MONTREAL — Through cuts to programs and jobs and drawing on its savings, Federation CJA has managed to balance its budget for 2009-2010, president Marc Gold said.

Marc Gold

A few jobs within the federation and its agencies have been eliminated, others downsized and some vacant positions will not be filled. A system-wide salary freeze was also imposed.

The federation is allocating $32.5 million to local, national and international programs and services this year.

The impact of the economic downturn on the federation has been dramatic, Gold said, and he warned that more belt-tightening may be ahead.

However, he added, it’s likely the average community member will not see a major impact on what the federation or its agencies offer.

The federation was left with a $3.6 million shortfall after revenues from the 2008 Combined Jewish Appeal were down, as was interest on the federation’s capital. At the same time, demand for support from the community’s neediest was up.

At its close in November, CJA announced that it expected that pledges would total $40.3 million, almost matching the 2007 campaign total.

In fact, Gold said pledges were down by $1.3 million, while interest on capital decreased by $850,000 and so-called shrinkage, primarily due to pledges not being honoured, reduced the funds available to spend by a further $1 million.

On top of that, more money is needed for tuition assistance for students at Jewish day schools whose parents can’t pay and for basic support to the poorest.

Altogether, these costs, which have been deemed unavoidable, amount to an additional $500,000, Gold said.

After a lengthy process, Gold believes the federation has been able to minimize the impact on its core programs and services, and to redirect resources where there is the greatest need.

A balanced budget was achieved by reducing national and international allocations, as well as allocations to the federation itself and its agencies. The federation also dipped into money that it had set aside last year in anticipation of this year’s difficulties, he said.

Wherever possible, costs were cut by reducing overhead, sharing back-office resources and reducing building hours.

“But, inevitably, programs had to be eliminated or reduced in scope, and that did have an impact on staffing at Federation CJA and at several agencies,” Gold said.

Programs that have not been touched are those benefitting the most vulnerable, such as the Community Assistance Program, which provides direct financial assistance to those in need.

Some programs have in fact been added, such as twice-weekly free dinners and free Passover seders at the Gelber Centre and the federation’s West Island branch, a project undertaken with the MADA Community Centre.

“As difficult as this was, I am proud to say that we collaborated fully with our agencies and national partners in setting communal priorities. Together, we made certain that the basic and essential services that we provide to our community remained firmly in place,” Gold wrote in a letter to community leaders.

“Indeed, we did not reduce our allocations to the programs that address the needs of those most in need of our services.  Moreover, we have taken a number of steps to meet the increasing needs of our community as a result of the tough economic times.”

Of the $32.5 million in allocations, 68 per cent is local, 32 per cent to Israel, and the rest to national agencies and services. This does not include the $10 million in one-time gifts designated by the donors for projects in Israel collected during last year’s CJA.

The national and international allocations were reduced by a total of $1.1 million, federation’s share to itself is down by $875,000 and to its agencies by $1.125 million. A half-million dollars set aside last year is helping to soften the blow.

Gold warned that next year’s budget process will be even more difficult.

“The economy is not likely to turn around quickly, and we cannot assume that our revenues will increase dramatically next year if they increase at all.”

He notes that the Montreal Jewish community is not as large as it was when its current community infrastructure was developed. “We… simply cannot continue with business as usual” and “we need to revision, re-prioritize and restructure the way we operate…”

He called for an immediate community-wide consultation that will lead to concrete changes based on both “Jewish values” and “sound business practice” that will be in place by the time the next budget season rolls around.

    2009 The Canadian Jewish News

All Rights Reserved.