BishopAccountability.org
	Albany Diocese Lays off Workers 7 Positions Lost at Central Office; Churches Likely to Close in Restructuring By Marc Parry Albany Times Union April 9, 2008 http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=679224&category=REGION&newsdate=4/9/2008 ALBANY — The Albany Catholic Diocese is downsizing its central office by seven jobs — including three layoffs. The cuts come as parishes across the 14-county diocese are working on a sweeping restructuring project that will lead to an unknown number of church closings. The goal of the budget reductions — announced last week in a memo to Pastoral Center staff and parishes — is to close a projected 2008-09 deficit of $975,000. That will mean merging departments, cutting charity and school administration support, and reducing funds for clergy education. "We're beginning to reflect on our own budget and downsizing," Jack Manning, the diocese's director of pastoral planning, told the Times Union Tuesday. He added, "We're reflecting also on how do we meet the needs going forward, given the period of contraction we're in." The roughly 85-employee central office at 40 N. Main Ave. is supported by the Bishop's Appeal, an annual fundraising effort that brought in $7 million in 2006. The Bishop's Appeal has "been doing very well the last few years, said diocesan spokesman Kenneth Goldfarb. "But the costs have increased faster than that income has come in," he said, pointing to expenses like health care. Another element of the situation is "the dramatic change during recent years in the demands that are made on the central administration of the diocese," according to an April 4 memo announcing the changes by the Rev. Michael Farano. Farano singled out "accountability and transparency issues" like those associated with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, which was enacted by Catholic bishops in response to the clergy sex-abuse scandal. The charter requires dioceses to do background checks on workers. It mandates safety training for children and victim outreach. A panel the diocese established to handle clergy abuse claims had paid out about $2.5 million to 38 people as of last year. However, Goldfarb said, "All expenses related to clergy abuse have come out of our self-insurance plan, and have no relationship to the funding of the general administration of the Albany Diocese." Asked whether there would be layoffs or attrition at Catholic Charities or the diocesan schools, Goldfarb said the answer was unknown right now. Among the changes in Farano's memo: The Catholic Schools Board and Office will have an administrative reduction of $50,000 from the 2008-2009 diocesan allocation. Catholic Charities will lose $100,000 from its 2008-09 allocation. The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, which is closing for restoration, will see a $40,000 cut. "In general, the diocese is in fairly good fiscal health," Farano wrote. "... That good health will not continue very long if we continue to do business as usual." The diocese's departments handle functions such as fundraising, evangelization, planning and communications. The three layoffs include one department head and two secretaries, Goldfarb said. The remaining four cutbacks are open jobs that will not be filled. Marc Parry can be reached at 454-5057 or by e-mail at mparry@timesunion.com
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