This episode of the Cubmaster Minute is the first of two episode discussing our 2021 Membership Renewal process. In Part One, we’ll discuss the changes in our Dues and member benefits.
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- BSA Dues Increase Announcement: https://scoutingwire.org/bsa-membership-fee-increase-details-and-faq/
- Pack 457 Membership Dues: https://www.cubscoutpack457.org/?product=annual-membership-dues
Transcripts
Hello Mr. Maloney here with a new episode of The Cubmaster Minute presented by Pack 457 in Zelienople PA. In today’s episode, we’ll also be discussing how the Pack pays for our activities, Scout registration with the BSA, and how recent events are impacting our dues. We’ve got a lot to cover, so let’s jump in.
We have not raised our Pack dues in many years (at least in the three years I’ve been part of the Pack). However, several recent events caused our Pack Leadership team to re-evaluate our dues this year.
Let’s start with some positives:
- We made some investments in the program last year (new flags, updates to our Pinewood Derby track) that increased our costs, but are not expected to recur.
- We had a very successful popcorn sale last year; selling $28,284 of popcorn and earning the Pack $9,250.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has positively impacted our Pack costs because we have been holding meetings virtually with minimal supplies needed.
However:
- We are being told that businesses like Lowes and Walmart will not allow us to sell popcorn outside of their stores for health and safety reasons related to the coronavirus. 38% of our popcorn sales last year came from selling at these storefronts. As a result, we do not expect to raise as much money this year.
- Additionally, the Boy Scouts of America recently announced an increase in the fees we pay for each Scout to participate in the program:
- Annual fees increased from $33 a year to $66 a year.
- A one-time $25 joining fee has been added for youth who are new to the BSA programs.
- 100% of youth member and adult leader registration fees go to support the operation of the National Council, Boy Scouts of America.
- These fee increases are necessary because of the cost of liability insurance that must be carried to cover all Scouting activities has increased dramatically over the past several months. The national organization is no longer able to offset the cost of this insurance coverage.
- The BSA has also added a $75 per year fee to units as we recharter each year.
Let’s take a look at how much it takes to run our program. (Keep in mind, some of these details are estimated)
Last year, our program cost an average of about $180 per Scout. That included:
- Your Scout’s Annual dues to the BSA ($33)
- A subscription to Boys Life Magazine ($12)
- A Class B t-shirt ($11)
- All of your Scout’s rank patches and adventure belt loops or pins (~ $20)
- Administrative Costs like paying for our Leader’s registration and the cost of the Pack Trailer (~ $20)
- And the remaining $85 covers the venues and other equipment and supplies for out Pack and Den events presented to our Scouts and their families free of charge.
Last year, our dues covered less than 40% of this cost and we covered the rest with the roughly $155 per Scout that we earned in Popcorn sales.
Now, let’s adjust this to show our estimated costs for the 2020 – 2021 Pack year by:
- Increasing the Annual BSA dues to $66
- Adding $5.50 to our our administrative costs (making it $25.50)
- Decreasing our popcorn revenues by $60 per Scout to assume we will not have any storefront popcorn sales this year.
As you can see, these changes will changes cause us to operate the Pack at a shortfall per Scout this year if we do not make some changes.
We are still committed to keeping our official Pack and Den events FREE of charge for our members and their families and the Pack is currently in a good financial position that will allow us to continue to provide a quality Cub Scouting program.
However, we want to be THRIFTY and, just like the outdoors, we want to help to leave our Pack better than we found it. As a result, the Pack Leadership Committee has decided:
- Annual dues will increase by five dollars a year from $70 to $75 a year. (That works out to a little more than $6 a month.)
- We are actively exploring other fundraising options (like selling Christmas Wreaths or meat sticks) and will be encouraging donations to the Pack to help run our program.
- Some membership benefits will be removed this year, specifically:
- The Pack will no longer purchase a Boys Life magazine subscription for our members (a $12 savings to the program). Families can “add on” a Boys Life subscription to their membership dues.
- Existing members will not receive new Class B t-shirts as part of their registration this year (an $11 savings to the program). New Class B gear can be ordered through the Pack webstore.
For our new members:
- The Pack will cover the one-time new member joining fee for the 2020–2021 pack year.
- We will also purchase our new members a new Class B uniform shirt.
I know that these changes are not ideal, but I still believe that Scouting is a great value (costing less for a year of participation than most sports cost for a season) and that Scouting teaches our Youth valuable skills that will continue to serve them even as adults.
We will continue to monitor our costs closely and will keep you up-to-date on any changes through our Monthly Pack Update. If you have any questions, comments, or feedback on our annual dues changes, please reach out to Mr. Maloney at cubmaster@cubscoutpack457.org. And don’t forget to join us for our next episode where we’ll walk through the 2020 Membership Renewal process. Until then, stay safe and stay Scouting!