| Proverbs 22:3 |
| "... foresee danger and plan ahead..." |
| 11/02/09 - Church Security - budgeting for 2010 |
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We hear from Christian folks like you all the time of the "battles" on getting funds approved to enhance security at your church. From someone who has had to plan, implement, and manage security budgets ranging from a few hundred thousand dollars to $3 million, for profits, not-for-profits, and government organizations, I feel the pain. Finding funds for security is almost always a challenge, no matter what organization you are working for, Christian or secular. The main reason we hear church leaders state that they do not implement security measures or have a plan is because they don't have any money. And that reason is valid if you look at it from a management point of view, they don't have any money, but the reason is because of lack of planning and budgeting. Churches run into problems funding security because they didn't plan for it and when they decide they want it or need it, they dip into their general operating budget, which will take away from something else. Security is usually not the biggest priority, until something happens. To eliminate this problem, every church and ministry must budget specifically for security and now is the time to do so for 2010. The goal is to know what your security expenses are going to be now for next year, so you may plan accordingly and know how much security is costing your church or ministry. It makes good fiscal management sense. Security, safety, and emergency planning expenses must be budgeted as a separate line item in the church or ministry's operating budget. Just like there are line items for maintenance, utilities, and IT, there needs to be a line item for security. This separate part of the operating budget should include things like training, memberships, alarm fees, background check costs...basically anything that supports or develops the security area of the organization. What this budget does not include are capital items (generally those one time projects or purchases that cost more than $500). This would include things like CCTV, alarm, card access, and radio equipment. Once it is agreed that security should have its own separate budget, the next logical question is "how much" is reasonable. This will vary from organization to organization, however I have found from experience that a reasonable amount should be based as a percentage of the overall organization's operating budget. The range is generally 2% to 4% of the overall operating budget and this remains a fixed cost percentage from year-to-year. Therefore, if the operating budget goes up, the security budget goes up as a fixed percentage; if the operating budget goes down, so does the security budget. Not only have I seen and used this fixed percent of operating budget method before, but I have colleagues in the IT sector that do the same thing and generally it is within the same range, 2 to 4 percent of the organization's total operating budget. By fixing a percent and associating it with the operating budget there is little room for argument when expenses relating to security comes up, because it should be already established in the budget before the year begins. And once it becomes part of the budget process every year, better planning may be done and funds better utilized instead of trying to guess every year how much may be pulled from the budget for security when things arise. Another benefit of having the security budget from year-to-year is that a church, school, or ministries can answer the question very quickly "So what do you do for security and safety in your organization?". Often, when this question is asked, Christian organizations give a variety of answers, but having a budget as part of the operating expenses shows a commitment to providing a safer and more secure environment to others. Make the planning of next year's security & emergency planning program easier, more efficient, and effective - start budgeting now in planning for 2010! In Christ, Jeff Hawkins Executive Director |
