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The range across conferences

Disaffiliation impact

How much of the conference left under ¶2553 — and what did that cost the budget?

Between 2019 and 2023 churches could exit the denomination under ¶2553. The bodies vary enormously in how much they lost, which is the single biggest driver of the apportionment collapse — a smaller base, not just lower payment rates.

Río Texas

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84 churches · −$1.6M/yrConfirmed

churches disaffiliated (mostly 2023) and the recurring apportionment base + membership lost, from each church's last operating year

84 churches disaffiliated — the great majority in the 2023 wave — taking 24,512 professing members and about $1.6M/yr of recurring apportionment base with them. That lost base, more than any change in payment behavior, is why the ask fell from $10.7M (2014) to $6.4M (2024). One-time exit payments await the audit.

2023 · Atlas Vital Signs (GCFA church status + giving)

North Georgia

~190 (litigated)Partial

churches that sought to disaffiliate amid litigation; exact retained base not compiled here

A large, contested exit wave that ran through the courts rather than a clean ¶2553 process.

2023 · UMNews / NGUMC coverage

Texas Annual

294 of 598 leftReported

churches disaffiliated as a share of the conference; ~46% of the financial base lost

Roughly half the churches left — 294 of 598 — and with them ~46% of the financial base, the steepest loss in this set. Proceeds were routed to New Faith Communities and reserves drawn to absorb the gap.

2023 · Texas AC 2024 audit + New Faith Communities reports

Indiana

—Not public

not yet compiled

GCFA / conference journal — not yet ingested

Great Plains

—Not public

not yet compiled

GCFA / conference journal — not yet ingested

Florida

HeavyPartial

large disaffiliation wave; precise count/base not compiled here

Among the heaviest-hit conferences; sizable designated reserves cushioned the loss.

2023 · Florida AC reporting