Introduction
Each year, the Research Services office develops the Congregational Annual Report form, a two-page questionnaire that the Office of the General Assembly (OGA) distributes, as a supplement to the Session Annual Statistical Report form, to all congregations. Research Services staff work with other entities of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to develop questions for inclusion in the Congregational Annual Report form. Instructions that accompany the form suggest that the clerk of session of each congregation complete it, reporting pertinent information for the congregation. The Congregational Annual Report form for 2000 included questions on the following topics: guest preachers; the Theological Education Fund; investments, loans, and other financial issues; lay employees.
Out of the denomination's total of 11,178 congregations, 9,400 reported for 2000 a response rate of 84%. At least one congregation in 163 out of the denomination's173 presbyteries reported. The ten non-reporting presbyteries were Dakota, Heartland, Lackawanna, Maumee Valley, National Capital, New York City, San Juan, Plains and Peaks, Pueblo, and Winnebago. In only three other presbyteries did less than 50% of their congregations report. They were Hanmi, Monmouth, and St. Andrews.
Findings
The text of all questions and the percentage distribution of responses for each are presented in the attached appendix. A summary of the findings is presented below. Further analyses were done by congregational membership size, region, and race ethnicity. Congregations were categorized into three groups based on membership size: small (fewer than 251 members; 72% of responding congregations), medium (251 to 600 members; 20% of congregations), and large (over 600 members; 8% of congregations). Regional categories were based on the four areas used by the U.S. Census (Midwest, 27% of congregations; Northeast, 20% of congregations; South, 40% of congregations; and West, 13% of congregations). For race ethnicity, congregations were categorized into three categories: 90% or more white, non-Hispanic; 50-89% white, non- Hispanic; and less than 50% white, non-Hispanic. Membership size, region, and race ethnicity were obtained from other databases.
Guest Preachers
The 1999 the General Assembly urged all congregations to invite racial ethnic ministers to preach during Sunday worship services at least once a year. The results show that only 29% of congregations actually did this in 2000. This number rose by 1% when compared to 1999. Of those congregations that did invite a racial ethnic minister to preach, 52% had such a preacher for only one Sunday. Only 9% had a racial ethnic minister preach for more than five Sundays. The mean (average) number of Sundays that racial ethnic guest preachers were present in these congregations was 2.6 which was slightly lower than for 1999 survey results (in 1999 the mean was 2.8).
Congregations with larger numbers of racial ethnic members were more likely to have invited a racial ethnic minister to serve as guest preacher. Two-thirds of congregations with more than 50% racial ethnic members invited such a speaker (67%) compared to 45% of congregations with between 10% and 50% racial ethnic members and 25% of congregations with less than 10% racial ethnic members.
Large congregations were more likely to have invited a racial ethnic minister to serve as a guest preacher (43% did) than medium-size churches (35%) or small churches (26%). Although large congregations were more likely to have invited at least one racial ethnic guest preacher, small congregations tended to have invited such speakers more often. Small congregations reported having such guest preachers almost twice as often as large congregations (3.0 Sundays in small congregations; 1.7 in large congregations).
Congregations in the West (37%) and Northeast (33%) were more likely to have invited a racial ethnic guest preacher compared to congregations in the South (29%) and Midwest (23%). Congregations in the West also tended to have such guest speakers slightly more often (2.9 Sundays) than those in the South (2.7), Northeast (2.5), and Midwest (2.3).
The Theological Education Fund
When asked about the Theological Education Fund (TEF or the 1% Plan), 23% of responding congregations indicated that this fund is a line item in their annual budget. Large congregations were twice as likely to include the TEF in their budget (40%) than were small-sized congregations (19%), with mid-sized congregations in between (31%). Congregations in the South were somewhat more likely than those located elsewhere to report that the 1% Plan is in their budget (27%). Those in the Midwest and West (22% for both regions) were more likely than those in the Northeast (14%) to have the fund as a line item in their budget.
When asked if their congregation made a contribution directly to one or more seminaries in the previous year, 18% reported that they had. The larger the church, the more likely they were to have contributed to a seminary: 46% of large churches, 28% of medium-sized churches, and 12% of small churches did so. This practice is more common among churches located in the Northeast and South (20 and 21%, respectively) than among those in the Midwest and West (12 and 16%, respectively).
Although the number of congregations including the Theological Education Fund in their annual budget and contributing to seminaries may seem low, these figures may increase in the near future. Three-quarters of responding congregations without the fund in their budget (78%) indicated interest in learning more about it and provided contact information about a person to whom information about the Theological Education Fund could be sent.
Financial Issues
Mortgage Loans:
When asked if their congregation currently has a "mortgage loan either from a bank or other financial institution, from the Presbyterian Investment & Loan Program, from the general Assembly (Church Loan Program), from your presbytery or synod, and/or from some other source," only one-fifth (21%) of the responding congregations indicated that they currently have a mortgage loan. Large churches are more likely to have mortgage loans relative to small and medium-sized churches (Figure 1). Larger percentages of congregations in the West have mortgage loans than do churches in other parts of the country (Figure 2).
Congregations with mortgage loans (n=1,909) were asked to provide additional information about the source of the loan, the outstanding balance, and the interest rate. As can be seen in Figure 3, congregations' mortgage loans were originated from a wide variety of lending sources. Banks and the PCUSA Church Loan Program originated the largest proportions of mortgage loans.
Note. Percentages add to more than 100% because some congregations reported more than one mortgage loan.
Table 1 shows the mean and median balance and interest rate for churches that reported having a mortgage loan from a bank, a company selling church bonds, or another non-PCUSA financial institution. (Similar information was not collected for loans from the PCUSA sources.) The loans originated by both banks and companies selling church bonds have higher balances, as well as higher interest rates, than loans originated by other institutions (e.g., credit unions). Loans originated by other financial institutions are not used widely, but unlike loans from companies selling church bonds they are characterized by lower balances and lower interest rates.
| Source | Balance: | Current Interest Rate: | Number of Churches |
||
| Mean | Median | Mean | Median | ||
| Bank | $378,227 | $178,113 | 7.87% | 8.00% | 1,111 |
| Company Selling Church Bonds | $486,308 | $270,000 | 7.65% | 8.00% | 44 |
| Another Financial Institution | $171,343 | $66,850 | 6.00% | 6.25% | 119 |
As can be seen in Figure 4, larger congregations with mortgage loans from either banks or companies selling church bonds tend to have larger loan balances. This pattern did not hold for congregations holding mortgage loans from other types of financial institutions.
Planned Capital Construction Projects:
When asked whether their congregation expects "to begin a capital construction project (either new construction, renovation, and/or expansion of existing facilities, or purchase of land or buildings) in the next two years," over two-thirds of congregations (69%) indicated that they did not expect such a project to be undertaken. Of the 31% that responded "yes" to this query, about half responded "definitely"; the remainder said "yes, possibly." Small congregations are significantly less likely than larger congregations to expect to begin a capital construction project: 26% of small churches, 43% of mid-sized churches, and 49% of large churches expect to begin a capital construction project in the next two years.
A follow-up question asked about the expected cost of the project. About half of the congregations considering capital projects estimated that their approximate cost would not exceed $130,000. One-fifth of the congregations plan on capital projects that will cost $1,000,000 or more. Only 40% of the congregations planning a capital project reported that their projects will not need either short-term or long-term financing. About one-fifth estimate that more than half or all of the project cost will require some sort of financing. One-quarter of the congregations have not yet determined whether they will need loans to cover their capital project costs.
Investments:
A large majority of congregations (84%) reported having funds invested in at least one of six types of financial instruments. Table 2 displays these investments by investment category. The most-frequently reported investment options were interest-bearing checking accounts (52% of congregations with investments) and certificates of deposit (52%), although four in ten have investments in money market accounts (44%) and stocks or mutual funds (42%). The amounts invested in interest-bearing checking accounts and certificates of deposit were substantially lower than the amounts invested in the less-frequently reported investment options. Bonds and federally-issued notes were reported the least often (11%), but were reported to have the largest amounts invested (in terms of mean or median amounts).
| Amount Invested | ||||
| Investment Category | Mean | Median | Total Investment | Number of Churches |
| Interest-bearing checking accounts | $75,112 | $17,788 | $299,171,699 | 4,559 |
| Certificates of deposit | $66,458 | $30,000 | $273,074,416 | 4,567 |
| Money market accounts | $133,961 | $36,000 | $464,977,174 | 3,851 |
| Bonds or federally-issued notes | $458,284 | $81,971 | $358,835,988 | 923 |
| Stocks or mutual funds | $318,813 | $74,084 | $1,020,203,136 | 3,634 |
| Other | $204,718 | $23,276 | $372,587,001 | 1,925 |
| Total | $312,420 | $55,000 | $2,936,747,688 | 7,993 |
Small-sized churches were less likely to report having funds invested in such instruments when compared to mid-sized and large churches (90% of small churches have such investments compared to 97% and 98%, respectively, for mid-sized and large congregations). Congregations in the South and West were less likely than those in the Northeast and Midwest to have such investments (89% and 90% in the South and West, respectively; 95% and 94% in the Northeast and Midwest, respectively).
When asked to indicate who manages their investments, responses indicate that many congregations use a combination of options for investment fund management. Two-thirds of responding congregations with investments (65%) manage part or all of their investment portfolio on their own, 22% employ a brokerage firm, 27% use the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Foundation's services, and 12% use some other means to manage their investments. Large churches are twice as likely to hire a brokerage firm (37%) when compared to small churches (17%) and more likely to take advantage of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Foundation manage to their funds (39% vs. 22%, respectively). A larger percentage of congregations in the West use the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Foundation (37%) than among those in the South (23%), Northeast (30%), and Midwest (25%).
Socially-responsible Investments:
Two in ten of the congregations who have invested funds (22%) report using "socially-responsible investment criteria to determine which investments to purchase or to avoid." Large congregations were more likely to do so (35%) than either medium-sized (28%) or small-sized (18%) congregations. Western congregations (29%) used socially-responsible criteria in their investment management somewhat more frequently than others, and Southern congregations did so least frequently (18%).
Among congregations that use socially-responsible investment criteria, over half (52%) indicated that at least a portion of their portfolio was invested in financial products that benefit Christian missions and/or church expansion. Churches in the West were more likely to do so (65%) than those in the Northeast (40%) with churches in the Midwest (55%) and South (51%) in the middle.
Lay Employees
Only a quarter of responding congregations (27%) reported having any full-time paid lay employees. Those that did were asked a series of follow-up questions about the number of such employees and the benefits they receive.
Salaried full-time lay employees are more common than hourly full-time lay employees. Most congregations with full-time lay employees (82%) have at least one salaried employee. The average (median) is two such employees. Among all congregations, just 22% have at least one full-time paid salaried employee. Almost four in ten congregations with full-time lay employees (37%), and just 10% of all responding congregations, have at least one full-time paid hourly employee.
Church size is related to whether a church has full-time employees or not (see Figure 5). While almost all large churches have full-time paid lay employees, less than 10% of small churches do. Congregations in the West are the most likely to have full-time employees (37%), with congregations in the South (28%), Northeast (24%), and Midwest (24%) being less likely to have full-time employees.
Figure 6 displays the benefits that congregations make available to their full-time lay employees. Among the 2,046 congregations that reported at least one full-time lay salaried employee, a majority provide medical benefits and a pension or retirement plan to at least some of these employees. Among the 919 congregations that reported at least one full-time lay hourly employee, medical benefits are the only type of benefits offered by a majority of congregations. In general, congregations are more likely to provide benefits of each kind to salaried full-time employees than to hourly full-time employees.
* 2,046 congregations reported having full-time salaried employees
** 919 congregations reported having full-time hourly employees
When asked why medical benefits are not provided for the full-time lay employees, almost three-quarters of congregations with such employees reported that "lay employees have coverage through other sources (e.g., through a spouse)." One-quarter said "cost" was a reason, and 18% indicated that they "have not dealt with the issue." Few (8%) reported that the "administrative burden/complexity of developing a benefits package" kept them from offering such benefits.