Important Membership Renewal Notice for Unit Leaders & Volunteers

To: Southeast Louisiana Council, BSA Unit Leaders and Program Volunteers

With Scouting America’s transition to individual annual membership renewals, units across the council are encountering situations where youth members unintentionally lapse due to missed renewal deadlines or incomplete payment processing. When this occurs, the youth is removed from the unit roster and loses access to my.scouting.org, which complicates re-registration and can interrupt program participation.

This article outlines practical steps units can take to re-engage affected youth and prevent future lapses.

Common Issues Being Reported

• Parents miss renewal reminders or experience payment issues.
• Once a membership expires, the family may no longer access my.scouting.org to renew online.
• Unit leaders may lose visibility of the youth’s BSA Member ID after removal from the roster.
• Units are often advised to use paper applications as a recovery method.

Recommended Actions for Units

1. Proactive Outreach

• Regularly review your unit roster for upcoming or recently expired renewals.
• Contact families directly by phone, text, or email to assist with renewal.
• Encourage renewal before expiration to avoid loss of access.

2. Use Unit Renewal Tools

• Key 3 leaders (Unit Leader, Committee Chair, COR) can renew youth through
  my.scouting.org → Organization Manager → Roster.
• Unit-led renewals help prevent roster drops and system access issues.

3. Recovering a Lapsed Youth
If a youth has already expired:

• Parents may reapply using the unit’s BeAScout application link.
• When prompted, select “Yes” to indicate the youth is a current or former Scout.
• If the Member ID is unknown, the system allows lookup by name and date of birth.
• If online registration is not permitted locally or unsuccessful, a paper application may be required.

4. Locating Member ID Information

• Unit leaders may access prior member data using the “Record of Change” report in my.scouting.org (Roster menu), filtered by date, to retrieve Member ID numbers when available.

Feedback and System Improvement

Feedback regarding renewal system limitations (including access loss after expiration) must be submitted to National through Council professional staff via MemberCare tickets. Units experiencing recurring issues are encouraged to document cases and share them with their District Executive or Council Registrar for escalation.

Ongoing Best Practices

• Verify parent/guardian email addresses and phone numbers in Scouting.org.
• Encourage families to log into my.scouting.org before renewal windows close.
• Communicate renewal expectations regularly during meetings and unit communications.

Maintaining active membership ensures uninterrupted participation, advancement tracking, and insurance coverage for youth and leaders. Thank you for your continued efforts to support accurate renewals and strong unit operations across the Southeast Louisiana Council, BSA.

For assistance, contact your District Executive or Council Registrar.