptist Faith and Message 2000. Likewise, if a South Carolina resident trustee moves out of state, pushing an institution’s out-of-state trustees beyond the one-fifth maximum, the convention may, by a two-thirds vote, terminate the trustee’s membership on the institution’s board.
The board approved endorsement of a suggested bylaws change that messengers may nominate individuals to committees from the floor of the convention, but only the convention’s nominations committee can nominate institutional trustees, according to the convention’s bylaws. (The planning and ministries committee had suggested a change to ensure all floor nominations were properly vetted before appointed, but that change recommendation was defeated.)
The board also approved the planning and ministries committee’s decision to receive and review a suggested bylaws change that addressed special procedures for institutional trustee nominations. The procedures include division of the convention’s nominations committee into seven subcommittees, with one assigned to each institution; subcommittees will work with institutional CEOs to mutually endorse the institution’s nominees, who must affirm the Baptist Faith and Message 2000; the full nominations committee will separately consider each nominee for approval; the full convention will separately consider each nomination from the nominations committee; a nominee is ineligible if rejected for that office during the current or most recent annual meeting; and, if more than one nominee for the same trusteeship is rejected by the convention, the Executive Board may fill the position, working with the nominations committee and institutional CEO, if a “critical need” is established.
The board affirmed the planning and ministries committee’s decision to endorse a bylaws change that reads, “While the Holy Bible shall be the supreme and final authority (for all convention activities and decisions), the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 shall be the convention’s statement of faith.” – SCBC