Stated Clerk

The Work of the Stated Clerk

Think of the Stated Clerk of a presbytery as your expedition leader for process and your librarian for important records. The current Book of Order describes the work of the clerk at all levels of a presbyterian tradition as the one “who shall record the transactions of the council, keep its rolls of membership and attendance, maintain any required registers, preserve its records, and furnish extracts from them when required by another council of the church. Such extracts, verified by the clerk, shall be evidence in any council of the church. Along with the moderator, the clerk of a council is a constitutionally required and elected officer."

Required Boundary Training

Getting to YES

We are responsible for keeping a record of boundary training completion for all Grace Presbytery teaching elders, certified Christian educators, inquirers, candidates, and ruling elders commissioned by COM to pastoral service in a specific context. The certification will last 3 years and must be completed again at that time. Links to an option to complete your training is listed below. When you receive your certificate of completion please submit it through the button below, or email it to [email protected] so it may be filed, to ensure continued good standing status with Grace Presbytery.

There have been questions about boundary training for retired pastors. The 226th General Assembly issued an Authoritative Interpretation allowing exceptions on a case-by-case basis. Until our presbytery provides a clear policy, retired pastors and certified Christian Educators, not in a leadership role, are not required to complete this training.

We have had a PC(USA) constitutional requirement of boundary training since 2023.

Submit Your Boundary Training Certificate

Stated Clerk of Grace Presbytery

Rev. Dr. Kyle Walker

(214) 393-5611

[email protected]

COUNCIL & TRUSTEES

Requests for baptism, membership, and marriage records of closed churches

YOU SHOULD BE HERE IF...

YOU HAVE A

POLITY QUESTION

YOU HAVE AN ITEM

FOR PRESBYTERY CONSIDERATION

YOU ARE A

CLERK OF SESSION

YOU'RE LOOKING FOR GP

FOUNDATIONAL DOCUMENTS

YOU NEED HELP AND ARE FROM

ANOTHER MID COUNCIL OR GA

BOOK OF CONFESSIONS

2025 - 2027 BOOK OF ORDER

Tax Exemption

Tax-Exempt Verification

Many churches contact the stated clerk asking for proof of their tax-exempt status. This is often needed for grant applications, vendor accounts, fundraising programs, or other charitable verification. In the past, this had to be requested manually through the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) offices. Now, congregations can request their tax-exempt verification directly through the new PC(USA) webform at:
https://www.pcusagroupruling.org

What a Group Exemption Ruling Is

Most PC(USA) congregations are covered under a Group Exemption Ruling. This simply means the IRS recognizes churches connected to a central organization (the PC(USA)) as tax-exempt, without requiring each congregation to file its own 501(c)(3) application. Being included in the group ruling carries the same weight as having an individual IRS determination letter.

Benefits of Inclusion

Because your church is part of the PC(USA) group ruling, you do not need to apply separately to the IRS for tax-exempt status. The denomination can provide an official letter confirming your inclusion, which is accepted for grants, banking, and vendors.

Why Your Church May Not Appear in IRS Databases

Some grantors and vendors rely on automated IRS databases to verify tax-exempt status. Many churches covered by group rulings—including PC(USA) congregations—do not show up in these systems. This is normal and expected. In brief:

Publication 78 only lists groups that applied directly to the IRS.
The Exempt Organizations Business Master File (EO BMF) often does not list church subordinates because churches are not required to file annual Forms 990.

If a grantor requests database verification, you may need to provide the group ruling letter along with IRS Publication 4573, which explains that subordinate churches are fully tax-exempt even if not listed in IRS databases.

When Applying for Grants

Congregations have the best results when sending:

Their group ruling letter, and
IRS Publication 4573 (which states that group-ruled churches are not required to appear in IRS databases).

Where to Start

To request your church’s tax-exempt verification letter, visit:
https://www.pcusagroupruling.org

If you have further questions, please reach out to Stated Clerk Kyle Walker at Grace Presbytery. [email protected]

RESOURCES

Clerk of Session Manual

Treasurer Manual from Board of Pensions

Officer Training Videos

Instructions on the Buddy System with Ultimate Due Dates

The presbytery is responsible for reviewing session minutes of each church. We do that by having churches buddy up or having clerks gather once a year to help each other do it together with the Stated Clerk.

“Once a year” references the annual regional Minutes Reviews where the Stated Clerk travels to the four different regions, where a group of clerks gather and review their previous year’s minutes together.

Official Buddy System Verbiage

Boundary Training Options

Sample Manual of Administrative Operations for a Church

Approved Minutes

POLICY EXAMPLES

Sexual Misconduct

Child Protection

Harrassment

Anti-Racism

A Note from Kyle

I believe our polity brings good people to the best decisions together. Working in groups, our combined gifts and efforts are greater and more faithful than we could imagine alone. A great day for me is helping you navigate the Book of Order and theology to get to 'yes'!

HOW POLITY SAVED CHRISTMAS

Book of Order - G-1.0102

“The polity of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) presupposes the fellowship of women, men, and children united in covenant relationship with one another and with God through Jesus Christ. The organization rests on the fellowship and is not designed to work without trust and love.”

ON POLICIES

G-3.0106 as ratified in 2025

“All councils [session, presbytery, synod, general assembly] shall adopt and implement the following policies: a sexual misconduct policy, a harassment policy, a child, youth, and adults with vulnerabilities protection policy, and an antiracism policy. Each council’s policy shall include requirements for boundary training which includes the topic of sexual misconduct, and child sexual abuse prevention training for its members at least every thirty-six months.”

It is important for both each session of Grace Presbytery and the presbytery as a whole to comply with the Book of Order.

First, each session must determine how to comply with the requirements independently. While the presbytery can provide policy examples from other sessions, simply adopting these without adaptation is usually insufficient. You can find examples on the Stated Clerk’s webpage of the Grace Presbytery website, and I will continue to upload more as I receive them.

Second, boundary training is not a one-size-fits-all requirement. Each session decides how to fulfill the training requirement for ruling elders every 36 months. The Stated Clerk’s webpage includes links to online training resources. Remember, the training must cover “sexual misconduct and child abuse prevention.” Some sessions opt to review their own policies on these topics, which is a valid approach and can be incorporated into regular church officer training.

Lastly, the clerk of the session will maintain a record of which ruling elders have completed the training. If you include this in your officer training, you can easily note that new officers have fulfilled the boundary training requirement.

EPHESIANS 4:15-16

“...but speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.”

Meet Kyle Walker

Your stated clerk is also a person! Rev. Dr. Kyle M. Walker, our currently elected stated clerk, is a teaching elder in the PC(USA) who has focused on missiology and evangelism throughout his career having served the local church, collegiate ministry, and ecumenically. He and his spouse Nelis enjoy movies and traveling when they are able. Kyle enjoys small building projects with Lego and the company of their local community of friends in Oak Cliff. Come explore Oak Cliff with them anytime!