May 12, 2009

Editor: Brian Bakeman, 1501 NW 24^th St, Oklahoma City OK 73106

Phone: (405) 530-2067; Email: bbakeman@okumc.org; Website: www.okumc.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A great big thank you goes out to you as contributions in April improved greatly over March. Total receipts for the month of April 2009 were $1,669,635 compared to $1,615,289 a year ago. Unfortunately, as good as April was, it didn’t cover much of the drop in contributions from March which were down by over $400,000.

 

There are two special opportunities coming up to support. The first opportunity is the special offering being taken at Annual Conference to support ministry in Liberia and to create a fund to help reduce seminary indebtedness. The second is June 7 when we celebrate Peace with Justice Sunday. A portion of this offering stays here in Oklahoma to support the work of the Conference Peace with Justice.

 

 

June is quickly approaching, a time when many churches receive new pastors and below are just a few helpful hints to make the transition a little smoother.

 

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 1 is the effective date for salary, pension, health insurance and cafeteria payments

for the new pastor even though the actual change may not take place until Thursday, June 4^th, which is the official moving day for Oklahoma Conference pastors.

 

PASTOR’S COMPENSATION REPORT: The church treasurer should have a copy of the Pastor’s Compensation Report for the new pastor. If one is needed, they are available on the Conference website at www.okumc.org.

 

UMPIP and CRSP: The new pastor will need to complete a new agreement form in order to make personal pre-tax and/or after-tax contributions to the General Board of Pensions and Health Benefits. This is an agreement between the individual pastor and the employer or local church. The form can be found on the Conference website at www.okumc.org. Tiara will be sending out new information on CRSP in June so wait for the new statement. For further assistance, contact Tiara Dalton at tdalton@okumc.org or 405-530-2063.

 

HEALTH INUSURANCE AND CAFETERIA PLAN: If your new pastor is coming from another UM church in Oklahoma, he/she should bring the payment strips from the previous appointment. The elected amounts cannot be changed simply because there is a change of appointments. For additional information contact Jan Tofani at jtofani@okumc.org or call Debbie Ware at 405-530-2069. If in doubt, wait for the new billing information being sent out in June.

 

MOVING EXPENSE: Moving checks will be available at Conference in the Treasurer’s Office at The Freede Center. Remember to keep your receipts as many of them are deductible for income tax purposes if you move more than 50 miles. Anyone receiving a moving check will receive a W-2 form next year as this represents taxable income for you.

 

 

We are proud to announce that this is our 10^th year to provide a FREE Health Screening for Health Plan Participants. Please check the schedule so that you can take advantage of this opportunity -

May 19, 2009 at the United Methodist Ministry Center from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

 

May 26^th – 28^th at the OCU Ann Lacy Stadium East Building, directly north of the OCU Freede Center. from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

 

No appointment is necessary and fasting is preferred for 12-hours prior to screening.

 

This program will screen for heart disease and stroke risk factors such as high cholesterol, diabetes, homocysteine, abnormal thyroid, anemia or infection, colon cancer, kidney or liver disease, and will also include prostate cancer screening for males.

 

This is a very comprehensive health screening and will be provided free for those who participate in the Oklahoma United Methodist Insurance Plan. There will be a charge of just $100.00 (a $700.00 value) for those not enrolled in the group health plan. Early detection is the key to your health and savings for both you and the group health plan. Your willingness to take a few minutes to participate could improve your health or even save your life.

 

By Rick Carlin

 

This month’s article is aimed at those churches not in the Oklahoma Annual Conference Insurance and Risk Management Plan. In these uncertain economic times and with companies announcing layoffs daily, the insurance industry is seeing an increase in claims in three particular areas.

 

The first is fidelity losses. I know no one ever thinks it can happen at their church but it is happening in every denomination including Methodism all across the country as well as in Oklahoma. You need to make sure you have either a Fidelity Bond or a crime policy for your treasurer and/or your financial secretary. It should also cover volunteer workers as well as employees. You should also have certain safeguards in place to help prevent embezzlement from occurring. Some examples are:

· Utilize rotating counting teams for offerings

· Require two signers for checks over a certain amount

· Employ a different person to balance the check book from the one who writes the checks

 

Many more ideas can be found in PACT’s Ministry Protection Memos which are available at www.umcpact.org. These are available to any church whether they are in PACT or not.

 

The second type of loss is Workers Compensation. If you have at least one employee the State of Oklahoma mandates that your church carry Workers Compensation insurance. You also want to make sure you have adequate Employers Liability limits. PACT also has Ministry Protection Memos on how to reduce these claims through risk management and how to get people back to work to lessen the amount and length of the claim.

 

The third growing loss trend is in the area of Employment Practices Liability. After employees have been dismissed, they often claim discrimination and/or harassment against their former employer. Make sure you document why the person was let go, when you spoke to them and on how many occasions. Many times these claims are baseless but they can be time consuming and still cost your church money if you do not have proper coverage.

 

If your church is in the Oklahoma Annual Conference Insurance and Risk Management Plan, you can be assured of having these coverages and of having adequate limits. If you are not in the plan, please check with your current agent to make sure you have these coverages.

 

If you have any questions or would like a quote please call me at 1-800-460-5678. I will also have a table at Annual Conference and will be available to discuss these and other coverages with you.

 

 

On May 19^th name badges will be printed for lay members of Annual Conference. Any changes to this list need to be either phoned in or emailed to the conference office in order for the badges to be available at registration. Otherwise your lay member will need to go to the problem resolution desk at registration. Call or email Mary Myers at 405.530.2026 or mmyers@okumc.org.

 

Registration will begin at 8:30 am on Monday morning at St. Luke’s.

 

By now, I hope everyone has made their hotel reservations for Conference as most of the hotels are full. Let me know if you have any problems.

 

 

On Monday, June 1, the Conference Ministry Center will begin summer office hours. The office will be open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. till 5:00 p.m. These hours will be effective until September 3^rd.