Historical Effects of UMC Annual Conference Mergers
May 23, 2014
Prepared by the GCFA Research Team
Primary contact: Lauren Arieux, Research Fellow –
Contents
Contents
Introduction
SUMMARY
NATIONAL TRENDS
UMC Annual Conference Mergers, 1986-Present
NORTH CENTRAL NEW YORK – 1986
MISSISSIPPI - 1989
NEW ENGLAND - 1994
DAKOTAS - 1994
ILLINOIS GREAT RIVERS - 1996
KENTUCKY - 1996
GREATER NEW JERSEY - 2000
ARKANSAS - 2003
MISSOURI - 2003
INDIANA - 2009
STATISTICS SUMMARY
Introduction
In the last 30 years there have been 13 instances in which either two or more conferences joined to form a larger conference, or in which a currently existing conference absorbed the churches of another conference in the area.
When asked to study the effects of mergers, the GCFA Research Team studied 10 of these unifications (there are three others, one very recent, one still in process, and another in which six conferences united into three, that were not includedin the study due to the availability or complexity of the data), focusing on statistics and information of the conferences involved before and after the merger, as well as the conferences’ current state, in hope of finding trends. A summary of the results follow, as well as comparable national trends and detailed statistics of each merger.
SUMMARY
With few exceptions, the membership and average worship attendance of merged conference was not affected by the merger and continued to decline along the national average. This is also true of the total number of churches and General Conference delegates for each merged conference.
However, a trend emerged when examining apportionments. The vast majority of merged conferences saw an increase in the percentage of apportionmentspaid.Many of the unified conferences saw actual dollar amount paid in apportionments and direct-billed pension and health benefits hold steady for approximately 5 years following the merger, after which they began increasing again. It appears that in most cases, cost savings made possible through unification were temporary.
NATIONAL TRENDS
Since statistics were first collected in 1974, membership has held a steady .8% decline annually, while average worship attendance has declined at an average rate of .5%. The percentage of worship attendees compared with members has inclined at an average rate of 40% per year.
The values of conference apportionments paid have increased at an average rate of 1% annually, and it is important to note that dips and arcs usually coincide with the state of the national economy of that time (i.e. 2008-2009).
UMC Annual Conference Mergers, 1986-Present
Unless otherwise noted, statistics are calculated by comparing totals of the involved conferences two years prior to unification with totals of the merger year of the merged conference for two years after (a 5-year total span with the merger year in middle).
NORTH CENTRAL NEW YORK – 1986
In 1986, the six combined (three each) districts of the Central New York and Northern New York annual conferences combined to form the North Central New York Annual Conference. The most northern region shared a border with Canada. North Central New York eventually merged into the Upper New York Annual Conference in 2010.
1984-1988
Membership pre-/post-merger / 14% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / 1% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 2% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / 28% increase
Number of Churches / 1 % decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 28%
Change in General Conference Delegates / 0
% of Apportionments Paid / 13% increase
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MISSISSIPPI - 1989
In 1989, the Mississippi Annual Conference joined with the North Mississippi Annual Conference, which contained six districts in the northern region of the state -- its most southern district being Starkville. North Mississippi was comprised of several districts in the Mississippi Delta, one of the poorest areas of the country.In 1990, 25% of Mississippi residents lived in poverty. This is the largest merger by number of churches in UMC.
1987-1991
Membership pre-/post-merger / 2 % decreaseAverage annual change in membership / .4 % decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 2% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / .4 % decrease
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 4 % decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 9 % decrease
Number of Churches / 3 % decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 40%
Change in General Conference Delegates / 0
% of Apportionments Paid / 4% increase
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NEW ENGLAND - 1994
Three districts covering the entire state of Maine combined with the five districts of Southern New England and two districts in New Hampshire to form the New England Annual Conference. Currently this conference is comprised of all of the churches in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont, as well as some in New York and Connecticut. New England has the distinction of being the annual conference covering the most states.
1992-1996
Membership pre-/post-merger / 4% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / .1% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 7% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / 2.5% increase
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 22% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 21% decrease
Number of Churches / 4% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 38%
Change in General Conference Delegates / 0
% of Apportionments Paid / 4% decrease
DAKOTAS - 1994
The Dakotas Conference of the United Methodist Church was created in June 1994 with the merger of the North Dakota and the South Dakota Conferences, which had been separate conferences since their beginnings in the 1880s. The conference currently is comprised of four districts.
1992-1996
Membership pre-/post-merger / 5% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / 1.4% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 8% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / 2% increase
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 26% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 13% decrease
Number of Churches / 3% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 49%
Change in General Conference Delegates / 0
% of Apportionments Paid / 4% decrease
ILLINOIS GREAT RIVERS - 1996
In 1996, the Central Illinois and Southern Illinois annual conferences unified to create the Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conference. This conference is comprised of all or part of 87 counties in the central and southern areas of Illinois and contains 10 districts.
1994-1998
Membership pre-/post-merger / 8% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / 1.2% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 2% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / .3% increase
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 27% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 25% decrease
Number of Churches / 3% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 45%
Change in General Conference Delegates / -2
% of Apportionments Paid / 3% increase
KENTUCKY- 1996
In 1996, the Kentucky Annual Conference absorbed the Louisville Annual Conference. The seven districts in Louisville covered most of the Mid-Western portion of the state. The state of Kentucky is divided between the conferences of Holston, Indiana, Kentucky, Memphis, Red Bird Missionary, and West Ohio.
1994-1998
Membership pre-/post-merger / 2% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / .53% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 2% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / .4% increase
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 2% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 12% decrease
Number of Churches / 4% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 41%
Change in General Conference Delegates / -2
% of Apportionments Paid / 10% increase
GREATER NEW JERSEY - 2000
The three districts in Northern New Jersey and five in Southern New Jersey combined to form the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference in 2000. At the time of the merger, the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference had largest number of congregations led by a pastor of a different ethnicity than the majority of members.
1998-2002
Membership pre-/post-merger / 6% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / 1.6% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / .21% increase
Average annual change in attendance / .1% increase
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 19% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 17% decrease
Number of Churches / .5% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 50.1%
Change in General Conference Delegates / 0
% of Apportionments Paid / 5% decrease
ARKANSAS - 2003
In 2003, the Little Rock and North Arkansas annual conferences merged to create the Arkansas Annual Conference, which is composed of five districts.
2001-2003
Membership pre-/post-merger / 3% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / .72% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 6% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / 1.6.% decrease
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 3% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 9% decrease
Number of Churches / 4% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 41%
Change in General Conference Delegates / -2
% of Apportionments Paid / 4% increase
MISSOURI - 2003
In 2003, the Missouri East and Missouri West annual conferences merged to form the Missouri Annual Conference, which includes all churches within the state of Missouri.
2001-2005
Membership pre-/post-merger / 3% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / .9% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 2% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / .4% decrease
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 7% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 4% decrease
Number of Churches / 4% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 48%
Change in General Conference Delegates / 0
% of Apportionments Paid / 1% increase
INDIANA - 2009
The 2009 unification of the North Indiana Annual Conference with the South Indiana Annual Conference involved the largest number of members of any conference merger in UMC history.
2007-2011
Membership pre-/post-merger / 4% decreaseAverage annual change in membership / 1% decrease
Attendance pre-/post-merger / 8% decrease
Average annual change in attendance / 2% decrease
Membership Merger Year to 2012 / 2% decrease
Attendance Merger Year to 2012 / 7% decrease
Number of Churches / 2% decrease
Average Attendance as part of Membership / 59%
Change in General Conference Delegates / -4
% of Apportionments Paid / 31% increase
STATISTICS SUMMARY
Merger / Membership / Attendance / % App Paid / # Churches / # DelegatesNC NY / -4% / -5% / 13% / -1% / 0%
MS / -2% / -2% / 4% / -3% / 0%
NE / -4% / -7% / -4% / -4% / 0%
Dakotas / -5% / -8% / -4% / -3% / 0%
IGR / -8% / -2% / 3% / -3% / -9%
KY / -2% / 2% / 102 / -4% / -13%
GNJ / -6% / 0% / -5% / 0% / 0%
AR / -3% / -6% / 4% / -4% / -14%
MO / -3% / -2% / 1% / -4% / 0%
IN / -4% / -8% / 31% / -2% / -18%
AVERAGE / -4% / -4% / 5% / -3% / -5%
Merger / Membership / Attendance / % App Paid / # Churches / # Delegates
NC NY / -4,476 / -1,562 / -9% / -5 / 0
Miss. / -2,861 / -1,835 / 2% / -33 / 0
NE / -4,510 / -3,101 / -3% / -26 / 0
Dakotas / -2,704 / -2,024 / -4% / -10 / 0
IGR / -14,482 / -1,374 / 3% / -31 / -2
KY / -3,324 / 961 / 10% / -38 / -2
GNJ / -7,369 / 119 / -4% / -3 / 0
AR / -4,075 / -3,686 / 3% / -26 / -2
MO / -6,242 / -1,368 / 1% / -33 / 0
IN / -8,528 / -9,797 / 21% / -24 / -4
AVERAGE / -5,857 / -2,367 / 2% / -23 / -1
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