Nov 17/25 - Announcement of 2026 benefit and assessment rates
Dec 05/24 - Update to Guidance Letter concerning payment of retirement benefits
Nov 20/24 - Announcement of 2025 benefit and assessment rates
Nov 22/23 - Announcement of 2024 benefit and assessment rates
Nov 16/22 - Announcement of 2023 benefit and assessment rates
Nov 17/21 - Announcement of 2022 benefit and assessment rates
Nov 20/20 - Announcement of 2021 benefit and assessment rates
May 12/20 - Scheduling of 2020 annual meeting (updated)
Dec 07/19 - Special meeting to ratify constitution and bylaws
Nov 25/19 - Announcement of 2020 benefit and assessment rates
May 22/19 - Tri-annual meeting held/change of name
Nov 29/18 - Announcement of 2019 benefit and assessment rates
Dec 06/17 - Announcement of 2018 benefit and assessment rates
Nov 26/16 - Announcement of 2017 benefit and assessment rates
Feb 29/16 - 2016 tri-annual
meeting scheduled
Dec 03/15 - Announcement of 2016
benefit and assessment rates
Dec 01/14 - Announcement of 2015
benefit
and assessment rates
Nov 22/13 - Announcement of 2014
benefit
and assessment rates
Apr
16/13 - Posting of 2012 preliminary
financial statements and treasurer's annual report
Nov 23/12 - Announcement of 2013
benefit and assessment rates
Nov 18/11 - Announcement of 2012
benefit and assessment rates
Mar 26/11 - Advance
notice to members regarding 2012 assessment rate increase
Nov 24/10 - Announcement of 2011
benefit and assessment rates
Jun 22/10 - Tri-annual meeting held
Apr 19/10 - 2010 tri-annual meeting
scheduled
Feb 10/10 - Amendment to constitution
passed
Nov 19/09 - Announcement of 2010
benefit and assessment rates
Nov 28/08 - Letter to members
regarding ministers who have served in Holland
Nov 21/08 - Announcement of 2009
benefit and assessment rates
Oct 16/08 - Phase-out
of supplementary benefits
Nov 20/07 - Announcement
of 2008 benefit and assessment rates
Sep 08/07 - Group life insurance
policy
cancelled
May 12/07 - Tri-annual meeting held
Dec 04/06 - Announcement
of 2007 benefit and assessmen[back to topt rates
__________________________________________________________________________________ November 17, 2025
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2026 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2025 rose by 2.2%
and therefore the 2026 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2026.
Based on established formulae the assessment
rates will be increased by 5.66% for 2026.
The 2026 benefit rates are listed here
The 2026 assessment
rates are listed here
If you require any
further information or assistance, please contact the treasurer.
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December 05, 2024
UPDATE TO GUIDANCE LETTER CONCERNING REPORTING TO CRA THE PAYMENT OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS
Based
on recent interactions with CRA we have revised our Guidance Letter
concerning how to report to CRA the retirement income that you pay
out. Primarily the change is to advise that this type of income
must be reported on form T4. Our previous Guidance Letter stated
that the income should be reported on form T4A and we have revised and
amended our Guidance Letter to describe how to declare it.
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November 20, 2024
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2025 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2024 rose by 2.0%
and therefore the 2025 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2025.
Based on established formulae the assessment
rates will be increased by 3.9% for 2025.
The 2025 benefit rates are listed here
The 2025 assessment
rates are listed here
If you require any
further information or assistance, please contact the treasurer.
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November 22, 2023
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2024 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2023 rose by 3.1%
and therefore the 2024 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2024.
Based on established formulae the assessment
rates will be increased by 4.5% for 2024.
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November 16, 2022
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2023 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2022 rose by 6.9%
and therefore the 2023 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2023.
Based on established formulae the assessment
rates will be increased by 4.8% for 2023.
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November 17, 2021
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2022 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2021 rose by 4.7%
and therefore the 2022 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2022.
Based on established formulae the assessment
rates will be increased by 2.8% for 2022.
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November 20, 2020
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2021 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2020 rose by 0.7%
and therefore the 2021 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2021.
Based on established formulae the assessment
rates will be increased by 2.3% for 2021.
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May 12, 2020
SCHEDULING OF 2020 ANNUAL MEETING (updated)
The
2020 annual meeting has been scheduled for Saturday, August 15,
2020 at 10:00am PDT. This meeting replaces the tri-annual meetings previously
held and it will be conducted electronically using the Zoom
application. If you plan to delegate someone from another
congregation to represent you at this meeting, please ensure that a
completed Proxy Form is forwarded to our Secretary *before* that date. The proxy form can be found here.
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December 07, 2019
MEETING TO RATIFY NEW CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS
On December 07, 2019 an electronic meeting was held to review the
updates made to the constitution and bylaws that were tentatively
approved at the May 18, 2019 tri-annual members meeting and, if deemed
suitable, to give final approval to this document. The updated
document was distributed by mail on November 04, 2019 to all
members. The minutes of this meeting can be found here.
There
were technical issues experienced prior to and during the meeting that
needed to be resolved but the meeting could be accomplished. It
is expected that we will use different meeting software during our next
meeting to see if we can have a more satisfying experience.
For this meeting:
- 5 members were represented by persons who connected electronically
- 23 members were represented by proxy at the time of the meeting
- 3 members submitted proxies after the meeting
- 27 members did not respond to our invitation to participate
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November 25, 2019
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2020 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2019 rose by 1.9%
and therefore the 2020 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2020.
The assessment
rates will also be increased by 1.9% for 2020.
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May 22, 2019
TRI-ANNUAL MEETING HELD/NAME CHANGE
The Tri-Annual
Members' Meeting took place on Saturday, May 18, 2019 in the building
of the Immanual Canadian Reformed Church of Edmonton, Alberta.
The reports delivered by the secretary and the treasurer to
the meeting as well as the minutes of the meeting (pending) have been
posted and
can be accessed through the main Members menu. In addition,
please note that the name of the Foundation has now been changed to Retirement Assistance Fund of the Canadian Reformed
Churches.
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November 29, 2018TRI-ANNUAL MEETING HELD/NAME CHANGE
The Tri-Annual
Members' Meeting took place on Saturday, May 18, 2019 in the building
of the Immanual Canadian Reformed Church of Edmonton, Alberta.
The reports delivered by the secretary and the treasurer to
the meeting as well as the minutes of the meeting (pending) have been
posted and
can be accessed through the main Members menu. In addition,
please note that the name of the Foundation has now been changed to Retirement Assistance Fund of the Canadian Reformed
Churches.
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2019 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2018 rose by 2.4%
and therefore the 2019 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2019.
The assessment
rates will be increased by 2.3% for 2019.
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December 06, 2017
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2018 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2017 rose by 1.4%
and therefore the 2018 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2018.
The assessment
rates will also be increased by 1.4% for 2018.
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November 26, 2016
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2017 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2016 rose by 1.5%
and therefore the 2017 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2017.
In
accordance with the policy that was previously announced the assessment
rates will be increased by 3% for 2017.
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February 29, 2016
2016 TRI-ANNUAL MEETING SCHEDULED
You are
hereby informed that our next tri-annual meeting has been scheduled for
May 14, 2016 at the Canadian Reformed Church of Dunnville in
Dunnville, ON.
The
meeting will begin D.V. at 9:00 AM.
A
provisional agenda for this meeting has been distributed to the members
and can be found on the Main Menu on this website. Reports
from both the treasurer and the secretary will be made available on
this website prior to the meeting.
We would
encourage all members to attend or to be represented, if at all
possible. Be sure to send the appropriate credentials along
with your representatives, so that they can be properly recognized at
the meeting.
December 03, 2015
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2016 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2015 rose by 1.0%
and therefore the 2016 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2016.
In
accordance with the policy that was previously announced the assessment
rates will be increased by 10% for 2016.
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December
01, 2014
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2015 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2014 rose by 2.4%
and therefore the 2015 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2015.
In
accordance with the policy that was previously announced the assessment
rates will be increased by 10% for 2015.
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November
22, 2013
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2014 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the
cost of living index for the year ended October 31, 2013 rose by 0.7%
and therefore the 2014 benefits will be increased by this percentage
effective January 01, 2014.
In
accordance with the policy that was previously announced the assessment
rates will be increased by 10% for 2014.
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April
16, 2013
POSTING
OF 2012 PRELIMINARY FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND TREASURER'S ANNUAL REPORT
We have
now posted the 2012 preliminary financial statements as well as the
2012 treasurer's annual report on this website. The financial
statements are scheduled to be presented to the Board of Governors for
approval at its next meeting on, DV, May 07, 2013
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November
23, 2012
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2013 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics
Canada has reported that the cost of living index for the year ended
October 31, 2012 rose by 1.2% and therefore the 2013 benefits will be
increased by this percentage effective January 01, 2013.
In
accordance with the policy that was previously announced the assessment
rates will be increased by 10% for 2013.
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November
18, 2011
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2012 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics Canada has
reported that the cost of living index for the year ended October 31,
2011 rose by 2.9% and therefore the 2012 benefits will be increased by
this percentage effective January 01, 2012.
Assessment rates
are normally calculated using a formula that is prescribed in our
bylaws. However, the board of governors has implemented a 10%
increase for 2012 under the provisions of Article 29 of the
Constitution.
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March
26, 2011
ADVANCE
NOTICE TO MEMBERS REGARDING 2012 ASSESSMENT RATE INCREASE
To
all Canadian/American Reformed Churches
At
the last Board meeting of the Foundation held on March 14, 2011,
treasurer S. Vander Molen, presented the Financial Statements for the
year 2010, which indicated that the financial position of the
Foundation is sound at this time, and the total assets have increased
year over year from 2008 to 2010.
There
have, however, been a few unforeseen early retirements, which mean that
the benefits paid out will increase in future years. There will also be
a number of ministers who can be expected to retire in the next few
years, thus increasing the benefits paid out even more.
The
Administration Committee did a number of projections which indicated
that if assessments were not increased, there would be a gradual
decrease in the assets of the Foundation, and the Fund would disappear
entirely by about 2025.
In
view of this, the Administration Committee came to the Board with a
recommendation that the assessment rate be increased 10% each year from
2012 to 2016. It should be pointed out that when the membership voted
for a benefit increase of 50% in 2004, the assessment rate was not
increased correspondingly. The members were also made aware that
assessments would have to be increased at some point in the future.
After
discussing the recommendation of the Committee, the Board decided that
raising the assessment rate would be the prudent course of action, and
that the member churches should be informed, so that they have ample
time to prepare for the increased assessments when they prepare their
budgets for 2012.
Yours
in Christ,
Chester
Baarda, Secretary
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November
24, 2010
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2011 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics Canada has
reported that the cost of living index for the year ended October 31,
2010 rose by 2.4% and therefore the 2011 benefits will be increased by
this percentage effective January 01, 2011.
As previously indicated, 2010 was the last year that supplementary
benefits were payable and therefore no supplementary benefits will be
payable for 2011.
Assessment rates
are normally calculated using a formula that is prescribed in our
bylaws and the rate of increase usually differs from the rate of
increase in benefits for a number of reasons, including the effects of
a change in the number of total minister positions as well as the
change in the number of communicant members.
For 2011 the rate
of increase for assessments in general has been set at 3.4%.
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June 22, 2010
TRI-ANNUAL MEETING HELD
The Tri-Annual
Members' Meeting took place on Saturday, May 15, 2010 in the building
of the Ebenezer Canadian Reformed Church of Burlington, Ontario.
The reports delivered by the secretary and the treasurer to
the meeting as well as the minutes of the meeting have been posted and
can be accessed through the main Members menu.
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April 19, 2010
2010
TRI-ANNUAL MEETING SCHEDULED
You are
hereby informed that our next tri-annual meeting has been scheduled for
May 15, 2010 at the Canadian Reformed Church - Burlington Ebenezer in
Burlington, ON.
The
meeting will begin D.V. at 9:00 AM.
A
provisional agenda for this meeting has been distributed to the members
and can be found on the Main Menu on this website. Reports
from both the treasurer and the secretary will be made available on
this website prior to the meeting.
We would
encourage all members to attend or to be represented if at all
possible. Be sure to send the appropriate credentials along
with your representatives, so that they can be properly recognized at
the meeting.
February 10,
2010
AMENDMENT
TO CONSTITUTION PASSED
Having
conducted a mail vote and receiving the required approval of the
membership, the Board of Governors has added article 40.1 to the
Constitution. This article reads as follows: "The
Board of the Foundation for Superannuation shall have the power to
modify benefits paid to a member church if the retiring minister
serving in this member church or other member churches commenced
serving the church or churches after the age of 55 years."
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November
19, 2009
ANNOUNCEMENT
OF 2010 BENEFIT AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics Canada has
reported that the cost of living index for the year ended October 31,
2009 rose by 0.1% and therefore the 2010 benefits will be increased by
this percentage effective January 01, 2010.
Eligible member churches who are currently receiving the supplementary
benefit will continue receiving it at one-third of the 2008 rate.
Assessment rates
are normally calculated using a formula that is prescribed in our
bylaws and the rate of increase usually differs from the rate of
increase in benefits for a number of reasons, including the effects of
a change in the number of total minister positions as well as the
change in the number of communicant members.
For 2010 the rate
of increase for assessments in general has been set at 1.1%.
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November
28, 2008
TEXT OF
LETTER TO MEMBERS REGARDING MINISTERS WHO HAVE SERVED IN HOLLAND
To all Canadian / American
Reformed Churches
A number of years ago, the
Foundation for Superannuation (FS), attempted to come to a reciprocal
agreement with the Vereniging Samenwerking Emeritering (VSE) in regard
to benefits for ministers coming to Canada to serve a church or
returning to Holland to serve a church there. In 2004, after
discussions that took place over several years, the FS came to the
conclusion that it was not possible to establish a reciprocal agreement
with the VSE of the Dutch churches, and we therefore abandoned the
attempt to come to such an agreement.
What this means is that the FS will accept ministers that have or will
come from Holland but in the event that a minister wishes to return to
Holland there will be a shortfall in contributions to the VSE and the
minister may find that the Dutch pension he is entitled to is less than
expected; in some cases much less. We wish to advise you that
churches that have called or will call a minister from our Dutch sister
churches who ultimately returns to active service in Holland are
responsible for any contributions that must be made to the VSE for the
period of time that the minister was in Canada and thus out of the VSE.
This information was
provided in the minutes of the tri-annual meeting of the Foundation
held in Smithers on May 12, 2007, but will be repeated here to ensure
that there are no misunderstandings.
“Rev. Visscher also points
out that churches contemplating calling a minister from Holland should
be aware that missed contributions to the VSE will be their
responsibility in the event that the minister returns to Holland to
serve a church there”.
We realize that councils and
consistories change over time; churches are therefore encouraged to
file this letter in such a way that it is available for future
reference, and will not be forgotten.
Yours in the Lord
Chester Baarda, Secretary
Foundation for Superannuation
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November 21,
2008
ANNOUNCEMENT OF 2009 BENEFIT
AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics Canada has
reported that the cost of living index for the year ended October 31,
2008 rose by 2.6% and therefore the 2009 benefits will be increased by
this percentage effective January 01, 2009.
Eligible member churches who are currently receiving the supplementary
benefit will continue receiving it at two-thirds of the 2008 rate.
Assessment rates
are normally calculated using a formula that is prescribed in our
bylaws and the rate of increase usually differs from the rate of
increase in benefits for a number of reasons, including the effects of
a change in the number of total minister positions as well as the
change in the number of communicant members.
For 2009 the rate
of increase for assessments in general has been set at 3.6%.
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October
16, 2008
PHASE-OUT
OF SUPPLEMENTARY BENEFITS
At the May 2007 tri-annual
meeting the membership of the Foundation requested that the
supplementary benefits paid by the Foundation be re-evaluated in light
of the 50% increase in all benefits that was implemented in
2005. These supplementary benefits are paid on a sliding
scale to beneficiary churches having fewer than 200 communicant members.
Supplementary benefits were
originally introduced by request of the members for the expressed
purpose of assisting smaller churches who found it difficult to come up
with the funds needed to cover the difference between the retirement
remuneration that they were obligated for and the standard benefit
amount payable to them by the Foundation.
Subsequently, the membership
requested consideration of a general increase in benefits, essentially
for the same reasons, i.e., that churches responsible for supporting
retired ministers felt that there was too great a gap between what they
paid out and what they were receiving from the Foundation.
This resulted in the 50% increase in benefits that was introduced in
2005.
After due consideration, the
board of governors concludes that the 2005 general increase in benefits
was significant enough to warrant the elimination of the supplementary
benefits that were introduced earlier. In order that the
churches currently receiving these supplementary benefits have an
opportunity to adjust their budgets and financial planning, the board
has decided that the supplementary benefit will be phased out equally
in three annual stages as follows: a one-third reduction
effective January 01, 2009; a further one-third reduction effective
January 01, 2010; and the elimination of the final one-third effective
January 01, 2011.
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November
20, 2007
ANNOUNCEMENT OF 2008 BENEFIT
AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics Canada has
reported that the cost of living index for the year ended October 31,
2007 rose by 2.4% and therefore the 2008 benefits will be increased by
this percentage effective January 01, 2008.
Eligible member churches who are currently receiving the supplementary
benefit will continue receiving it at the 2007 rate. You
should be aware that the Board of Governors will be reviewing the
concept of supplementary benefits in the near future. Pending
that review, the supplementary benefit will remain in effect at 2007
rates.
Assessment rates
are normally calculated using a formula that is prescribed in our
bylaws and the rate of increase usually differs from the rate of
increase in benefits for a number of reasons, including the effects of
a change in the number of total minister positions as well as the
change in the number of communicant members.
For 2008 the rate
of increase for assessments in general has been set at 3.4%.
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September
08, 2007
CANCELLATION OF GROUP LIFE
INSURANCE POLICY
After hearing from the
delegates present at the 2007 tri-annual meeting, the board of
governors authorized the cancellation of the group life insurance
policy. This cancellation took effect on August 01, 2007.
The board is of the opinion that the resources of the
Foundation are sufficient to meet current and potential retirement
obligations.
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May 12, 2007
TRI-ANNUAL MEETING HELD
The Tri-Annual
Members' Meeting took place on Saturday, May 12, 2007 in the building
of the Canadian Reformed Church of Smithers, BC. The reports
delivered by the secretary and the treasurer to the meeting have been
posted and can be accessed through the main Members menu. The
minutes of the meeting are also available there.
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December 04, 2006
ANNOUNCEMENT OF 2007 BENEFIT
AND ASSESSMENT RATES
Statistics Canada has
reported that the cost of living index for the year ended October 31,
2006 rose by 0.9% and therefore the 2007 benefits will be increased by
this percentage effective January 01, 2007.
Eligible member churches who are currently receiving the supplementary
benefit will continue receiving it at the 2006 rate for the first 3
months of 2007. We will adjust the benefit to actual on the
April 1, 2007 benefit cheque based on the number of communicant members
reported as at December 31, 2006.
Assessment rates
are normally calculated using a formula that is prescribed in our
bylaws and the rate of increase usually differs from the rate of
increase in benefits for a number of reasons, including the effects of
a change in the number of total minister positions as well as the
change in the number of communicant members.
For 2007 the rate
of increase for assessments in general has been set at 1.9%. With
respect to the assessment for group life insurance, the assessment will
remain at $0.40 per year.
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