- $72 for youth in Cub Scouts, Scouts BSA, Venturing, and Sea Scouting
- $25 new member fee (one-time only, upon joining Scouting for the first time)
- $45 for youth in Exploring
- $45 for adult members in all programs (includes cost of background check)
- $75 for a unit charter fee
Note:
- Youth who cross over from Cub Scouts to Scouts BSA do not have to pay the new member fee
- Youth who transfer from one unit or program to another do not have to pay the new member fee
- Youth who are new members joining Exploring do not have to pay the new member fee
- Adults who are new volunteers (in any program) do not have to pay the new member fee
- Everyone still pays the $1 fee for our council’s local insurance coverage during recharter (we chose not to increase this because you’re already paying enough)
- Our council does not use the council program fee approved by the national organization
If you join Scouting during the year, you pay a pro-rated portion of the national membership fee. Here are some real-world examples (new member amount assumes joining September 1):
- New Cub Scout/Scouts BSA/Venturer/Sea Scout – pay $49 to join (pro-rated $24 membership fee for the final four months of 2021 + $25 one-time new member fee) and then $73 (national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) at recharter in December
- New Explorer – pay pro-rated $15 membership fee for the final four months of 2021 and then $46 (national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) at recharter in December
- Scouts BSA youth staying active in a troop but also joining Exploring – pay pro-rated $15 membership fee for the final four months of 2021 in Exploring and then, in December with recharter, $73 (BSA national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) for your Scouts BSA registration AND $46 (national Exploring membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) for your Exploring registration
- New adult member (all programs) – pay pro-rated $15 membership fee for the final four months of 2021 and then $46 (national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) at recharter in December
- Existing Cub Scout/Scouts BSA/Venturer/Sea Scout continuing in the same program – pay $73 (national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) at recharter in December
- Cub Scout crossing over into Scouts BSA – pay $73 (national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) at recharter in December for the coming year’s membership in your Scouts BSA Troop
- Scouts BSA youth staying active in a troop but also joining Venturing or Sea Scouting – pay $73 (national membership fee + $1 for local insurance coverage) at recharter with your troop in December (you don’t pay the national fee again with the crew or ship)
Our council does not believe money should prevent any youth from participating in Scouting. Our council offers financial assistance to help families who need help with Scouting expenses. Please contact our Council Registrar Mike Huerta at Miguel.Huerta@scouting.org to learn more and apply.
As mentioned earlier, local councils have been given the option of charging its members an additional “program fee.” Our council does not do this, thanks in large part to our community Friends of Scouting donors , James E. West donors and units participating in our fall popcorn campaign. Their contributions help provide the necessary support to keep Scouting operating in Southern Texas. We are grateful for our donors’ generosity and our units’ participation.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What do these national fees cover?
Costs for essential services – including program resources, liability insurance for those participating in approved Scouting activities, youth protection, and more. Membership fees are one of the Boy Scouts of America’s only sources of annual operating revenue.
Will these fees go toward funding a victims compensation trust?
No. The national annual membership fee and the new member joining fee will help pay for the cost of essential services, including program resources, liability insurance for those participating in approved Scouting activities, youth protection and other resources.
What has the national organization done to cut costs?
In addition to ongoing efforts to streamline and simplify the organization, the national organization has taken several steps to address its financial challenges, which include furloughs and multiple rounds of staff reductions. These were in addition to ongoing consolidation of departments and elimination of some significant vendors for the most effective utilization of resources in support of Scouting.
Will these national fees increase in the future?
Although no decision about future increases has been made, the cost of operating our organization and services increases every year. Should it be necessary to increase fees in the future, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America has agreed to evaluate the needs and make such decisions, whenever possible, at the National Annual Meeting so that decisions can be announced with as much lead time as possible to allow councils and units to plan accordingly.
You’ve been asking for updates to the functionality of BSA tech products. And, with ScoutNet’s retirement, we’ll be better equipped than ever to deliver technology that meets the requests of units and councils to manage registration and rechartering effectively and electronically.
What does ScoutNet’s retirement mean for you?
Soon, you’ll find the following improvements made to some of your most frequently used tools:
- Registration and charter renewal tools moved to My.Scouting, where our existing online registration site lives.
- New registrar features on My.Scouting, like a new dashboard offering advanced search, person maintenance and additional reporting features.
- For all units with a December 31 renewal date, expect a simplified recharter system for both internet and paper rechartering within Internet Advancement 2.0.
- New unit self-service tools on My.Scouting. This month, a new feature called Position Manager will be added to the My.Scouting tools allowing units to change the registration position of anyone in the unit – no paper application required. For example, if a Cubmaster steps down and a unit committee member replaces her, the unit’s chartered organization representative or their designee can adjust her position without delivering paperwork to the council. In addition to the inter-unit transfer feature added this winter, parents and volunteers will be able to transfer to a unit in a new council without filling out transfer forms and new applications – and their records will be automatically transferred to the new council.
These are just some of the changes coming your way as My.Scouting continues to grow in supporting the needs of units and councils in the Boy Scouts of America.