HOUSTON (ABP) -- Eight months into the fiscal year, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship's revenues were 20 percent below budget, the group's Coordinating Council learned July 1. But -- thanks to a plan in place since March to reduce spending to match the projected shortfall -- leaders said the organization is not facing a budget crisis.

Four months ago the council's leadership froze spending at 80 percent of budgeted amounts, anticipating revenue would decline that much due to the economy.

CBF Controller Larry Hurst said the plan is working. Through May, he said, gifts to the organization totaled $9.7 million. That is 80 percent of the $12.1 million year-to-date projections in the budget adopted at least year's General Assembly.

At the same time, CBF spent $8.7 million, which is 82 percent of the $10.6 million originally budgeted for the eight-month period ending in May. CBF's fiscal year runs Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

CBF Coordinator of Administration Connie McNeill reports to the group's Coordinating Council about a current contingency plan.

Hurst said giving in May crept up by 1 percent, which he hoped is a good sign. "Hopefully that's a trend that may continue," he said. "Now it's just a race to get to Sept. 30 and try to make the expenses and revenues balance out."

Connie McNeill, the Fellowship's coordinator of administration, called it a "good news/bad news" situation.

"The good news is we are where we had prepared to be," she said. "The bad news is we are where we had prepared to be."

"We are managing the budget," McNeill said. "The persons responsible in each of those areas are hitting their targets. Our revenue is about what we had projected that it could be. I think that as long as we continue to work the plan and manage it that we should come out where we had expected to come at the end of the fiscal year with the financial contingency plan."

Jack Glasgow, CBF moderator, described the contingency spending plan as "painful" and yet "very prudent and very necessary for us to be healthy as a fellowship in the past year."

Glasgow, pastor of Zebulon Baptist Church in Zebulon, N.C., said while this year's General Assembly, being held July 1-3 in Houston, will vote on a $16.1 million budget for 2009-2010 -- $400,000 smaller that the total 2008-2009 budget of $16.5 million adopted last year -- spending will continue at the 80 percent level for the foreseeable future.

"I think that one of the questions that will be asked is: Why did we set a budget goal that's higher than what we're anticipating revenues to be at the very beginning?" Glasgow said.

"We will start with our spending plan in place, but we hope to be surprised," he said. "We hope that through the gifts of individuals and congregations ... we will have the opportunity to fully fund this budget. But we are not going to begin spending at 100 percent. The contingency plan will be in place."

Glasgow said churches routinely discuss the pros and cons of reducing a budget.

"If you cut your budget back, then you're really giving up before the game starts," Glasgow said. By adopting a larger budget with a contingency plan in case revenues do not come in, he said, "You have a way of managing a budget shortfall, but you're still asking your people to support mission and ministry that is very important to us."

Glasgow reported that executive leaders of the Coordinating Council recently conducted their annual performance evaluation of CBF Executive Coordinator Daniel Vestal, giving him high marks and a merit raise.

"Daniel Vestal is giving us outstanding leadership in his role as executive coordinator," Glasgow said. "We think he does an excellent job."

The council also approved donating $2,500 to a memorial scholarship at Asia Baptist Graduate Theological Seminary in memory of Lilian Lim, the seminary consortium's president. She died June 25 following a lifelong battle with heart disease.

Harriet Harral, CBF's past moderator, described Lim as "a great friend to us in CBF" who would have attended this year's General Assembly if not for her untimely death at age 50.

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Bob Allen is senior writer for Associated Baptist Press.

Previous ABP articles:

CBF cuts spending by 20 percent

Lilian Lim, pioneer Asian Baptist woman, dies in Singapore

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