The upcoming election of the 8th Bishop of Los Angeles and review of the $13.4 million consolidated budget for 2026 – to be presented to the Nov.7-8 Diocesan Convention – were the main business of the Oct. 16 meeting of Diocesan Council, held via Zoom.
Bishop candidate meet-and-greets begin
The Rev. Canon Greg Larkin, Transitions Committee co-chair, told Council a busy agenda is planned, intending to show bishop candidates, the depth and breadth of diocesan congregations. There will be stops at a variety of ministries and ethnic congregations, in Los Angeles, Camarillo, Hacienda Heights, Riverside and Woodland Hills. Larkin encouraged visitor registration prior to designated candidate meet-and-greet sessions to allow for adequate planning and space accommodation. Spanish translation will be provided at the sessions for both clergy and laity.
Bishop John Harvey Taylor, who will reach the church’s mandatory retirement age in 2026, offered prayers for the candidates, the Rev. Antonio Gallardo, rector of St. Luke’s/San Lucas, Long Beach; the Rev. Monica Burns Mainwaring, rector of St. Martin in the Fields, Atlanta, Georgia; and the Rev. Melissa McCarthy, diocesan canon to the ordinary. “It’s an experience like no other in the church to stand for an episcopal election,” Taylor said. “There’s nothing easy about it, but it is, in its way, glorious.”
Taylor also requested prayers for the Rev. Lorenzo Lebrija, a petition candidate, who withdrew after learning his spouse, Troy Elder, is facing open heart surgery.
Diocesan Convention news: elective offices, deanery assemblies
Candidates for diocesan elective offices and General Convention deputies are listed on the website, with some positions vacant, said Diocesan Council Secretary Samantha Wylie. Hotel rooms are sold out at both the Marriott and the Mission Inn in Riverside; additional accommodations may be made through the Hyatt Place at the discounted group rate, she said.
Pre-convention assemblies will be held online at 10 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 25 for Deaneries 1, 3, 4 and 5; at 3 p.m. the same day for Deaneries 6, 7 & 8 and at 10 a.m., Saturday, Nov. 1 for Deaneries 2, 9 & 10. The Zoom link is available here; registration is not necessary.
Convention delegates will be asked to consider two proposed resolutions, regarding recommitting to the gospel work of sanctuary and a “Dignity, not Hate, Not Mass Deportation, Not Silence” immigration justice resolution that would, among other things, call upon diocesan congregations to observe a Migration with Dignity Sunday during the season of Epiphany.
Convention business will be livestreamed, on the diocesan Facebook page and YouTube channel. Pre-registration is not necessary for visitors, but they will need to check in at the information table. Tickets for the Friday night dinner are sale on the diocesan website.
Proposed 2026 budget
Council reviewed the 2026 proposed consolidated budget, which at $13.4 million represents a $1.6 million increase over 2025. The Mission Share Fund portion which council recommended be presented for approval at the upcoming convention totals $6.6 million and assumes the same $5.1 million of assessment income from Parishes and Missions as in 2025. All but 15 of the expense line items in the consolidated budget also remain essentially unchanged.
Taylor praised a 2026 budget “that puts our system on idle, creating as much flexibility as possible for the next bishop and their team, but also doing what we need to do to keep serving the people of God and glorifying God.”
Tomat offered a recap of his seven years as treasurer, reporting that cash and investment accounts, including endowments, rose from about $17.6 million in 2019 to $20.0 million in 2024 and $23.6 million currently. He attributed the significant increase in restricted cash this year to the receipt of several new prepaid grants, including a $1.25 million four-year Lilly Foundation Inc. grant to fund child formation; a $300,000 Trinity Church Wall Street & the Iona Collaborative grant to fund the Center for Lay Chaplaincy, and a $170,000 Episcopal Relief and Development grant to for disaster recovery and resilience. Additionally, the diocesan real estate task force facilitated the sale of a vacant building in Echo Park.
“The results could not have been possible without the collective support of all churches large and small in supporting the diocese through timely assessment payments to the MSF, the growth of our self-sustaining grant-funded ministries, the generosity of individual donors in supporting fundraising appeals and the diligent work of our CFO, the Rev. Susan Stanton, Controller Martha Macias and the rest of the finance office and diocesan staff closely monitoring and controlling the fiscal resources entrusted to us,” he told Council.
“On the liability side, our only diocesan level debt is the $143,000 remaining in the bishop’s residence mortgage. There are also $5.4 million in mission church and institution loans on both the COTD and Corp Sole books that the diocese serves as guarantor. Finally, there are also approximately $10 million in funds held for other churches and institutions which are listed as both assets and offsetting liabilities.”
The Bishop as Corporation Sole share of total assets decreased significantly from 2017 – 2025 as Bishop Taylor transferred the majority of Corporation Sole assets to the permanent management by COTD, including some $8.72 million which was transferred to COTD in July, at Taylor’s initiative, increasing the diocese’s endowment to $11.72 million.
The move is in keeping with Taylor’s commitment to shift assets – except real estate for which property tax liability would be increased – out of Corp Sole, an entity formed in 1907 and now largely outmoded, and for which the incumbent diocesan bishop is the sole trustee.
Also, beginning in 2026, Camp Stevens financials (including $6.1 million of assets, $1.2 million of liabilities and a projected $1.7 million of income and expenses) will be consolidated into COTD’s books to improve the visibility and fiscal oversight of this critical mission of the diocese, Tomat said.
“We are fiscally responsible lock, stock and barrel for Camp Stevens,” Taylor told Council members. “It (Camp Stevens) is essentially functioning as a department of the Diocese. Its board is advisory, and after a period of discernment, the corporation, the diocesan finance office, camp and the bishop’s office all came to the conclusion that having a seven-figure operation going on without being on our books was fiscally irresponsible.”
Other 2026 Budget highlights include:
- the loss of $2 million in expected IRIS funding and expenses due to the Episcopal Church’s decision to end its participation in the federal government’s refugee resettlement program.
- a 2% cost of living increase for employees and mission vicars;
- a fundraising target of $180,000 added at Council’s request;
- One-time expenses of about $344,000 related to the Bishop’s transition, expected to include the transition period during which there will essentially be two bishops, and costs associated with the consecration of the new bishop, Tomat said. These will be covered by several legacy funds restricted to support the bishop diocesan and their housing needs.
Tomat also reported that two assessment waivers were granted this year, and a third waiver request was approved at the Council meeting. Overall, assessment payments are tracking closely to the $5.1 million 2025 budget and past-due assessments were reduced by another $80,000 in August, thanks to several parishes making significant reductions in their prior year and current year past-due amounts.
The 2026 proposed budget may be viewed here.
Reports of Program Groups, Committees, Commissions, Organizations
Program Group on Mission Congregations:
The Rev. Canon Gary Hall reported a revised allocation of MSF grants to diocesan mission congregations, down $76,000 from the $970,000 amount reported last month, to $894,000. The amount represents a $32,000 increase above 2025, about a 3% to 3.5% cost of living allowance, he said.
“Many of these requests are the result of real struggle and suffering that our mission congregations are experiencing, not only because of inflation, but ICE raids and lack of attendance because of fear of the ICE raids,” Hall said. “We are looking for other ways to help subsidize the missions.”
Corporation of the Diocese & Standing Committee: Charlotte Borst reported for the Corporation and the Rev. Kate Cress reported for the Standing Committee regarding approval of license agreements for:
- use of the sanctuary at Church of the Blessed Sacrament, Placentia, for a children’s choir;
- a takeout taco restaurant, Tacos de Birria, at St. George’s, Laguna Hills;
- a Keystone Montessori School at St. Matthias, Whittier;
- a Montessori school for St. Thomas, Hacienda Heights;
- Nefesh, a Jewish spiritual community at St. Paul’s Commons
A memorandum of understanding was approved by both bodies for St. Mary in Palms, Los Angeles, to explore an affordable housing development on the campus, and an amendment to a cell tower agreement on the campus of St. Anselm of Canterbury, Garden Grove.
Episcopal Church Women:
The National Episcopal Church Women has dedicated the three-year term between triennial meetings to increasing awareness of missing and murdered Indigenous women. A Sept. 26-28 Province VIII ECW retreat at Fort Hall, Idaho focused on that issue was “lifechanging,” said Christine Budzowksi, diocesan ECW president. The gathering also focused on residential boarding schools and the Doctrine of Discovery. She is working with the Rev. Canon Mary Crist Indigenous theological education coordinator for the Episcopal Church and a member of the presiding Bishop’s staff. to make that happen in 2026.
Bishop’s Commission on Climate Change:
the Rev. Tim Hartley reported the education subcommittee is planning the next Climate Kitchen and a 2026 summit on net zero advocacy There will be a January 11 Climate Evensong at All Saints, Pasadena.
Council meets next at 4 p.m., Thursday, December 11 via Zoom.