CANON 12—Investments
Section 1. Congregations that have financial assets in excess of one year’s Normal Operating Income, as defined in their annual parochial report, shall invest such excess funds with the Board of the Corporation of the Diocese of Georgia where they will be pooled with other funds managed by the Board and earn a proportionate share of net returns on the pooled investments.
Section 2. To this end, Congregations will establish one or more accounts with the Board which shall be the subject of an Account Agreement, agreed upon by the Congregation, the Board of the Corporation, and the Bishop, that identifies the restrictions, if any, on the funds invested. The Board shall maintain separate records for each such account and shall respect any restrictions in making distributions of account income or principal.
Section 3. Upon request of the Board, invested funds shall be available to the congregation subject to the restrictions, if any, specified in the Account Agreement.
Section 4. Congregations may be granted a waiver from compliance with this Canon by requesting one from the Finance Committee of the Diocese. All waivers granted shall remain in effect for a period of three years, subject to automatic extensions in three (3) year increments, provided that the Congregationfurnishes the Finance Committee with written certification that the required investment policies and criteria enumerated below remain in place and in effect, with no material changes, and that the same shall remain in place and in effect, with no material changes, for the ensuing three (3) years. Waivers shall be granted if the Congregation can demonstrate to the Finance Committee of the Diocese that it has processes and policies in place that are accepted as a prudent approach to investing, managing, and monitoring their investment funds, namely:
a. All investment accounts are in the name of the Church only with no individual names listed on the account, except when an account is in the name of duly appointed trustees, subject to a legally binding trust instrument;
b. The Vestry has complete control over all investment accounts and receives reports (at least quarterly) on each account at a regularly called Vestry meeting, except in the case of investment accounts of legally-established formal trusts where the duly appointed trustees have complete control over these trust accounts;
c. The Vestry has a Gift Acceptance Policy in place that states which assets can be accepted and which cannot;
d. The Vestry has an Endowment Resolution for each of the church’s endowed funds that states clearly the purpose of each fund, any restrictions or limitations, and how the fund serves the church’s mission;
e. The Vestry has an Investment Policy Statement describing its general investment goals, parameters of asset allocation, and risk tolerance;
f. The Vestry has a Spending Rate Policy that clearly states the formula that determines how the funds available for distribution will be calculated and how they will be spent;
g. The Vestry provides the Finance Committee their Investment Performance Statements from the previous three years; and
Section 5. This canon does not apply in the case of investment accounts where the Congregation is the beneficiary of already-existing, legally-established outside trusts. Congregations are forbidden from establishing outside trusts with existing parish funds or with funds given directly to a Congregation.
