OK- I emailed the Grand Secretary & this is his answer:
"Dear Bill, What you have been told is not true. The Lodge may waive his dues but they are still required to pay his per capita to the Grand Lodge. Tom Guest"
The following is my suggestion as to the easiest way to change the Law, and any Brother who so chooses is more than welcome to use it, either as written or modified as he may see fit. The changes are in italics:
"
Art. 316. Exemptions: Members in Texas Masonic Retirement Center, in the military on active duty in a combat zone, and 50 Year Service Awardees.
Every member admitted to the Texas Masonic Retirement Center maintained by the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Texas, so long as he is a beneficiary of said Home,
every Brother who is a member of our armed forces on active duty and is deployed to a combat zone, and every member entitled to a Fifty Year Masonic Service Award under Art. 14 shall be exempt from Lodge dues. Should the Brother be a member of more than one Lodge in this Grand Jurisdiction, he shall be exempt in all Lodges. The Lodge or Lodges shall deduct all Grand Lodge Per Capita contributions on account of such members from its Annual Returns, using a certificate furnished by the Grand Secretary to show the current status of each such member."
---------- Post added at 05:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:15 PM ----------
Also thought I would add another that says any brother suspended due to nonpayment during his service during wartime could be reactivated by the secretary.
If the Lodge votes to exempt the Brother from dues I'm not sure this clause would be needed. I wrote the law change above to make the exemption from dues automatic, but some may prefer to make it dependent upon action of the Lodge. YMMV
