Voting - Your Duty to Country
The time to vote in the US elections is now! You need time for registrations and ballots to travel between you and your state. Overseas ballots are available now. If you haven't received your ballot yet, vote now using a backup ballot.
Voting is one of the most fundamental duties and privileges of citizenship. As part of your Duty to Country, every TAC Scout should Do Your Best to make sure that every one of your parents and older siblings who are eligible to vote in any country, registers to vote and casts a ballot, on time, in every election in which they are eligible. And if you are a Scouter, or a Scout who is old enough to vote - then vote!
Every US citizen can vote from abroad, even if they have never lived in the US. There are different forms, processes and timings for each state. Here are three websites dedicated to helping US citizens overseas process their votes:
Vote From Abroad
Overseas Vote Foundation
Federal Voting Assistance Program
Voting from abroad is a bit of time and paperwork and inconvenience. But women didn't get to vote in the US until 100 years ago, and they needed to march in the streets and get thrown in jail to earn the right. Black men got the legal right to vote in the 1860s, but it took 100 years to become a reality; they voted while risking being beaten, or being required to guess the number of jellybeans in a jar. And our military members risk their lives to guarantee our freedoms. For all those people who fought for, protected, and still protect our right to vote, we owe it to them, to vote ourselves.
2021 Unit Recharter Window Opens October 2
Rechartering for the coming Scouting year happens each Fall. On or about October 2 nd, the registered Key 3 Leaders of each unit will receive a custom online rechartering code from the Boy Scouts of America for their unit to access the Online Recharter Website.
Both the BSA Membership Fees and Transatlantic Council Overseas Council Fees (OCF) are submitted all at one time through the rechartering portal using e-check or payment card.
- Immediately- Ensure that the currently registered unit Key 3 leaders are listed correct in www.my.scouting.org so they can e-approve member and charter renewals. This is essential and must be done as soon as possible since changes at this step can delay the subsequent steps. Only the registered Key 3 of the unit will receive the recharter code.
- Check that all youth and adults are currently registered with the unit appear on your roster in www.my.scouting.org . If any applicants are missing, have them register online through your unit's custom link before you begin your charter renewal.
- Complete and approve the on-line Unit Recharter.
- Pay the 2021 BSA Registration fees and the Transatlantic Council Overseas Council Fees (OCF) online through the Internet Rechartering site. The preferred method to pay the recharter fee and OCF is via e-check. There is no fee to use the e-check method. You can also pay with a payment card, but you will be assessed a service fee by the BSA.
Your Unit Commissioner, District Commissioner, and District Executive are great resources to help you through this process. Additional information is also available at your Roundtable and on the council's Annual Rechartering page
Scout-a-thon 2020
Like Scout-a-thons of the past, the Transatlantic Council is once again offering a framework for unit fundraising that is flexible and rewarding.
Each Pack, Troop, Crew or Ship determines their own activity and units of success and conducts the activity on their own schedule between September 15 and November 30. Cub Scout Packs may coordinate a one-day Bowl-a-thon accepting pledges for the number of pins scored, while a Scouts BSA Troop may challenge their Scouts to the number of miles they hike in a week. In a COVID-19 environment, lots of creative at home or individually based activities can be done.
The Council provides an online system for units to help tell their story..... and secure pledges for their activities from anyone around the world with a credit card.
- 100% of the funds earned by your unit will flow into your Unit Account by December 31, 2020, for future use in purchasing advancement and other supplies or paying training/camp/activity fees.
- All Scouts will receive prizes based upon the dollars earned for your unit's Scout-a-thon activity. These are provided at no-cost to the unit.
- Credit card processing fees are paid by the persons who make the pledge....and are at a voluntary level. So, no cost to Scouting, neither the unit or the council.
More details and instructions for your Scout-a-thon Coordinator are available on the council website.
Exclusive 70th Anniversary CSPs 
To celebrate TACs 70th anniversary, special commemorative Council Shoulder Patches (CSP) have been designed. There are 3 varieties, 2 of which are currently available for purchase. The third are one-of-a-kinds with platinum metallic border to mark the occasion. Each are INDIVIDUALLY NUMBERED, with the unique number part of the embroidered design, making each patch a one-of-a-kind piece of history. Only numbers 01 - 70 have been made. These exclusive patches will be available for order on November 1st to kick off our month-long anniversary celebration. Once the item goes live on our website, be sure to place your order fast. The numbered pieces will be delivered in the order that they are purchased! (No special requests)
Contact with the Brussels Service Center
We love to hear from you! Please be aware that we have new phone numbers in the Brussels Service Center, so if you have a number stored for us somewhere.... please delete it. Email is always the best way to reach us, especially as we telework as part of our COVID-19 mitigation strategy. Our general delivery email is TAC-ServiceCenter-802@scouting.org. Individual email addresses can be found on our website at https://tac-bsa.org/WhoWeAre
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