Some council endowments are humongous

That is, we take the total endowment, pull 4%, which is fairly common and typically a sustainable annual pull, then divide that 4% by the number of Scouts in that council. That tells us how many dollars the endowment might produce per Scout.

Conquistador Council is by far the most lucrative, potentially providing $5,452 per Scout. (It only withdrew 1.5%, or $2,633 per Scout, in 2023. Even with this commendable restraint, this supplied 59% of the council’s 2023 income!)

All other councils varied between $779 and $0 per Scout.

The data

(underlying data)

Data notes

Excludes independent endowments (some are large!)

This only includes “fund 3” endowments. In BSA’s accounting scheme, fund 3 describes endowments controlled by councils.

Independent endowments are not on this list.

For example, Circle Ten Council is the third largest by youth-member count. It reports $0 of Fund 3 funds, but its independent endowment has $58.5 million as of the end of 2022 (source). That would be $112 per Scout of annual taking at 4%, although it was able to disburse 5.2% in 2022.

What makes an endowment independent? I am uncertain on the precise definition, but I suspect it must satisfy two conditions:

1. Exists as a corporation independent of the council it benefits.
2. Its bylaws do not give the beneficiary council control of the endowment’s board of directors.

Circle Ten’s independent endowment is likely ideal in BSA’s current environment. Presumptively dedicated to the sole benefit of Circle Ten Council, it gives the council a hedge against the #1 existential threat to the future of Scouting, which is BSA’s national organization.

Also missing may be more discretionary funding sources, such as episodic grants or recurring donations from foundations that benefit many causes.

Form 990s

Many of these numbers are generally available on IRS Form 990 filings.

Search on the council at https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/ or https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/. ProPublica sometimes has more recent filings than the IRS, and its UI is better. You’ll find separate 990 filings for the council and its trust fund when they are separate corporations.

Membership numbers and council class

These are in the underlying data, which was provided by confidential sources. (I have many confidential sources spread throughout national and councils. You are all very appreciated. You are helping inform vital improvements.)

Membership counts are from the end of June 2024.

Council classes are likely as of 2024. The meaning of classes is based on the council’s annual budget. This unreferenced breakdown is from Wikipedia (source):

• Class 100 – >$7 million
• Class 200 – $4-$7 million
• Class 300 – $2-$3 million
• Class 400 – $1-$2 million
• Class 500 – less than $1 million

I think the numbers have increased since this was added to Wikipedia. Sampling class-500 councils suggests several have budgets over $1 million.

Biased by low member counts

If you look at the underlying data, you’ll note council-class numbers of top councils (i.e., highest potential per-youth endowment takings) are of small councils. Of the top 50 councils, only three are class 100!

It is possible that a good deal of the councils with more lucrative endowments have undergrown their endowments.

This could provide a safe space to retool and regrow. But it could encourage complacency. If a council’s employee count reduces proportionally to youth-member decreases, then a higher percentage of employee compensation is funded by the endowment. While this protects salary lines, it creates a perverse incentive to preserve that stability by avoiding growth.