Thunderbird Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 @Jameson76 Did they post it on a BSA website? Or send it out via e-mail? I have not received anything yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jameson76 Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 Saw it on a site Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 OK, I see that my council has posted the info. to the council website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuctTape Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 We received the info in an email from our council. They also sent us one ahead of time letting us know that changes will be coming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuctTape Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 What I would like clarification on is in regards to insurance. The national memo refers to liability insurance as a major cost driving the membership fee increase. The councils also collect an insurance fee of $12. What $ amount from the membership fee goes to the national liability insurance? What is the difference between the insurance provided by National vs Council? 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cubmaster Pete Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 Nothing official from mine, Bay Lakes Council, yet. It's not as bad as it could be, but we will still do some belt tightening.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RememberSchiff Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 (edited) From Heart of New England Council (Central Mass): To ensure BSA has the resources to fulfill the promise of Scouting despite increasing operating costs, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America has made the difficult but necessary decision to increase the annual membership fee effective January 1, 2020 to $60 for Cub Scouts, Scouts, and Venturers, $36 for adult members and $60 for unit charter fees. Every dollar of the national membership fee will go toward the cost of essential services, including liability insurance for those participating in approved Scouting activities, program resources, safety standards, youth protection and personal safety training, and services to councils nationwide to sustain Scouting. The National organization will also continue to develop and improve resources that support our volunteers and youth members such as online registration, Member Care and Scoutbook, which now includes the Den Leader experience to ensure the safe and consistent delivery of Cub Scouting; as well as improvements aimed at simplifying the annual renewal process. The fee increases above are paid directly to the BSA. Including the $12 local insurance fee, that Heart of New England Council announced earlier this year, the recharter fees for 2020 will be: $60 for each unit charter fee $72 for each youth participant in Cub Scouts, Scouts BSA, Venturing $48 for each youth participant in Exploring $48 for each adult leader (includes cost of background check and Scouting Magazine) The BSA will be sending out additional information through ScoutWire and Bryan on Scouting regarding their need for this increase. We realize that the timing of this increase is challenging for our units. Heart of New England Council’s board communicated our frustration regarding this process to the National Executive Committee. Our council will continue to provide need-based financial assistance that can help a family with financial barriers towards participation in Scouting. We will also provide a method for your unit to request up to 3% in additional popcorn commission for units who need assistance managing this change. Details will be available in November. from FAQ: Q: How will these fees be used? A: Every dollar of membership fees will go to cover the cost of essential services, including liability insurance for members participating in approved Scouting activities, background checks for adult leaders, program development and training resources, continuously updated youth protection and youth safety training, improved IT/digital experiences and services to our councils nationwide. Edited October 23, 2019 by RememberSchiff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2Scout Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 We are up to $90 with the $60, $6 Council fee, and a $24 troop fee. So yeah. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mds3d Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 1 minute ago, Mom2Scout said: We are up to $90 with the $60, $6 Council fee, and a $24 troop fee. So yeah. What does that $24 pay for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2Scout Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 Search me. It's a troop fee. At least I don't have to pay for each and every badge or patch like I did when my daughter was in Girl Scouts, so that's something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacBrave Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 My council, Crossroads of America, just increased their accident & sickness insurance from $1 to $12 a year. So with national's increase our membership fee for scouts more than doubled from $34 to $72 a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeS72 Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 1 minute ago, Mom2Scout said: At least I don't have to pay for each and every badge or patch like I did when my daughter was in Girl Scouts, so that's something. That is likely where your $24 goes. We can spend quite a bit of money at CoH time, particularly after summer camp, when the number of merit badges earned can be significant. Each merit badge your scout earns is $2.49, each rank patch is $1.99, we also give parent rank pins which are $2.49. Position patches are $2.99. It adds up quickly. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 2 minutes ago, MikeS72 said: That is likely where your $24 goes. We can spend quite a bit of money at CoH time, particularly after summer camp, when the number of merit badges earned can be significant. Each merit badge your scout earns is $2.49, each rank patch is $1.99, we also give parent rank pins which are $2.49. Position patches are $2.99. It adds up quickly. And every rank and merit badge also has a pocket certificate. Plus, there are blue cards, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cleveland Rocks Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, DuctTape said: What I would like clarification on is in regards to insurance. The national memo refers to liability insurance as a major cost driving the membership fee increase. The councils also collect an insurance fee of $12. What $ amount from the membership fee goes to the national liability insurance? What is the difference between the insurance provided by National vs Council? Our Council Scout Executive explained it to us like this at one of our leader breakfasts this past summer at Summer Camp: The national council carries liability insurance for everyone. That's what much of your national fee covers, and that's what most of the fee increase covers. Some councils carry their own liability insurance, that is in addition to the national insurance. Some of those councils that carry their own insurance do not charge their members anything extra for the cost of that additional insurance. They pay for it with things like fundraising and FOS. Other councils charge fees at recharter that are above and beyond what the national fee is. Sometimes, depending on the council and their individual finances, that fee covers the entire cost of the premium, other times it doesn't. As an example, Lake Erie Council (I'm not a member of LEC, they're our neighbors) communicated to its members a few months ago that they carry their own insurance in addition to the national insurance. For years, they've charged $1 per member at recharter time to pay for a portion of that premium. They just announced that they can no longer (or are no longer willing, depending on your perspective, I guess) absorb the additional costs for the premium out of their general fund budget. The annual premium is around $150,000, and they only collect around $14,000 annually from the $1 fee. So, they announced that starting at next recharter that $1/member fee for council insurance will jump to $12/member annually. I'm gonna guess that a significant percentage of the national fee is now going towards the insurance. On some other boards, I've seen people saying they heard that next year, the premium alone for national's insurance will be $50 million. Just for the premium. Now, whether that $50 million number is true or not, I don't know, but even if it's a fraction of that in actuality, it's still a huge number. Edited October 23, 2019 by Cleveland Rocks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeS72 Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 1 minute ago, Thunderbird said: And every rank and merit badge also has a pocket certificate. Plus, there are blue cards, etc. Indeed. We collect $5 monthly in dues, and spend far more, (re-charter also comes out of dues) depending on fundraisers to make up the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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