What is typical for annual dues?

[gcnphkr]

I was just curious what other troops are requiring. In the past, for registration, Boy's Life, and unit dues and fees we have been charging $65/year/scout. Because one of our income streams is drying up (corporate employee donations from a company that is down sizing) we have to increase this to $125. We have tried to keep this down through fund raisers but there has been little participation, mostly the scouts and parents who would be there anyway. This doesn't seem out of line to me, but I'm sure it will put a hurt on larger families. Maybe it will encourage more participation in the fund raisers once they see how it effects their wallets.

[Gold Winger]

It may have the effect of weeding out the kids who really don't want to be there. If it's important, most people can find a way to get the money. Cut out smokes for a couple weeks, stop drinking beer.

 

 

[resqman]

Dues and fundraisers are seperate in my troop. Dues are $75 a year.

 

Fundraisers bring money into the troop. Money raised by the scouts is divided 1/3 to scout account, 1/3 to troop general fund, and 1/3 to council. Scout account can be used to pay/defray costs of camping trips and summer camp. The general fund pays for patches, badges, and troop gear.

 

Scouting in not free. It is pay to play setup. Scouting is cheaper than my son's sport program but still costs money.

[baden]

We charge $25.00 p/yr. for dues. This covers registration, Boy's Life, and Accident Insurance. The remainder (about $1.30) is for tranquilizers for the SM (me). We pay as we go for campouts, usually 6-12 bucks, depending on where we camp and menu. Summer Camp and High Adventure is pay as you go. We do popcorn sale and split the money between the boys and the Troop. Any other fundraisers is usually for the benefit of the boys. We are an old Troop and are well equipped. We do have a benefactor that buys tents as we need them. About every 5-6 yrs. Last time he asked me how we were doing on tents. I said we could use a couple. He told me go ahead. I went to a sporting goods store and found they were selling Eureka Timberline 4's (our favorite)buy 4 get one free. I called our friend and told him. He thought for a minute and said "Buy 10"

[scottteng]

We nick em $50.00 at recharter and $2 per meeting and $25 per camping trip and expect em to fund raise too.

[skeptic]

Wow; no wonder we have trouble sometimes. Some of the charges noted here seem really high compared to us. We charge $30 and 95%+ of fundraisers go to scout accounts for whatever, as long as it is troop related. Most only use it for due, camping, and special trips. Occasionally one will ask if they can buy something specific. We review it and approve with a receipt if it falls within the parameters of scouting related. Boys leaving lose their funds to the general fund, while transfers can have the money moved to a new troop with proper verification. We are the oldest troop in the city, and have most of ours scouts from the poorest part of the community.

 

The irony though, is that it is still really hard to get kids to participate in fundraising.

 

We do what we can and hope for the best.

[Aquila calva]

We have a troop of about 25 scouts now. Annual dues are $75 per scout and most scouts earn this by doing fundraising. Otherwise it is paid by the family. Our chartering organization gives the troop about $600 per year. Campouts are pay-as-you-go. Registered adults pay their own $10 registration fee each year. Boys Life is a benefit of being a member of our troop. All the scout families get a subscription. Dues amount is the same for each scout. Troop offers several fundraising opportunities each year and about 98% of the profit from these goes to the individual scout accounts. We have all the equipment we need and replace it as necessary. We have been given some monetary gifts occasionally that go into the equipment fund. When a scout leaves scouting, any credit in the scout accounts goes to the equipment fund. This happens once or twice a year. This works well for us.(This message has been edited by aquila calva)

[Lisabob]

Ouch, that sounds high to me. Our troop charges $30 dues. No increases in the 5 years we've been involved. The packs we were part of had dues ranging from $20-$60. In our area, dues over $100 would probably not be sustainable for many families and would have the effect of driving people away. Sad to say. Maybe the economic situation where you live is better.

[Liz]

Our dues are only $10 per year plus Boy's Life, which is somewhat optional (It's assumed, but if you can't afford it the treasurer will take it off your bill if you ask). We do have excellent participation in fund raisers. Boys who are from very limited income families aren't bothered about dues if they participate actively in fund raisers.

 

Popcorn sales go almost 100% to the council; our troop and boys get a few pennies on the dollar for popcorn. We actively push Friends of Scouting campaigns for the council. Our other fundraisers are split between the boys' accounts and the troop. I don't recall the exact ratio; it varies slightly from one year to the next as we try to find the right balance so the troop gets enough to run, but the boys get as much direct benefit from their fundraising as possible. We have one fund raiser which goes 100% to the troop; on holidays businesses pay our troop to put flags up in front of their place of business downtown in the morning, and take them down again in the evening. The patrols take turns on different holidays. We inherited this fund raiser from another troop which folded a couple of years ago, and it has been a huge blessing, since we have a large percentage of boys in the troop who would never be able to afford participation if they had to pay higher dues.

 

Our troop does not maintain very much equipment. Patrols have to fund their own "Patrol Boxes" for equipment, but they can use money from their accounts for it if they wish. Boys provide their own tents, but again they are welcome to use their account money if they want. Same for new uniforms if necessary, although my own quick-growing boys have provided a fair number of free outgrown uniforms to the less financially affluent boys -- as have some of the other larger boys in the troop (I also pick up uniforms of all sizes whenever I find them at places like goodwill). Most boys save their account money for either funding the camp-outs (pay-as-you-go) or summer camp. Troop of course pays for awards, patches, etc.. and a few troop items like the flag.

[scoutldr]

$25 per year for registration/BL. $1 a week for patrol dues. All outings are pay as you go or from scout accounts. Two fundraisers, popcorn and wreaths. Popcorn sales are nil. CO gives us nothing. We even pay the recharter fee. Scouts own their own tents and use patrol cooking gear, most of which was donated.

[BrotherhoodWWW]

$160.00 annually, waived if a Scout sells $1300. gross in popcorn fundraiser. Waived also either partially or totally due to financial need on a case by case basis. Boy's Life is an extra $10.00/ year.

 

This pays their registration, short term camp fees and advancement. It does not pay food costs or transportation to camps or events.

 

We do 2 fundraisers annually: Popcorn and a weekedn giving away free coffee for dontaions at a state Rest Area. This is divided 75/25 to summer camp fund and troop equipment fund.

 

This is our first year of collecting this and so far we've only lost 1 youth through a transfer to a different Troop as a result. We are hoping that this will increase particpation at all levels. We hope this will decrease those that never spend any time with our fundraisers but always seem to want to go on the fun stuff. I'll let ya'll know if it is successful.

[Bob White]

If a scout raises a net profit of over $400 through popcorn sales then you waive $160 in annual dues???? What kind of a deal is that for a family?

 

It would seem that no parent in that troop owns a calculator.

 

What most units I know do is to first plan a program, then determine what that program would cost (a budget), and then determine how the unit will meet the budget. It could be through dues, popcorn sales, or other fundraising projects, or a combination of those elements.

 

But if the unit determines it needs $160 per scout to do the things they want to do then why make a Scout sell $1300 in popcorn when they would only need to sell $480 to meet the budget needs?(This message has been edited by Bob White)

[Beavah]

Yah, so BW, what are dues for your Ship, eh? That was da question.

 

jet526, I think the highest dues for a troop in our area are on par with BrotherhoodWWW. Maybe a bit higher, because I think they do quarterly. That unit then doesn't charge any additional fees for anything - no nickle and diming at all. Dues level sets da budget the boys plan on. One fundraiser, mandatory participation, goes toward gear.

 

Nah, thinkin' about it, I take that back. I think we've got a troop that does $5 per week that the boys collect. Not sure how many weeks are counted. Same deal I think.

 

More common is about $30 - $75 per year, plus fees for each campout. $1 or $2 per meetin' collected by boys.

 

Fundraisin' and how it's used or applied is all over da place, but almost all units have some notion that a chunk or percentage of fund raisin' goes to the troop not to individual accounts.

 

Beavah

 

[Bob White]

Each Scout in this Ship pays $100 at joining this pays for the first year of membership, their Sea Scout Handbook, their dress white uniform, a ship's cap, t-shirt, and hooded sweatshirt.

 

After that scouts pay for their own food during activities and for each years re-registration fee of $10.

 

This was determined by Scouts first deciding what their program needs were then determining what the cost of their planned program would be, and then making a plan using an intial dues plus fundraising to meet the needs of the budget.

 

The Quarterdeck does not currently require other dues to meet their budget needs, and while the next quarterdeck may have other program plans that require a different budget plan at thei point this has worked just fine.

 

So what a unit does for dues should not be based on a national consensus. It should be based on teaching scouts to plan a program, determine the budget needed and than determine a financial plan to meet the budget.

 

Asking what other charge as dues to determine what you should charge is like asking your neighbors what their family budget is to determine your own families budget. What your family budget is should be based on your own goals and needs not on an average of what others do.

 

Teach scouts how to plan, not how to indiscriminately charge dues in hope that it will pay for the things that come up.

 

You wonder why some Eagle candidates don't understand how to plan and lead a project. It would seem a lot of unit leaders aren't teaching them how to plan.

 

(This message has been edited by Bob White)

[evmori]

We started each year with a $50 recharter fee & $2/month dues.