"Dave Stadt" wrote in message
...

How does an organization "own" a BSA unit?


It is a term commonly used among Scouters. Every unit is chartered by some
other organization, such as church, civic club, school, or even a business.
Chartered organizations are given some guidelines and rules they must
follow, but otherwise the unit 'belongs' to the chartered organizations.
Within these guidelines, the chartering organization has wide latitude in
how the unit is run. So, the unit is literally 'owned' by the chartering
organization, like a McDonalds franchise is 'owned' by the franchisee.

Each chartered organization has a charter representative on the local
district, if the local council is divided into districts. This district
committee may also have several 'at large' members. The district committee
organizes larger events and sets policies for the district. Each district
committee member gets one vote. Councils are similarly organized, and they
have representatives on the National Committee.

Since the vast majority of BSA units are owned by churches, these churches
basically run BSA and set all policies. These churches have threatened to
pull out of BSA if courts force policies inimical to the churches' beliefs
on the organization, which would basically end the Boy Scouts as we know it.
BSA would lose almost all of its funding and something like 80% of its
members.

It is widely believed by the churches that BSA shields them from
anti-discrimination attacks on themselves. They think that if BSA goes, they
are next -- that they will not even be able to determine their own
doctrines. I have heard various church leaders say that BSA is a lightning
rod that distracts attacks on their religious beliefs from themselves.