More and more Lodges in my Jurisdiction are tying dues to inflation, so that they steadily increase over time, with no further action by the Lodge needed.
Inflation alone is not a good metric to tie lodge budget to. You also should have to vote for dues increases. You have other variable factors such as activities, etc. A busy lodge will use more utilities, etc..
Any Lodge budget should, in my opinion, be cost actuals + 5 year projected increase for a ratio for planned attrition, inflationary increases in spend + 5 years of the capital funds needed for maintenance on the grounds (AC, Roof, building maintenance), + per capita tax to fund the grand lodge. etc. This requires a long range plan beyond 1 year. Which, in my opinion, a lodge should maintain to ensure continuity.
If these costs make your lodges dues too expensive to sustain, perhaps you should ask the question. Can we afford a building?
Yes and yes. This is something our forefathers should have been doing from day one. Of course, inflation wasn't a recognized economic metric the way it is now, however, Lodges were also charging 1-5% of an average income per year for annual dues. Fees for all 3 degrees were up to 10% of an average annual income. Right now, adjusted for inflation, annual dues should be $600- $1000 per year. ( the numbers are on line and available if you choose to research). It's bad business to continuously fight the battle of naturally higher costs by putting resolution after resolution in front of the lodge(s) every time money gets tight. That is a symptom of a bigger problem with how your lodge is (or isn't) attending to its business with some seriousness and competency. The sole reason we are fighting this battle now is a failure to agree things generally cost a bit more every year. So, let's build in that cost to our dues and fees for degrees... DUH! It's a battle that can be fought once. That's it. Build in a CPI inflation number to your annual dues increase and proceed. Or, you can go ahead and fight for a few years with some grumpy Past Masters about which CPI to use and fail to fix this. My advice, just pick which inflation measure to use and use it, it's not that hard. Sure, because of the apathy and failure to execute on proper business planning requires a "catch-up" with a one time dues/fees increase, but that should go hand in hand with an inflation resolution for dues increases moving forward. Most of the complaints in lodges about lack of money is a problem of their own making. The will to fix it is something the lodge needs to decide. As with many problems, this is one of our own making. Many lodges have already solved the inflation issue years ago exactly as noted above and are now set up for far better financial future.
Lodges need to be cognizant of the fact that they are, and/or have been, undercharging for dues for a long time. When I visit a Lodge and find out that the dues there are $75/year and look around a decrepit building that is only just staying ahead of being condemned, it is clear to me that the brethren need to consider something more concrete than a 3%/year dues increase. They need to bring their dues in line with inflation adjusted dollars first, and then consider what additional expenses might incur in the first few years after the increase with the inevitable loss of brethren who demit because of the dues change. I say inevitable because every time my Lodge has had an increase of any significance, we have had a few demits.
When my Lodge was formed in 1950 the fees for the degrees was $75 which today is an inflation adjusted amount of $965.74. Our initiation fees have not kept pace and it is currently about half that amount $450 for initiation. Though currently we are working to bring those up by making $50 increases in the initiation fees every year for the next few years.
The dues for the Lodge were $25/year and for the most recent year our dues were $206. If we had maintained inflation-rate based dues we'd be taking in $321.91 today.
In both cases that represents a lot of missed opportunities for building maintenance, charity, community support, scholarships, etc.
So, yes, I think Lodges should make By-Laws changes that build in some sort of annual rate increase whether it is tied to inflation or a fixed percentage (as my Lodge does). I also think Lodges need to think about the amount of money their forebears were willing to invest in being Masons relative to their income, and adjust accordingly. $25 in 1950 was a big commitment in financial terms since the median family income was $3300. An equivalent amount today would be setting dues at roughly $365.
All lodges are different depending on location. I had researched some items of interest for my lodge about eight years ago, and found that the lodge dues were $5 in 1929. When I had used the inflation calculator at the time it said that it would be $77 dollars, which was in line with what the lodge was paying at that time.
I agree that lodge dues need to go up, but some of the numbers folks are bandying about here are a little much.
The problem with tying dues to inflation is that it doesn’t reflect people’s purchasing power. Sure, inflation last year went up 9%, my salary certainly didn’t. Working for the state my pay on average has never kept up with inflation, especially over the last four years. Making dues go up that much may put it far out of reach of some brothers that are struggling to afford to put food on the table.
At least around here, lodges don’t own buildings, temple board associations do.
Dues should be higher. Every Lodge should be looking at starting at a dollar a day. I truly believe every mason can afford it. It may mean brothers cutting back the number of plural memberships they have but I. The end I think that would make us stronger. As Masons, we always seem to have a difficult time making monetary sacrifices for lodge dues but willingly give to the Shrine or the hospital or Almoner’s fund. As previously discussed, tying dues to inflation is a tricky thing. The price of electricity could be up and the price of gas be down and inflation not go up. I don’t know many lodges that use gas so there’s that. If lodges did move to a dues structure based on inflation and they didn’t start out with a large up front increase, then the dues will always be behind. In my home lodge, the Temple Board maintains the building and creates a budget based on rent charged to the Blue Lodge and other concordant groups that use the building. Those rents haven’t been adjusted either, so they should be increased as well. In the end, there’s a limited pool of money, and as I like to say, “We are them and they are us”. If we can’t get along better as Brothers, and have serious conversations about consolidating properties, then our collective monetary woes will continue until there are but a very few lodges/temples.
But, but, but if we raise dues members will quit and new members will not join. One of the lamest and most outdated statements that continues to be made.
Most members who pay regular dues will spend maybe $7.50 or less per month on dues. Most will go through that on beer, booze or coffee in a week.
Also another antiquated thought is trying to support Lodge building expenses with dues. Buildings need to have their own self supporting finances. Dues support Lodge activities. Both these ideas will be the biggest problems most Lodges will face over the next 10 to 20 years.
We just approved an updated dues structure at my lodge. The last time dues were updated, they started at $125/year plus an increase equal to inflation every three years. This still left us falling behind. This year, we reset the bar to $200, plus the rate of inflation EVERY year. We also listed the specific index that is to be used as the benchmark for inflation.
The sad thing is, out of the 80 or so members that we have, only 22 are dues paying members. The rest (with a handful of exceptions) are life members. The way the Life Membership is structured in my jurisdiction hurts the lodges. All monies collected by the Lodge for a Life Membership must be immediately turned over to the Grand Lodge. The annual return for each life member comes out to about $15-20. It's a shame.
Another thing to think about, should you be considering a dues increase, is are you providing value to your members? Are you seeking an increase just to keep the lights on, or are you providing an experience worth paying for. If your meeting program only consists of 'Open, Talk business, Close' , why would anyone want to pay more for that? In today's society, people have plenty of other things they could be doing. This is especially true with Millennials and Gen Z. We need to make sure that we provide an enriching, entertaining experience to both keep brothers' interest as well as justify the cost.
The American Lodge of Research enacted a bylaw, effective this year, that ties our annual dues to cost of living metrics local to New York City. It’s one of the most sensible decisions I’ve ever encountered in twenty-seven years in Freemasonry.
Inflation alone is not a good metric to tie lodge budget to. You also should have to vote for dues increases. You have other variable factors such as activities, etc. A busy lodge will use more utilities, etc..
Any Lodge budget should, in my opinion, be cost actuals + 5 year projected increase for a ratio for planned attrition, inflationary increases in spend + 5 years of the capital funds needed for maintenance on the grounds (AC, Roof, building maintenance), + per capita tax to fund the grand lodge. etc. This requires a long range plan beyond 1 year. Which, in my opinion, a lodge should maintain to ensure continuity.
If these costs make your lodges dues too expensive to sustain, perhaps you should ask the question. Can we afford a building?
Yes and yes. This is something our forefathers should have been doing from day one. Of course, inflation wasn't a recognized economic metric the way it is now, however, Lodges were also charging 1-5% of an average income per year for annual dues. Fees for all 3 degrees were up to 10% of an average annual income. Right now, adjusted for inflation, annual dues should be $600- $1000 per year. ( the numbers are on line and available if you choose to research). It's bad business to continuously fight the battle of naturally higher costs by putting resolution after resolution in front of the lodge(s) every time money gets tight. That is a symptom of a bigger problem with how your lodge is (or isn't) attending to its business with some seriousness and competency. The sole reason we are fighting this battle now is a failure to agree things generally cost a bit more every year. So, let's build in that cost to our dues and fees for degrees... DUH! It's a battle that can be fought once. That's it. Build in a CPI inflation number to your annual dues increase and proceed. Or, you can go ahead and fight for a few years with some grumpy Past Masters about which CPI to use and fail to fix this. My advice, just pick which inflation measure to use and use it, it's not that hard. Sure, because of the apathy and failure to execute on proper business planning requires a "catch-up" with a one time dues/fees increase, but that should go hand in hand with an inflation resolution for dues increases moving forward. Most of the complaints in lodges about lack of money is a problem of their own making. The will to fix it is something the lodge needs to decide. As with many problems, this is one of our own making. Many lodges have already solved the inflation issue years ago exactly as noted above and are now set up for far better financial future.
Yes, but with caveats.
Lodges need to be cognizant of the fact that they are, and/or have been, undercharging for dues for a long time. When I visit a Lodge and find out that the dues there are $75/year and look around a decrepit building that is only just staying ahead of being condemned, it is clear to me that the brethren need to consider something more concrete than a 3%/year dues increase. They need to bring their dues in line with inflation adjusted dollars first, and then consider what additional expenses might incur in the first few years after the increase with the inevitable loss of brethren who demit because of the dues change. I say inevitable because every time my Lodge has had an increase of any significance, we have had a few demits.
When my Lodge was formed in 1950 the fees for the degrees was $75 which today is an inflation adjusted amount of $965.74. Our initiation fees have not kept pace and it is currently about half that amount $450 for initiation. Though currently we are working to bring those up by making $50 increases in the initiation fees every year for the next few years.
The dues for the Lodge were $25/year and for the most recent year our dues were $206. If we had maintained inflation-rate based dues we'd be taking in $321.91 today.
In both cases that represents a lot of missed opportunities for building maintenance, charity, community support, scholarships, etc.
So, yes, I think Lodges should make By-Laws changes that build in some sort of annual rate increase whether it is tied to inflation or a fixed percentage (as my Lodge does). I also think Lodges need to think about the amount of money their forebears were willing to invest in being Masons relative to their income, and adjust accordingly. $25 in 1950 was a big commitment in financial terms since the median family income was $3300. An equivalent amount today would be setting dues at roughly $365.
All lodges are different depending on location. I had researched some items of interest for my lodge about eight years ago, and found that the lodge dues were $5 in 1929. When I had used the inflation calculator at the time it said that it would be $77 dollars, which was in line with what the lodge was paying at that time.
I agree that lodge dues need to go up, but some of the numbers folks are bandying about here are a little much.
The problem with tying dues to inflation is that it doesn’t reflect people’s purchasing power. Sure, inflation last year went up 9%, my salary certainly didn’t. Working for the state my pay on average has never kept up with inflation, especially over the last four years. Making dues go up that much may put it far out of reach of some brothers that are struggling to afford to put food on the table.
At least around here, lodges don’t own buildings, temple board associations do.
Dues should be higher. Every Lodge should be looking at starting at a dollar a day. I truly believe every mason can afford it. It may mean brothers cutting back the number of plural memberships they have but I. The end I think that would make us stronger. As Masons, we always seem to have a difficult time making monetary sacrifices for lodge dues but willingly give to the Shrine or the hospital or Almoner’s fund. As previously discussed, tying dues to inflation is a tricky thing. The price of electricity could be up and the price of gas be down and inflation not go up. I don’t know many lodges that use gas so there’s that. If lodges did move to a dues structure based on inflation and they didn’t start out with a large up front increase, then the dues will always be behind. In my home lodge, the Temple Board maintains the building and creates a budget based on rent charged to the Blue Lodge and other concordant groups that use the building. Those rents haven’t been adjusted either, so they should be increased as well. In the end, there’s a limited pool of money, and as I like to say, “We are them and they are us”. If we can’t get along better as Brothers, and have serious conversations about consolidating properties, then our collective monetary woes will continue until there are but a very few lodges/temples.
But, but, but if we raise dues members will quit and new members will not join. One of the lamest and most outdated statements that continues to be made.
Most members who pay regular dues will spend maybe $7.50 or less per month on dues. Most will go through that on beer, booze or coffee in a week.
Also another antiquated thought is trying to support Lodge building expenses with dues. Buildings need to have their own self supporting finances. Dues support Lodge activities. Both these ideas will be the biggest problems most Lodges will face over the next 10 to 20 years.
We just approved an updated dues structure at my lodge. The last time dues were updated, they started at $125/year plus an increase equal to inflation every three years. This still left us falling behind. This year, we reset the bar to $200, plus the rate of inflation EVERY year. We also listed the specific index that is to be used as the benchmark for inflation.
The sad thing is, out of the 80 or so members that we have, only 22 are dues paying members. The rest (with a handful of exceptions) are life members. The way the Life Membership is structured in my jurisdiction hurts the lodges. All monies collected by the Lodge for a Life Membership must be immediately turned over to the Grand Lodge. The annual return for each life member comes out to about $15-20. It's a shame.
Another thing to think about, should you be considering a dues increase, is are you providing value to your members? Are you seeking an increase just to keep the lights on, or are you providing an experience worth paying for. If your meeting program only consists of 'Open, Talk business, Close' , why would anyone want to pay more for that? In today's society, people have plenty of other things they could be doing. This is especially true with Millennials and Gen Z. We need to make sure that we provide an enriching, entertaining experience to both keep brothers' interest as well as justify the cost.
The American Lodge of Research enacted a bylaw, effective this year, that ties our annual dues to cost of living metrics local to New York City. It’s one of the most sensible decisions I’ve ever encountered in twenty-seven years in Freemasonry.
Jay