Department of Finance

A statement from the Diocese of Trenton:

Each year, the Diocese of Trenton undergoes an audit of its financial statements by an independent public accounting firm. 

The financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021, were audited by WIPFLI LLP. The 2021 audit report included an opinion that the financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021, are fairly presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. 

For fiscal year 2021, the Diocese of Trenton reported an increase in total net assets of $8.5 million, compared to a decrease of $0.6 million in fiscal year 2020. The net increase in fiscal year 2021 was due primarily to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on insurance claims.  For 2021, the insurance revenues net of insurance program expenses were a favorable $8.8 million.  The net decrease in fiscal year 2020 was primarily due to overall operations.

The Diocese has effectively managed operational costs, keeping the net change in net assets not related to insurance programs close to breakeven—decrease of $0.4 million in 2021 and increase of $0.5 million in 2020.  The Diocese is committed to exercising good stewardship by carefully managing the funds provided for its ministerial and administrative responsibilities.

In accordance with the early Christian community, the Department of Finance strives to safeguard the assets of the Diocese of Trenton in a responsible manner to benefit the common good of all the people of the Diocese.

Our Services

In order to accomplish our mission, we provide numerous services in the areas of collection & distribution of financial resources; preparation of operating budgets & financial statements (certified with unmodified opinion by external public accounting firm); compliance of all required state and federal filings related to Diocesan finances; banking assistance to parishes/schools; financial auditing of parishes, schools and other entities of the Diocese (internal controls provided); assistance in transition to accounting software upgrades; financial analysis in the planning of future expansion/consolidation of Church operations and, the wise and prudent investment of diocesan and parish assets (guidelines provided).
 

Q & A on how Diocese raises, uses money;
points to areas of improvement
 

• Support of, service to priests, deacons, religious and seminarians
• Education, catechesis and lay formation
• Support for parish and family life
• Helping those in need of pastoral care and basic needs

• Parish Assessments – Each parish in the Diocese pays a percentage of its income to support the overall operations and ministries provided by the Diocese.
• Fundraising – The Diocese conducts several fundraisers, from the Annual Catholic Appeal, Golf Outing, and school giving campaigns.
• Investments – The Diocese maintains funds in trusts and accounts that are invested and generate returns that can be used to fund operations while maintaining the principal of those funds.

• Management of a centralized insurance procurement for all diocesan entities.  This enables better pooling of risk and purchasing power to reduce costs for insurance across all categories — medical, property, workers comp, auto, life, etc.
• Administration of a pension plan for parish, school and other diocesan employees.
• Basic legal and real estate support services for parishes and schools.
• Administrative support of parishes in areas like Human Resources, Child Protection, and Risk management.

• The Diocese conducts audits to ensure appropriate controls and best practices are in place at parishes and schools.
• Finance Councils – The Diocese has a Finance Council as do all parishes, established under Canon law, which provides support, guidance and oversight to the Diocese and the parishes. A listing of Diocesan Finance Council members appears on this page.
• Audit – Annually, the financial statements of the Diocese of Trenton are audited by an independent public accounting firm.  The financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2021 were audited by WIPFLI LLP in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States.   The 2021 audit report included an opinion that the financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021 are fairly presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States.  The audit report and financial statements are available below.

• The Diocese takes its responsibility to manage resources seriously and strives for improvements in efficiencies and operations to ensure good stewardship.
• Managing spending and budgets and working with parishes to help improve their financial health are examples of initiatives.

• For 2021 the Diocese showed an increase in net assets of $8.5 million compared to a reduction of $0.6 million in 2020. This was primarily due to a reduction of insurance claims due to the impact of COVID-19.

Phone: (609) 406-7400
E-mail: TemporalAdmin@DioceseofTrenton.org