2016 Wesleyan Discipline:D. Local Church Finance and Stewardship

D. Finance and Stewardship

1. Church Treasurer

842. The local church shall have either a local church treasurer or a business manager. If there is a church treasurer, that officer shall be elected by the local church conference, at its annual election, by ballot, from among the members who meet the leadership qualifications (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:260–268; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:558), to serve for one year or until a successor is elected. Or the local church conference may authorize the local board of administration to appoint a treasurer or to appoint or employ a business manager who will assume the duties of the treasurer. The financial concerns may be represented on the local board of administration by the church treasurer or the business manager or the chair of the finance and stewardship committee as provided in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:865. The duties and powers of the person charged with the local church treasury are:

(1) To receive, hold and disburse, as ordered by the local church conference or the local board of administration, and in harmony with the financial plans of the General Church and of the district, all moneys of the local church, including such of the departments and auxiliary organizations as the local board of administration shall order. All funds raised by the local departments, other than the auxiliaries, for General Church or district work or for purposes other than local church work, and all money or pledges raised by representatives of the General Church or district in deputation work, shall be transferred to or placed in the local church treasury and shall be disbursed for their designated purpose by the local church treasurer.

(2) To keep complete and accurate records of all moneys raised and of the manner in which they are disbursed, and to provide the pastor with information concerning the same as the pastor shall require.

(3) To make monthly reports to the local board of administration, which shall be available upon request to any member of the local church, and to make reports to all regular sessions of the local church conference.

(4) To make monthly remittances of all USF and district funds to the district treasurer and remittances of all other General Church funds to the General Treasurer/Chief Financial Officer or directly to the general department for which the funds are intended.

(5) To issue receipts annually to all regular contributors showing their total tithes and offerings and the various items of giving, and to issue other receipts as requested or by order of the local board of administration.

(6) To submit all books for audit by the auditing committee annually (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:863), or more frequently if so ordered by the local board of administration, and to submit to the local board of administration the complete treasurer’s records at such time as the person shall cease to hold the office of treasurer.

845. Assistants for the local church treasurer are provided for as follows:

(1) An assistant treasurer may be elected by the local board of administration, with authority to sign checks when the treasurer is unable to do so.

(2) A financial secretary or tithing secretary may be elected by the local board of administration to assist the treasurer in keeping the record of individual tithes and offerings (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:842:5).

(3) One or more tellers shall be elected by the local board of administration to assist the treasurer in the counting of all tithes and offerings, all moneys being counted by two or more persons and recorded as to date of reception, purpose of the offering, and amount. These records shall be preserved and made available to the auditor or auditing committee.

2. Board of Trustees

850. Election. The local church conference, unless the duties and powers of the board of trustees have been delegated to the local board of administration, shall elect by ballot from among its members who meet the leadership qualifications (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:260–268; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:558) a board of trustees (cf. 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:315:6; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:820–823), three to seven in number, one or more being elected at a given annual session for a term of three years, so that the terms of all shall not expire at the same time, or they may be elected to serve until their successors are elected; provided that the manner and conditions of election may be altered to conform to the local laws. At least one of the trustees shall be designated annually by the local church conference as a member of the local board of administration (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:752). If the local church conference delegates the duties and powers of the trustees to the local board of administration, that board may from its membership elect from three to seven to serve as the board of trustees. General regulations covering this office are given in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:815.

853. Organization and Procedure. The board of trustees shall meet following the annual session of the local church conference to elect a chair, vice-chair, and secretary, and shall meet at such other times as ordered by the local board of administration or as made necessary by their duties.

856. Duties and Powers. The local board of trustees shall carry out their duties as required by The Discipline (cf. 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4500–4780) and shall be responsible:

(1) To carry out the instructions of the local church conference and the local board of administration in supervising, controlling, maintaining, and improving all church property (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:315:6; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:655:13; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:782:28).

(2) To supervise such expenditures as have been approved by the local church conference or the local board of administration for repairs, improvements, and alterations.

(3) To attend to all legal matters regarding the acquisition, purchase, sale, mortgage, transfer or other disposition of property as properly authorized (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4700–4720); to see that titles are correct, contain the proper trust clause (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4610), are approved by the district superintendent (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:1310:13; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4700:5), and are recorded (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4540); and to see that property and legal records are properly stored (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4760).

(4) To attend to all other legal matters pertaining to the local church, as authorized and directed by the local church conference or the local board of administration, including renting property, borrowing money, and receiving and administering bequests and trusts.

(5) To nominate to the local board of administration all custodians.

(6) To serve, unless the local church conference shall order a larger or separate committee, as a building committee for the planning and erection of a new sanctuary, educational unit or parsonage or a major remodeling program, and to assist the pastor in preparing and submitting all building plans to the district building committee for their approval (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:1345).

(7) To carry out the directions of the local church conference or local board of administration concerning the purchase, sale, mortgage, transfer or other disposition of property, provided that such transactions have been approved by the district building committee and district board of administration as set forth in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4700–4780.

(8) To make recommendations to the local board of administration concerning sufficient property and liability insurance on the property and for any vehicles owned and operated by the local church, and to carry out the instructions of the local board of administration in securing such insurance (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:782:29).

(9) To make such reports as are requested by the local church conference or the local board of administration.

859. Restrictions. The local board of trustees shall be subject to the following restrictions:

(1) The local board of trustees must carry out the instructions of the local board of administration, the local church conference, and the district board of administration. If a local trustee refuses to carry out such instructions when the instructions meet all the requirements of local laws and of The Discipline, the trustee may be removed from office as given in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:815:4 (cf. 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4530).

(2) The local board of trustees cannot mortgage or otherwise encumber local church property without the express authorization of the local church conference and the approval of the district board of administration as set forth in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4700–4720.

(3) The local board of trustees cannot deny the use of the parsonage, church building or other local church buildings, to the pastor who has been duly appointed by the district conference or district board of administration, nor the use of the church building to the membership of the local church and duly elected officials of The Wesleyan Church (cf. 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4770).

(4) The local board of trustees cannot divert church property from The Wesleyan Church (2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4550; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4780).

(5) When a church is reclassified as a developing church (cf. 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:518:7; 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:1233:30), the office and power of the local board of trustees shall cease, and all property shall pass directly under the control of the district board of administration (cf. 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:4670).

3. Auditing Committee

863. The local board of administration shall be responsible to provide for the annual internal or external auditing of the books of the local church treasurer and of all departmental and auxiliary treasurers, either through the election of an auditing committee or the employment of an auditor. If an auditing committee is used for some or all of the treasuries, it shall consist of one to three persons. A report to certify the results of the annual audit shall be presented to the local board of administration. General regulations concerning committee members are given in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:825.

4. Committee on Finance and Stewardship

865. The local board of administration may establish a committee on finance and stewardship. The local board of administration shall name a board member as chair of the committee, and the committee shall choose its own vice-chair and secretary. General regulations governing membership on this committee are given in 2016 Wesleyan Discipline:825.

868. The local board of administration shall assign such duties to the committee on finance and stewardship as it deems best.