November 1, the fourth day of the 2026 North American Division Annual Council (NAD AC or DAC), was a full day of business sessions, with one of the more crucial discussions on finances.
G. Alexander Bryant, NAD president, broached several related topics: how tithe is shared among conferences, unions, the division, and the world church; the roles and responsibilities of each level of the Seventh-day Adventist Church; and whether the current structure provides the most efficient way to advance the gospel mission.
Bryant mentioned that these topics have been talking points for nearly 20 years, yet have gained recent momentum due to financial pressures at the conference level, driven by overall cost-of-living spikes, specifically health care and insurance premiums. When he and his administrative team visited union and conference officials earlier this year, the need for immediate help was evident.
This ultimately led to an administrators’ meeting in Chicago, Illinois, on Sept. 30-Oct. 1. From that meeting four emphases emerged:
- Provide additional financial assistance from the NAD and unions to conferences, with a proposed effective date of January 1, 2027.
- Form a committee representing all levels of the church to study organizational efficiency, reduce duplication, and streamline operations.
- Form a committee representing all levels of the church to study organizational restructuring.
- Begin the established process for changing tithe reversion policies totaling 3.85 percent of tithe.
These recommendations were brought to the North American Division Officers and Union Presidents (known as NADOUP) meeting in the morning on Oct. 28, and that group voted to bring them to DAC, which started the next afternoon. On Nov. 1, the financial discussion ensued.
The following three recommendations made it to the floor and after discussion each received an overwhelming vote “yes.” This means that a total of 4.35 percent of tithe will no longer be remitted to the NAD.
Therefore, with the 78 percent of tithe that already remains at the conference, an additional 2.5 will now remain at the conference; and 2.35 will be remitted to unions to distribute on behalf of the conferences — decided by the unions if those funds will return directly to the conference or if the unions will determine how it will be used on behalf of the conferences. Another immediate financial help will be given to conferences from the NAD cash reserves, as a lump sum equivalent to 0.5 percent, effective January 2027.
The voted 1 percent cut from the NAD and unions (0.5 percent for each), as well as the voted 1.5 evangelism reversion and 2.35 education reversion, were agreed upon to remain at the local conference and union conference levels, respectively, as the best short-term measure for 2027. Additionally, church leadership will work together to craft long-term solutions to be considered at next fall’s NAD AC.
- Judy R. Glass, NAD treasurer, initiated the presentation of these reversions relative to evangelism and education funds. Focusing first on the former, the recommended amendment to NAD Working Policy V 11 was as follows:
Conference Tithe Allocation for Evangelism
Local conferences shall allocate 1.5 percent of tithe from the prior year for evangelism in the upcoming budget year.
This would not affect the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada, as it operates with separate policies. The vote reflected overwhelming support for the recommendation.
- Kyoshin Ahn, NAD executive secretary, detailed the education reversion:
Education Reversion
NAD grants a variance for education reversion, which is 2.35 percent, to remain at the union for the year 2027. Education reversion of 2.35 percent is excluded from the 10 percent of the Union’s remittance (tithe) to the division and retirement contributions
Again, the vast majority of attending representatives voted “Yes.”
- Ahn then highlighted the third recommendation:
Additional Assistance from the Division and Union for the year 2027
- Local conference will retain an additional 1 percent of gross tithe in 2027 as follows:
- 0.5 percent from the division
- 0.5 percent from the union [not applicable to SDAC Canada]
- Local conference[s] will receive an additional 0.5 percent of the 2025 gross tithe from the division reserves as a lump sum in January 2027 [later confirmed by Glass to amount to approx. $6.6 million]
- A one-year policy variance will be granted for 2027 for NADWP V 09 05 2b, which states that the local conference/mission will remit 9 percent of the tithes received to the union as the remittance would be 8.5 percent. Due to the anticipated study on the roles and functions of each level, this variance is only for 2027.
An important aspect of the NAD AC is transparent dialogue, and to that end, several representatives offered their feedback. One conference president listed the stark expense increases within his territory in the past five years and expressed gratitude for these reversions. Another requested a full reflection of the tithe splits throughout the church’s levels, and Glass responded with the following graphics:
Yet another church leader, while also appreciative of these measures, expressed concern for the well-being of the local churches, asserting his pastoral compassion over his administrative outlook. Bryant validated his concern and indicated this would be in the hands of the conferences.
Recommendation No. 3 was approved by a landslide vote.
As this segment of Sunday’s business session drew to a close, Bryant emphasized the team dynamic. “We’re in this together. … We may differ on what’s the best outcome, but … we all want the same thing [the mission of the church moved forward],” he expressed. “God will lead us. God will direct us.”
Revisiting the dichotomy of short-term and long-term solutions, an analogy helped shape a sense of perspective. A church leader with a background in paramedics said, “You’ve gotta put a patch on it before the surgeon can get to it.”
Bryant corroborated the metaphor. Quoting a medical professional with whom he recently interacted, he said, “You have to do two things: … triage the patient and find out what the needs are. … To save you, we [may have to] break your ribcage.” It is the hope and prayer of the NAD AC and the church at large that the current discomfort and pain is but a precursor to the holistic health and vitality of God’s people on the other side of it.
