For nearly 40 years, the same software has functioned as General Conference’s backbone — connecting the whole legislative process from submission to passage to inclusion in The United Methodist Church’s Book of Discipline.
But now it’s starting to show its age. The United Methodist Church first started using Conference and Legislation Management System, called CALMS for short, in 1988.
Grant Modernizes System
The board of the denomination’s finance agency unanimously supported a $1.5 million grant requested by General Conference organizers to bring CALMS into the 21st century.
With the grant, the Commission on the General Conference can now modernize the technology by adding cloud-based support, eliminating redundancies and allowing greater automation of tasks.
“The enhancements to the system will create greater efficiencies in our process,” the Rev. Aleze M. Fulbright, General Conference secretary, told United Methodist News after the meeting. “It will provide more accurate information to the delegates.”
The Commission on the General Conference has put together an infographic on how the Conference and Legislation Management System, or CALMS, works.
While even veteran General Conference delegates may not know much about CALMS, she said, many United Methodists know well the work that depends on it.
Ministry Supports Needed Resources
CALMS helps produce the Advance Daily Christian Advocate that contains proposed legislation and the Daily Christian Advocate that contains General Conference proceedings. CALMS also is key to publishing the denomination’s Book of Discipline and Book of Resolutions, both of which contain what the international legislative assembly passes.
A 5-Year Plan to Implement
The commission plans to use the $1.5 million grant over the next five years to build up the new CALMS system and ensure it fully serves United Methodist needs. The company chosen for the update also must provide dedicated support for the new system.
Fulbright, said upgrading CALMS has taken on new urgency because only two people have the expertise to work with the current system, and its limitations are presenting more challenges.
The Rev. Sheila B. Ahler, chair of the finance board’s General Agency and Episcopal Matters Committee that deals with budgetary matters, said her committee shares that sense of urgency. The upgrade needs to happen well before the next General Conference begins in May 2028, she told the board.
“The work needs to start now,” Ahler said. “The system needs to be up and running before the end of 2026. … So, this is not a decision that can be delayed if we are going to actually have this running by the time of the next General Conference.”
Your Support Makes Legislation Happen
Your 100% support of the General Administration Fund Apportionment help pay for costs associated with organizing and implementing the resources needed every 4 years to hold General Conference sessions in different cities around the country.
excerpt from a story By Heather Hahn, assistant news editor for UM News
One of seven apportioned giving opportunities of The United Methodist Church, the General Administration Fund implements trustworthy administrative oversight, supports the legislative processes of the church and curates The United Methodist Church’s rich history. Please encourage your leaders and congregations to support the General Administration Fund apportionment at 100 percent.
