May 5, 2010

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

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

 

 

 

Church Business Administration Certification Seminars 2010

Important Information for Churches and Changing Pastors

Conference Ministry Center Summer Hours

Connectional Giving

June 12^th Deadline for Wireless Microphones

Annual Conference Registration

Health Screening at Annual Conference

Remember the new Audit Forms

 

 

 

Registration for this summer’s National Institute in Church Finance and Administration is well underway. This year’s institute has a dynamic menu of classes that will be presented in four consecutive weeks. Having the institute in four consecutive weeks presents the opportunity of completing all seminars in one year.

 

In addition, the Office of Lifelong Learning has contracted with The Emory Inn for rooms at a reduced rate ($40/night) which includes Continental breakfast. If you are registering for 2 or more consecutive weeks you may check out/in of the hotel for the weekends, saving you money on housing. Lunch will be provided for three of the Seminar days (Tues, Wed, and Thurs) and dinner on Thursday night of each week. Online registration is available through our new NICFA registration website: www.certain.com/system/profile/web/index.cfm?PKWebId=0x1922053db9.

 

The site includes information about the hotel, schedules, Emory campus information, even links to completed certification projects.

 

We hope to see you this summer! If you are already registered please pass the registration web site link on to someone you think would be interested in coming to NICFA.

 

If you have any questions please contact Rick Kravako, Administrative Assistant for the Office of Lifelong Learning at rkravak@emory.edu.

 

 

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 10^th which will be 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/July so wait for the new invoice. For further assistance, contact Tiara Dalton at tdalton@okumc.org or 405-530-2063.

 

HEALTH INSURANCE 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 Annual Conference in the Treasurer’s Office at Boston Ave Church. 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.

 

 

On Monday, June 7, the Conference Ministry Center will begin summer office hours. The office will be open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 am till 5:00 pm, and closed on Fridays. Regular hours will resume on Monday, August 30^th.

 

 

Giving for the month of April dropped slightly with 26.4% of the apportionments paid. Our 5 year average is 27.6% while our total giving is still up. Last month, contributions for Native American Sunday were $2,742 and contributions for One Great Hour of Sharing were $14,876.

 

The special offering for May 30^th is Peace with Justice Sunday. Established by the 1988 General Conference, Peace with Justice Sunday supports programs that advocate peace and justice at home and around the world. Half of the offerings collected by our annual conference is retained to fund local peace with justice programs, and makes a difference in the ministry here in our state.

Please remember when sending in your contributions to use a current 2010 Contribution Form. Throw away any unused 2009 forms as this creates a problem. Also, please do not use copies on colored paper.

 

 

The Federal Communications Commission has issued a new ruling that prohibits the use of wireless microphones that operate in the 700 MHz band effective June 12, 2010. The FCC estimates that 25% of the wireless microphones currently being used operate in this spectrum. Continued use of these microphones after June 12, will result in fines.

 

Additional information may be found at www.fcc.gov/cgb/wirelessmicrophones or by calling (888) 225-5322.

 

 

Annual Conference is quickly approaching and May 19^th is the deadline for making any corrections on Brick River for lay members of Annual Conference. Any changes to this list after May 19^th will need to be either phoned in or emailed to the conference office in order 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 3:00 pm on Sunday afternoon in Jubilee Hall at Boston Ave UMC and then at 7:30 am on Monday.

 

 

Our annual health screening will take place this year in room J120 and J122 at Boston Ave UMC starting on Monday, May 31 through Wednesday, June 2 from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm. It is recommended that you fast for 12 hours prior to the health screening.

 

This year everyone will receive a pedometer when they have their health screening done, and in addition, there will be drawings for a Wii Fit, a premium pedometer and a $50 gift card.

 

 

Remember that for those churches who do not hire a CPA to do their annual audit, there are new audit forms on the Conference website for you to use. They can be found at http://www.okumc.org/forms/detail/62 and http://www.okumc.org/forms/detail/191.