As the United States Government is changing quickly to bring about sound management and fiscal restraint, many of our States are seeking to do the same. As a broad net is cast over much of policy and practice, we (the church involved in mission) must be vigilant for what might affect us.
The United New Testament Church, International is Headquartered in Alabama, where it is registered as a Church and Not-for-profit LLC. Therefore, we operate under the laws governing us under both the US Code and the Statutes of Alabama.
With the recent activity within the executive branch of the Federal Government, audits, redistributions, reorganizations, and with a renewed priority to streamline and shrink both the cost of government and its footprint, many of the States have begun to follow.
Alabama is now considering legislation that is aimed at reducing the amount of US Dollars being sent [back] to foreign countries in order to keep more dollars within the state and our local economies. The bill, should it be passed would require reporting of money being sent, tracking that money from source to destination, and creating a fee to be collected by the state of $7.50 per transfer, plus 1.5% of every transfer over $500. The money collected by these fees would be placed in the “Sherrif’s Immigration Enforcement and Detainer Fund”. The bill by State Senator April Weaver is “Senate Bill 77” for the 2025 legislative session.
Politics aside, this bill, and others that may come along in your states or as part of Federal Code, need to be watched for by all of us doing international outreach and missions support. These pieces of “well intentioned” legislation will have a definite effect on our abilities by further cutting into our costs to do missions work. The costs have gone up over the past four years to send the money, and what we can do with the money once it gets “there”. This will add another layer to those challenges and as a result put more pressure on our ability to raise sufficient funding, as we get caught up in this regulation simply by the way we do this part of ministry.
Be watchful, ever vigilant, and closer than ever to the Lord’s Will upon our lives, in these days.
Thank you so much for this information!!
While I understand some of the cause of this, I also regret that the few that have abused this joy now have taken some of the freedom away from those of us who don’t. New times are coming and this limitation is a sad movement for our external ministries, but I do accept that God’s plans for tomorrow is still a big mystery, so let us do best to honor our mission today with stewardship for the mission which is, at times, still being discovered.
Thank you so much for this information!!
While I understand some of the cause of this, I also regret that the few that have abused this joy now have taken some of the freedom away from those of us who don’t. New times are coming and this limitation is a sad movement for our external ministries, but I do accept that God’s plans for tomorrow is still a big mystery, so let us do best to honor our mission today with stewardship for the mission which is, at times, still being discovered.