pack finances

[mermaid]

As cc I have bumped the cubmaster down to committee member for failure to perform duties. Upon the transition monies had been refunded to him with questionable xeroxed reciepts. All of this had been done without my knowledge. How do I go about solving this issue. I have spoken to my DE and he has skated the issue. The pack is missing items in the inventory too. We have a very distinct problem, our charted organization is no longer functioning and we do not have a unit commissioner. I am new to the position (cc) and have no training, the new CM is fairly green as well and the treasurer as been on board for only a couple of months. I need help! I am finding walls at every turn.

[evmori]

mermaid,

Welcome to the forum.

 

From your post, it sounds like the "old guard" is gone. If this is the case, I would start over. Close the old checking account & open a new one. Have at least 3 people on teh account (not related to each other). Get something in writing regarding expenses. Maybe something like "all expenses must be approved by the CC prior to payment". Take an inventory of all your gear & equipment & put someone in charge of it.

 

You might have lost some funds & gear but sometimes it's better to just start fresh and look on it as a learning experience.

 

Ed Mori

Scoutmaster

Troop 1

1 Peter 4:10

[Eagledad]

Great advice Ed.

 

Also you guys need training. I know, everyone says that. However I'm not saying that because I'm compnay guy, but more because I was once where you were at. The first thing we did was Eds advice, close all accounts and start over. Then we looked for help and training. You need to learn the business end of your Pack program pretty fast.

 

Sign up for training, that is a given. But I would also suggest you find another Pack with a solid program and ask them for little guidence. District and council training are important, but a big brother is worth it's weight in gold. If done right, I think you will be at full speed in a few months. Call your District Membership Chairman and ask them to name packs near you who have a good program. Then go and visit the CC. Visit thier committee meeting. Watch the Pack meeting. Take what you like and change what you don't. But get to know some folks who are willing to answer questions and help you get up to speed.

 

The sooner you get up to speed, the sooner you will be thinking how you love this scouting stuff.

 

Barry

[dsteele]

The two previous posts give you advice that I would echo. Start fresh with the checking account and don't go after mysterious missing equipment.

 

The only thing I would add is not to blame your District Executive. The money missing and missing equipment do not belong to the council. That will happen only if the unit dies. In the meantime it's an issue between the unit and the chartered partner -- which you've mentioned is not in existence at the moment. Still, it's a unit issue.

 

I'm guessing that the DE either doesn't know what to tell you or is trying to find out. I'm asking you to realize that the DE isn't the be-all-and-end-all problem solver. They're a good resource and you did well to consult with him/her, but we (we being professional scouters) don't always have the silver bullet solutions to all problems.

 

Good luck. And welcome to the forums!

 

DS

[Eamonn]

How do you have a unit without a Chartered Organization?

[Marty_Doyle]

I found myself in a similar situation, but the cause is just pooor records.

I take over as Cubmaster June 1.(I am recruiting a CC with the help of the CO IH. I am also recruiting two other Pack committee members, two Asst. Cubmasters and three den leaders. They might all be in place by June 1 also. Four potential leaders are going to NLE and CSLST this month.) The outgoing Cubmaster is slowly but surely turning everything over to me.

I am a finance guy by profession. When the Cubmaster gave me the Pack's camping gear (four tents, a "patrol" box and some pots and pans) and I "inspected" them, I deceided to toss three of the tents (ripped, filthy, full of mildew, smelled bad, old). So I went looking for the inventory listing, to note the disposal of assets. There is no listing. I called the Cubmaster. He thinks there was a list, but the Cubmaster preceding him didn't give turn it over. There used to be five tents, but he is not sure where the fifth one is, probably at a former Webelos den leader's house.

 

Ed's right. The only real course is to start over.

But now there is an inventory listing (on a spreadsheet, which I intend to distribute as part of the agenda at each monthly Pack Leaders Meeting, along with the budget to actual report), showing description, date purchased (after talking to the other Pack leaders and the two IH, we decided to but four new tents. It doesn't hurt that the two co-presidents of the PTA - the IH - have sons in my Webelos den, who are going camping in two weeks), and approxinate value. Hey, I'm an accountant.

 

For safety and piece of mind, I would also recommend the following:

 

1.Design a cash reimbursement form. Needs to list what was purchased, what is use, should have a disclaimer that this purchase is solely for Scouting purpoises and not persoanl. Need to have predetermined rules on what is personal (i.e. leader's uniform), den dues responsibility (i.e supplies for crafts) and what is Pack responsibility (i.e camping gear, Pack flags, flag stands, rank and achievement awards, etc). Do you reimburse for sales tax?

2.Who can authorize reimbursement? Suggestion: one person (CC or CM) up to a dollar limit - $50? - then two signatures (both CC and CM)over that amount. All reimbursement requests must include original receipt for purchases over $25 (IRS guidelines).

3.Get someone on the Pack Committee to be the treasurer. Have the treasurer prepare and distribute a report for the committee each month (the checking account statement should be enough, with some detail on what the checks were for). Two committee members other than the treasurer should review the report before it's presented and make sure the ending balance on the report equals what is in the checking account. The treasurer should never touch cash, only report on it.

4.When you collect monies from Scouts and parents, ask that they pay by check made out to "Pack XXX".

At the end of any money collection, two leaders, other than treasurer, make up deposit slip, and give slip and funds to treasurer. Less cash, more trail, less temptation. A Scout is trustworthy, but not naive.

 

A lot of this is common sense and simple. But adherence will erode over time, if not enforced, because "There aren't enough people around to sign and counter sign", or "It takes to long", or "I'm insulted". But by following simple rules like this, everyone who handles money or gear is "protected", including the boys, who do not lose out on an event bvecause there is no money or gear that week...

Good luck. Chalk it up to experience and move on.

 

[dsteele]

Marty -- Kudos to you! Excellent advice for all BSA units.

 

I don't know how many times I've had to weigh in when units get into avoidable fire-fights over what happened to the money. There should be two signatures for every significant expenditure. Councils have a rule (not all follow it) that at least one professional and one volunteer sign every check. This is for the protection of all concerned.

 

I was a little concerned Saturday when, during my Kiwanis Club's annual fund-raiser (which is a pancake day where we served pancakes and sausage to 8,056 people) I ran out and bought soda pop for our volunteers. When I got back, I was given a check for the amount I spent. The thing that bothered me was that there was only one signature on the check.

 

I'm not worried that our club secretary would steal money from us. He's a police lieutenant with the local department who's integrity is beyond question -- but what would happen to his career if someone were to accuse him of stealing? He'd be in trouble and would have no back-up.

 

My advice to those who handle money in the name of Scouting -- get some backup. Have two signatures required on checks and make sure the other one isn't your spouse.

 

DS

[eisely]

There is little to add to all the comments and advice above. Do start over and do not waste time, energy, and emotion trying to recover what may be lost. Hopefully the losses were not too great.

 

The first adult volunteer position I held fifteen years ago was that of a pack treasurer. The same principles apply to other units.

 

Establish a clear and simple procedure for reimbursement. Original receipts should be required.

 

Establish a new bank account with dual signatures required for checks. It is a bit of additional hassle, but it is worth the effort. Depending on the attitude of the bank, you may be able to pay some checks below a certain threshold with a single signature.

 

Pack treasurer and committee chair or cubmaster should be from different households, not husband and wife.

 

Require regular treasurer reports. These reports can be as elaborate or as simple as you wish, but just requiring a regular report will impose discipline and accountability on the process.

 

Where possible all cash receipts taken in at the pack level should be in the form of a check. They are easier to keep track of, and the purpose of the payment should be noted on the check itself. However, one of the first things I did was to acquire a receipt book that made duplicates so that I could take in payments in currency. The receipts protected the pack, the person paying in the funds, and me. The duplicates created automatically when I accepted the cash made it possible for me to easily track the funds and apply them to the proper activity or account.

 

Make sure the treasurer deposits all cash receipts at the earliest possible moment. Cash and checks left lying around tend to get misplaced. In January of this year I was presented with a check I had written to the troop over a year and a half earlier for a deposit for a Philmont expedition in 2001. The troop treasurer had never deposited the check and I had lost track of it. (I have to admit that I do not regularly reconcile my own checking account.) I was asked to provide a substitute check to keep the troop whole, which I did, but I was shocked to think that the troop's finances were not being handled as well as I thought they had been.

[Eamonn]

"Her That Must Be Obeyed" My Lady Wife, has been the Pack Treasurer for a good many years.

There are 3 names on the checking account,two signatures are needed.

Except in cases of dire emergency, she only writes checks once a month, at the Pack Committee Meeting.

At this meeting she gives a written Financal Report.

It is a standing joke, how tight she is with the money.

Over the years I think unit accounts have been the cause of more phone calls to me, then anything else.

I try and tell the Leaders, that it not their money, and that the best way to handle it, is to keep everything as open as possible, and keep good records.

[dsteele]

Amen, Eamonn!

 

DS

[mermaid]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I'll be using alot of your ideas.

[nldscout]

We have just ran into a problem with the 2 signiture's on checks. The banks in NY are requireing a statement to be signed by CC saying they will not be responsible if the check is signed by only one person, that they don't look at signitures unless check is for amount over $1000.00. Kind of makes the 2 sig rule mute.

 

Most banks don't even look at signitures for under 1000 dollar checks anymore

 

[Overtrained]

Mermaid,

 

I echo all the above with just the following to add- You stated in your first line, "I have bumped the cubmaster down to committee member for failure to perform duties". I think this is one of the hardest jobs of a committee, to replace a leader. It is also the most challenging time for a committee to back up its actions.

 

Not knowing both sides of the story, I'll only say that you need to make sure your new Cubmaster, Assistants, and Den Leaders have the support of a fully trained committee. It is the only way for them to effectively do their job and it is the Scouting way.

 

Overtrained

[Eamonn]

I think that the two signatures are more for the unit then for the bank.

Nothing to do with Scouting But ...

As a rule I don't write checks,on our "Family Account" But some time back I went to the Doctor, I think it was cos old age is here and now need a yearly check up.

Anyway, I wrote a check, and somehow didn't sign it.

And yes our small town bank cashed it.

The bank president has a son in a local Troop, and is on the Eagle Board of Review Committee, when I quized him about it (So is the Doc, as advancement chair)

He said "Oh well they knew it was you, and how flusstered you get !!"

Go ahead make my day.

[mermaid]

thanks for the info on the 2 signature checks. While it may not be necessary for the bank, it does provide some security for the pack. What I mean is that it gets rid of the temtation. I have designed a cash reimbursment form and will go into effect immediately. I have deigned it so it requires the purchases signature, the treasurer and the one who authorized the purchase ( which has to be one supervisory level above the purchaser). It also contains a disclaimer (ty). This summer we will be forming bylaws for our pack. I cant thank-you enough for all your information. It really takes the presssure off having to ask your surounding packs question after question. We will be taking a full inventory and putting someone in charge. We will have a sign out program for some of the bigger things and this also keeps us informed of the condition of our gear, flags, ceremonly props and such. I'll gladly take more information if you have any. By the way if you would like to use our cash reimbursement form e-mail me and i'll send it. thanks again.