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	Diocesan Budget Comes up Short in 2005-06 By William T. Clew Catholic Free Press [Worcester MA] January 12, 2007 http://catholicfreepress.org/1.12.07/1.12_news.html#annua The Diocese of Worcester finished the fiscal year with a deficit of $75,993 on revenue of $32,071,365 and expenditures totaling $32,147,358, according to the annual report released this week. The fiscal year began Sept. 1, 2005 and ended Aug. 31, 2006. The diocese has finished with a deficit in three of the last four fiscal years. Last year the diocese had a surplus of about $34,500 because of an anonymous gift of about $1 million. Without that anonymous gift the diocesan deficit in fiscal 2004-2005 would have been more than $900,000, according to figures published last year. The deficit of $75,993 in the 2005-2006 fiscal year is much smaller than the deficits of $271,300 in fiscal 2003-2004 and $793,996 in fiscal 2002-2003, according to last year's published figures. Published figures for fiscal 2004-2005 showed revenues, including the gift of about $1 million, of $34,517,934. Expenditures totaled $34,483,401, about $2.3 million more than fiscal 2005-2006. "Without your active participation, we could not carry on the work of the Catholic Church here in the Diocese of Worcester," Bishop McManus said in a letter to the people of the diocese accompanying the annual report. In that letter he said the diocese had made "significant strides toward balancing our budget, but the challenge continues. We have reduced our staff and other operating costs in order to respond to our committed goal of a balanced budget." He said he has asked pastors for annual budgets for their parishes and has directed that audits be done for parishes where a change of pastors has occurred. The annual Partners in Charity Appeal, which helps support 31 charitable, educational and ministerial organizations, had revenues of $4,563,918 and expenditures of $4,312,876, for a surplus of $251,042, according to the report. Central Administration showed a surplus of $563,699 on revenues of $3,920,743 and expenditures of $3,357,044. Five organizations showed deficits. They are St. John's Cemetery System, with a deficit of $269,923; Central Catholic Schools, with a deficit of $251,042; the Priests' Retirement Fund, with a deficit of $224,344; the Diocesan Expansion Fund, with a deficit of $99,782, and The Catholic Free Press, with a deficit of $45,643. In his letter the bishop said the deficits in the Priests' Retirement Fund and the cemetery system were offset by income from investments and interest, which varies with the economy. He said the cemetery system's deficit actually was less than he had anticipated last February. "We need to stabilize the source of funding for these two programs," the bishop said. "It is our hope to do that without increasing the parish assessment for the Priests' Retirement Fund as well as continuing to manage the parish cemeteries which were a burden to parishes." The Board of Governors of the Diocesan Expansion Fund (DEF) has reduced the interest on deposits by one percentage point effective last Jan. 1 because of the $99,782 deficit, the bishop said. "I am encouraged that the DEF has operated within budget and has a surplus for the first quarter of the current fiscal year," the bishop said. The bishop said that The Catholic Free Press has "initiated efforts to raise their income to achieve a balanced budget. The Catholic Free Press is an excellent weekly Catholic newspaper. They face the reality that more and more people are not reading the printed word. People are depending on other media for news and information. The effectiveness of the newspaper in communicating with the Catholic Community in the Diocese of Worcester needs our serious study." The bishop pointed out that parishes have accounts payable debts to the Central Administration that totaled $5,317,240 as of Aug. 30, 2006. He said that was a "modest improvement" compared to the $5.6 million owed the previous fiscal year. He said he is "seriously concerned" about the debts. He said he has instructed the diocesan Finance Department to have an outside firm assist in "auditing every parish where a change of pastor takes place. "My purpose is to give the new pastor and parish finance council a clear, comprehensive picture of the parish finances. Additionally, I have asked all pastors to develop an annual budget for their parishes and submit that budget to me," the bishop said. "I shall review those budgets, assisted by staff from the diocesan Finance office to be assured that each of our parishes is working on or toward a balanced budget." He thanked pastors for their "stewardship of the finances of their parishes. I can appreciate how difficult it is to manage the parish with escalating pastoral demands and overhead costs and oftentimes decreasing financial resources." He urged pastors to work with parish finance councils and share the financial status of the parish with parishioners on a regular basis. He also thanked the people of the diocese for supporting their parishes and the diocese by sacrificial giving. "You are the good stewards, who share not only your treasure, but your time and talent for the mission of the Church," he said.
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