Boy Scouts of America — Federal Charter and Bankruptcy

The Boy Scouts of America holds one of the most prominent congressional charters in Title 36 of the U.S. Code (36 U.S.C. §§ 30901–30935), making it a federally recognized youth development organization for more than a century. Yet BSA also became the largest sexual abuse bankruptcy in U.S. history, filing Chapter 11 in 2020 with approximately 82,000 abuse survivor claims and ultimately agreeing to a $2.46 billion settlement — raising fundamental questions about what federal chartered status means when an institution confronts catastrophic liability. BSA emerged from bankruptcy in 2023, rebranded as Scouting America, and continues to operate under its Title 36 charter, which Congress has not revoked.

Current Law (2026)

Legal Authority

• 36 U.S.C. § 30901 — Federal purposes of BSA: character development, citizenship training, and personal fitness; the charter defines BSA's mission and establishes it as a body corporate
• 36 U.S.C. § 30902 — Membership; any youth who meets the membership requirements established by BSA's national organization; the charter does not limit membership by sex, race, or religion in its current form
• 36 U.S.C. § 30903 — Governing body; Congress recognizes BSA's national council as the governing body; the charter does not dictate internal governance details beyond the broad framework
• 36 U.S.C. § 30931 — Restrictions; BSA may not engage in lobbying or political activity inconsistent with its charitable purposes; the charter is a condition of federal recognition, not a grant of governmental authority
• 36 U.S.C. § 30935 — Annual report; BSA must submit an annual report to Congress covering its activities, financial condition, and program data for the preceding fiscal year
• 36 U.S.C. § 10102 — Congressional reservation; Congress reserves the right to amend, alter, or repeal the charter of any Title 36 organization; this authority has never been exercised against BSA despite the bankruptcy
• In re Boy Scouts of America, Case No. 20-10343 (Bankr. D. Del.) — The bankruptcy proceeding; Third Circuit confirmed the reorganization plan in 2022; BSA emerged from Chapter 11 in April 2023 with a $2.46 billion settlement trust for survivors
• 20 U.S.C. § 7905 — Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act (enacted as part of No Child Left Behind, 2001): public schools with a designated open forum or limited public forum that receive federal education funds may not deny equal access to the Boy Scouts or any other Title 36 patriotic youth organization on account of the organization's membership criteria or oath; the law prevents school districts from excluding BSA because of its leadership membership policies while allowing other outside groups to use school facilities; state or local anti-discrimination laws that conflict with the Equal Access Act are overridden by the federal requirement

Implementing Regulations

The Department of Education's implementing regulation for the Equal Access Act lives at 34 CFR Part 108 — Equal Access to Public School Facilities for the Boy Scouts of America and Other Designated Youth Groups. Key provisions:

• § 108.2 — Applicability: applies to any public elementary or secondary school, local educational agency (LEA), or state educational agency (SEA) that has a designated open forum or limited public forum and receives federal education funds; the trigger is whether the school already allows non-curriculum-related outside groups to use its facilities — once it does, BSA and other Title 36 youth groups must receive equal access on the same terms
• § 108.5–108.6 — Equal access obligation: a covered school may not deny equal access to, discriminate against, or prevent any group officially affiliated with the Boy Scouts or any other Title 36 patriotic youth organization from meeting in the school's open forum; the school may require groups to seek approval before meeting (the same approval process applied to all groups), but may not apply that process discriminatorily; state or local law (including state nondiscrimination statutes based on sexual orientation or religion) does not relieve the school of its federal Equal Access obligation
• § 108.7 — Voluntary sponsorship not required: nothing in the Act or regulation requires any school to sponsor or co-sponsor the Boy Scouts; a school may allow BSA to use its facilities without endorsing BSA's program or values
• § 108.8–108.9 — Enforcement: compliance is required as a condition of receiving Department of Education funds; the enforcement procedures parallel Title VI civil rights enforcement (investigation, compliance review, fund termination for noncompliance); compliance assurances must be submitted by fund applicants

The Equal Access Act was enacted specifically in response to legal challenges and school district decisions to exclude BSA from school facilities after BSA's Supreme Court victory in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000), which upheld BSA's right to exclude gay members under the First Amendment. Several school districts responded by banning BSA from using school property under local nondiscrimination policies. The Equal Access Act overrode those exclusions for any school receiving federal funds — effectively requiring BSA access as a condition of federal funding. The law has been challenged but upheld in the courts. Following BSA's subsequent policy changes (admitting gay youth in 2013, gay leaders in 2015, transgender youth in 2017, and girls in 2018-2019), the practical controversy surrounding Equal Access has diminished considerably.

How It Works

BSA's charter confers federal recognition and organizational legitimacy — it is how the organization can call itself the officially recognized Boy Scouts of America in the United States. But the charter is not a financial backstop. It provides no government funding, no tax exemption (BSA holds 501(c)(3) status separately), and no immunity from civil liability or state nonprofit regulations. Congress could theoretically revoke the charter if BSA ceased to operate in accordance with its stated purposes of character development, citizenship training, and personal fitness — but charter revocation has never happened to a major ongoing organization in Title 36's history.

The annual reporting requirement under 36 U.S.C. § 30935 creates a formal accountability channel: BSA must file a report with Congress covering its programs, membership, and finances each year. In practice, these reports receive little congressional attention in normal times but became significant during and after the bankruptcy, when congressional committees scrutinized BSA's governance failures that enabled decades of abuse.

BSA's February 2020 Chapter 11 filing was driven by the volume and magnitude of sexual abuse claims — primarily involving volunteer adult leaders (scoutmasters, assistant scoutmasters) who abused boys in their troops over a period stretching back decades. The "perversion files" — internal BSA records tracking alleged abusers — had been kept confidential for decades; when they became public in litigation, they revealed that BSA had known about many abusers and in some cases failed to report them to law enforcement or warn families.

The bankruptcy required resolving claims against multiple parties: BSA's national organization, the approximately 250 semi-independent local councils that own real estate and program assets, and chartered organizations — the churches, civic groups, and other institutions (Rotary clubs, VFWs, school districts) that sponsor individual troops. Chartered organizations' liability was the most contentious aspect of the bankruptcy: many large religious denominations (Catholic dioceses, Methodist churches, Mormon wards) had sponsored thousands of troops and faced separate liability exposure. The United Methodist Church ultimately agreed to contribute $30 million to the settlement; the Mormon Church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), which had already withdrawn from BSA in 2019, settled separately.

Insurers — primarily Hartford Financial Services and Century Indemnity — were major parties to the settlement. Insurance coverage disputes were complex because BSA's policies dated back to the 1970s and 1980s and the insurers disputed both the scope of coverage and the validity of claims. The final settlement allocated approximately $1.6 billion from BSA and local councils, $800 million from insurers, and additional amounts from chartered organizations, creating a settlement trust that began making payments to survivors in 2023.

Key Facts / Numbers

• 1916 — year Congress first chartered the Boy Scouts of America
• 82,000 — approximate number of sexual abuse survivor claims filed in the bankruptcy
• $2.46 billion — total settlement trust; the largest institutional sexual abuse settlement in U.S. history at the time of confirmation (2022)
• April 2023 — month BSA emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy
• ~1.03 million — BSA/Scouting America youth membership at end of 2024, versus ~2.3 million before the bankruptcy and pandemic
• 2018/2019 — years BSA began admitting girls (Cub Scouts 2018, all programs including Scouts BSA 2019)
• May 7, 2024 — date BSA announced its rebranding to "Scouting America"; name change took effect February 8, 2025 (legal name unchanged)
• $30 million — United Methodist Church contribution to the bankruptcy settlement
• 0 — number of times Congress has revoked a major Title 36 charter despite the bankruptcy proceeding

How It Affects You

If you're a sexual abuse survivor with a claim against BSA: The $2.46 billion settlement trust (the largest institutional sexual abuse settlement in U.S. history at its 2022 confirmation) is the primary remedy. Claims were evaluated on a points-based matrix considering severity, documentation, and other factors — stronger documented claims received larger payouts. If you filed a claim in the bankruptcy and it was processed, you received a trust allocation. If you believe you had a viable claim but did not file before the bar date, consult a plaintiffs' attorney — some claims against non-debtor parties (local councils, chartered organizations that didn't fully participate in the bankruptcy) may still be available depending on your state's statute of limitations and the specific settlement terms applicable to those entities.

If you're a church, school, or civic organization that sponsors or sponsored a Scouting unit: Chartered organizations faced liability exposure in the bankruptcy proceeding depending on how their local council participated. If your organization contributed to the settlement (the United Methodist Church contributed $30 million; other denominational bodies contributed as well), your release from future claims should be covered. If your council's settlement terms are uncertain, consult legal counsel — residual liability exposure from local councils that didn't fully participate in the national bankruptcy remains a live question in some jurisdictions.

If you have a child in or considering Scouting America: The organization operates under its pre-bankruptcy legal name (Boy Scouts of America) but rebranded operationally as "Scouting America" effective February 8, 2025 (announced May 7, 2024). Programs are now fully coeducational. Post-bankruptcy governance reforms include mandatory background checks for all adult volunteers, enhanced youth protection training, mandatory law enforcement reporting of abuse allegations, and elimination of the "perversion files" in favor of a public database. Membership is roughly 1.03 million youth as of end-2024 — under half of pre-bankruptcy levels — which means your local troop likely has more adult volunteer capacity relative to youth than before.

Recent Developments

Scouting America (operating name effective February 8, 2025; rebrand announced May 2024) has undertaken significant governance reforms post-bankruptcy, including enhanced youth protection training requirements, mandatory background checks for all adult volunteers, mandatory reporting to law enforcement, and elimination of the confidential "perversion files" system in favor of a public database. These reforms align with those implemented by other youth-serving organizations (Catholic dioceses, USA Gymnastics, USA Swimming) following their own abuse-related litigation.

The Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA) pursued litigation to block BSA's admission of girls and the "Scouts BSA" program name, arguing it caused consumer confusion and trademark harm. Federal courts rejected the trademark claims, and the litigation ended without blocking BSA's coeducational expansion. The two organizations now exist as distinct competitors in the youth development space — a significant structural change given their complementary roles for eight decades. BSA's membership decline is a combination of the bankruptcy's reputational impact, COVID-19 disruption to in-person troop meetings, and a broader trend of declining participation in organized youth activities; the organization projects stabilization rather than recovery to pre-bankruptcy membership levels.

Related Topics

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• National Observances and Federal Holidays — Federal Patriotic Calendar
• Veterans Service Organizations — Congressionally Chartered Advocates for Veterans
• Nonprofit Tax Exemption — 501(c)(3)
• Bankruptcy Courts and the Federal Bankruptcy System