Treasurer, the PTA's Fiscal Manager
The Treasurer, as the authorized custodian of the PTA's funds, manages all financial transactions itemized in the budget as approved by the General Membership. While an accounting background is not necessary, organizational skills are essential. Effective financial management maintains member trust and enables PTAs to achieve their goals of realizing every child's potential. LAPTA is always available to provide assistance and guidance.
For any inquiries, contact the LAPTA Treasurer, Ashley Snell, at Treasurer@LouisianaPTA.org. We encourage you to stay connected!
Getting Organized
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Prepare for the new year by getting organized. Have a large binder set up to hold expense forms with receipts, deposit forms, bank statements, monthly budget reports, agendas, minutes, LAPTA Toolkit, affiliation files, tax filings, charter documents, and more.
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For tracking finances and producing budgets, LAPTA recommends using an online platform such as MoneyMinder.org or Wave Financial Apps. Watch a quick tutorial on MoneyMinder.
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Discuss with the Executive Committee the best way to offer online purchasing of memberships or other items you sell. For online sales, LAPTA recommends CheddarUp.com, PTBoard.com, or a custom website if you have a greater need. Watch a quick Cheddar Up tutorial by Louisiana PTA or by Cheddar Up, themselves. View PTBoard's YouTube Channel for tutorials.
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After reviewing the LAPTA Treasurer Toolkit, mark your calendar with important dates and deadlines for Active Affiliation, IRS tax filing, and LAPTA grants, contests, and awards.
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Set up a PTA email (with google et al) or get the account information from your predecessor. Share passwords and account info with the President and Secretary.
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If you don't have access to Microsoft Office, download Libre Office for free.
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Start completing the Active Affiliation requirements.
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Check out Free Resources for things that are available to nonprofits.
Treasurer Training
Learn the details about being the Treasurer by reviewing the Treasurer Toolkit, by downloading the Treasurer Training PowerPoint, and by watching the following videos. Download and complete the Proof of Training Certificate which is needed for the Active Affiliation report due October 31, 2024. All elected officers are required to complete 4 credits of training.
Cheddar Up Tutorial
Money Minder Overview by Louisiana PTA
2023 Active Affiliation Requirements Training
IRS Federal Tax Filing
For an easy way to file taxes, go to irs.org, file990.org, or efile990.org. The annual deadline to file is 4 1/2 months after the close of the fiscal year, which is November 15. Support documentation and directions from the IRS are available here. The IRS uses ID.me to log in which requires a Driver's License and other authentication steps that verify your identity. Make note on your Accounts & Passwords Summary Sheet (see Toolkit for sample) for your predecessors.
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File Form 9990N if you had less than $50,000 gross income. It is very easy and quick to file electronically with only 8 items of basic information: the EIN, tax year, legal name, mailing address, and any other names the organization uses, name and address of a principal officer, website address if one exists, confirmation that the organization’s annual gross receipts are $50,000 or less, and, if applicable, a statement that the organization has terminated.
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File Form 990EZ if your gross income was between $50,000 - $200,000.
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File Form 990 if your gross income was over $200,000.
If the PTA is uncertain when taxes were last filed, search the IRS site for the PTA's tax filings. If you have further questions, call the IRS at 877-829-5500 with your EIN and complete PTA name on hand. If the IRS revoked the nonprofit status of the PTA for failing to file Form 990 for three consecutive years, visit the IRS website for full directions on "How to Have Your Tax-Exempt Status Reinstated."
Frequently Asked Questions
Start Up Funds
All budgets must include a Startup Funds line item. This gives a maximum amount that may be spent BEFORE the General Membership approves the annual budget. There is no authorization to spend money beyond the amount in the Start Up Funds until the General Membership has approved the budget. It can be any reasonable amount for expenditures until the budget is approved. The first General Membership Meeting of the year should be held as soon as possible, such as at Open House. The purchases that are made do not get entered into this line item but rather into their actual line item. You should enter your amount in the expense AND income columns so that there is a net of $0 on the budget. It really only acts as a place to designate the maximum amount pre-approved to spend before the budget is approved, and then it is never actually used. See the following budget samples.
Carry Forward Balance
The carry forward balance is the amount of money at the start of the fiscal year which is July 1. There are two ways to account for your carry forward balance on your budget.
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One way is to have the carry forward balance listed above the budget. MoneyMinder does this. The problem with MoneyMinder is that the starting balance cannot be changed once you set up your fiscal year. See Sample Budget #1 below.
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The second way to account for the carry forward balance is to make it a line item within the budget. If you do it this way, your starting balance is technically $0 and then the Carry Forward Balance line item is the actual money in the account on July 1. When you do the audit, you would use $0 as the starting balance. See Sample Budget #2.
Sample Budget #1
Sample Budget #2
Ending Balance
The ending balance is the amount of money the PTA will have at the end of the fiscal year which is June 30. All money does not need to be spent at the end of the year. You do need to end with at least need the amount in your Start Up Funds line item. There are two ways to account for the ending balance.
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If you choose Option 1 for the carry forward balance, then do not include an "Ending Balance" line item. See Sample Budget #1. MoneyMinder will have a final line that says, "Projected Ending Bank Balance if on budget" and the dollar amount.
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If you choose Option 2 for the carry forward balance, then you will add the "Ending Balance" line item. See Sample Budget #2. After you have your budget figured out, you will have a number under "Budget Net" in the Grand Total line. Take that amount and put it as an expense in the Ending Balance. This will leave $0 as the Budget Net in the Grand Total line. See the two sample budgets above.
Toolkit Sec 3. Treasurer
Index:
Introduction........................................................................................................... 40
Treasurer’s Binder............................................................................................... 40
Responsibilities of the Treasurer................................................................. 41
MoneyMinder and CheddarUp...................................................................... 41
Principles of PTA Financial Management............................................... 42
Raising Money....................................................................................................... 43
Budget....................................................................................................................... 43
Banking and E-Commerce Policy................................................................ 44
Insurance (Required)........................................................................................ 46
Articles of Incorporation................................................................................. 47
Federal Taxes........................................................................................................ 47
State Sales Tax.................................................................................................... 48
Gifts to Schools................................................................................................... 49
Financial Reports (3 Types) ......................................................................... 49
Audit Committee and Its Report................................................................ 49
Record Keeping & Retention...................................................................... 50
Additional Resources....................................................................................... 50
School Officials and PTA Funds.................................................................. 51
Appropriate Use of PTA Funds.................................................................... 52
Active Affiliation and Retention Plan........................................................ 54
Inventory Accountability Form..................................................................... 55
Year-End Financial Checklist........................................................................ 56
Budget Approval Form...................................................................................... 57
Sample Budgets and Comparison Reports............................................ 58
Deposit Form......................................................................................................... 60
Expense Form....................................................................................................... 61
Bylaws and Amendments Approval Form................................................ 62
Audit Report Form, Instructions and Worksheet................................. 63
Letter for NSF Check......................................................................................... 66
Monetary Donation to a School................................................................... 67
Equipment Purchased by a PTA for Its Use ......................................... 68
General Donation Agreement....................................................................... 69
Passwords and Accounts Summary Sample.......................................... 70
Free Accounting Software
A free alternative software to MoneyMinder is the Wave Financial App. If you use it, email the LAPTA Treasurer to give us feedback on it.
A free alternative software to Microsoft Office is Libre Office. It allows you to read and create Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files.
