charter and CC vs BSA

[poppingcorn]

Who do you listen to???? The Charter and CC or BSA????

 

I am the treasurer and popcorn kernel for our little pack and the other day we got a NSF in the mail.

Our rep at BSA said to be nonthreating go to the door and ask them how they can make it right. If the door is slammed then write a letter asking only for the check amount and the bank service fees.

 

Our CC talked with our charter. The charter said to write a letter and demanding $25 for services charges (the bank charged us 15.00)plus the original check amount. I was also told I can legally demand up to 50 dollars in service fees here in OHIo from our charter. When I told the CC what the BSA rep said she said our charter said this how to handle it.

 

I feel I am in a rock and a hard place. I read the CC list of duties and one of them is to follow BSA policy. My experience says to do what BSA says. What is everyone thoughts on this.

Thank you in advance!!!

[John-in-KC]

This is a time for a friendly unit commissioner to have a friendly cup of coffee talk with the IH or COR. Emphasize friendly, courteous, kind.

 

Don't get yourself into the middle.

 

If IH still says go hard, you don't have a choice. Chartered Partner is the owner of record of the license, you do what the IH/COR tell you to do.

 

One other option is to coordinate with the Treasurer of the Charterd Partner and let them be the heavies.

[poppingcorn]

Can you let me in on the lingo what is

IH and COR? thanks I am new here.

[jmwalston]

"Can you let me in on the lingo what is IH and COR? thanks I am new here."

 

IH is Institutional Head, if a church or religious organization, it would be the pastor or head of that body. COR, or more properly, CR, is Chartered Organization Representative, the person appointed by the IH to act as liason with the Scouting body.

[poppingcorn]

Thank you for making that clear.

[Gold Winger]

I wasn't a popcorn kernel but I dealt with mucho popcorno and I got two bad checks. The kernel gave them back to me since I had collected them. I went to both people and told them what had happened, both just gave me the cash plus the fee.

 

No matter what the COR says, I'd start soft. Ask for the service charges that the COR wants but start off with a friendly phone call. At this point, you don't know why the person wrote a bad check. It could have been they forgot to register it. Or in one case, our kernel took so long to deposit the check that they customer closed the account. If you jump all over them, you may lose a customer for next year.

[Beavah]

Yah, poppingcorn.

 

In this case, you listen to your CC and your chartered organization. The unit is wholly owned and operated by your chartered organization. They are your "boss". You do what the boss says.

 

Da BSA are the folks that provide materials and training, eh? They can offer advice on how to run the scouting program to you, and advice on how to handle issues to your Chartered Organization. But they can't tell yeh what to do in a case like this. The CO can (through the IH or COR), and apparently has.

 

You aren't in the middle. You are doin' your job for the CO. It's their decision, and their responsibility.

 

Beavah

 

 

 

[Eamonn]

I think you need to do what you think is right.

For me that would be getting what was lost back.

I'd be happy to get paid for the popcorn and recover any money that was paid out.

I did once have a family that sold the popcorn and didn't turn the money over.

After trying every which way I turned this over to a debt collector. The Pack recovered the money, the collector added his charges on to what was owed.

We sadly lost a Cub Scout.

Follow your heart.

Eamonn.

[poppingcorn]

I am in the middle they want me to write the letter, sign it and have my return address on the check using BSA letter head.

 

One way I feel create goodwill the other hurts everyone involved. Its like robbery asking for $25 service charge on a $25 check for popcorn.

Oh and by the way we are chartered by the Eagles, do I say more?

[Gold Winger]

"Life in the fast lane, surely make you lose your mind. . . "

 

It may be like robbery to ask for $25 but the law says that you are entitled to it. I'm really suprised that the CO got involved, most don't have a clue what the unit is doing about money.

 

 

[kbandit]

Don't understand why the bad check was brought up to the charter. As treasurer for a troop I have received a couple of NSF checks over the years, I call the person and explain that their check was returned, they have already been notified by their bank prior to my call so it is no suprise if they open their mail. Have never even had to get CC involved as they were promply taken care of (with service fee from bank included).

 

I do note the initials of the scout on checks they receive so I know where they came from if the check writer does not take care of the check in a timely manner. Most parents know the check writers of the checks the youth receive. I would try not to embarass the check writer as it could have been an honest mistake however I would use all legal means possible to recover scout funds.

 

I would involve the CC only if it seemed to me as the check writer was not going to take care of the Nsf check in a reasonable amount of time.

 

I would first call then write a letter to the check writer and then if no response talk to CC. I would like to think most people would not stiff the scouts on a check.

[poppingcorn]

Kbandit,

 

At our last committee meeting our CC decided that she and the secretary are to be included as signers on the bank account and that is to include access the account online. So as you see the CC knows and sees all with the bank account. For the last month the CC is the only who has made any deposits into the account from popcorn sales. Yes I am the treasurer and the popcorn kernel and this is one of my many duties but the CC feels she needs to do this. Why, she claims the charter wanted it done this way. So I guess according to Beavah we do answer to the CO not BSA. Seems like we are sheep in wolves clothing that way.

Eamon I will follow my heart in this matter. I believe I will have the CO write the letter and ask them to not use my name in the letter.

[ScoutNut]

Technically, since the Charter Org owns the unit, they also own all of the unit's equipment and money. THAT is why the CO has the final say on how it wants this handled.

 

What I do not understand is why, when the check was first received back, NO ONE bothered to give the check writer a friendly phone call. Why was this allowed to escalate into this brew-ha-ha?

 

Since you do not want to 1) call the people involved and ask nicely before attacking them with a sledge hammer, or 2) do the hammering that your CC wants, I would say tell the Committee Chair that since she is the one who wanted total responsibility for all of the popcorn money she can be responsible for this nonsense too.

 

 

[Beavah]

Yah, poppingcorn, what you're describin' sure sounds to me like good, common sense practice by da CC and CO, eh?

 

Several people should have access to the bank records, eh? No aspersions on you, but there have been plenty of BSA units where the treasurers have been less than honest folks. Havin' someone else watching the flow of money who isn't related to the treasurer is a very good practice.

 

Organizations like the Eagles that may have volunteer treasurers themselves may well be bringin' some good practices to your unit. And, too, they may simply be applyin' a rule they have for all their financial transactions, includin' their members. You can imagine what the result might be if they insisted on prompt repayment plus penalty from one of their regular members who bounced a check, but allowed a non-member cub family to bounce a check without responding. I think their member would be justifiably angry.

 

If this is your first stint as treasurer for a volunteer or community organization, I understand how it can make yeh feel uncomfortable. Fact is, though, dealin' with this sort of thing is just part of the business, so to speak. Schools, charities, sports programs, other scout units deal with such things all the time, eh? They all end up puttin' in some kinds of rules to try to protect themselves from folks who take advantage. I know some larger troops that have been forced to write off $1K or more in a year for "bad debt" that went unpaid just because they weren't aggressive enough about maintainin' good financial controls.

 

So yeh might not like it, but honestly what you're describin' is reasonable practice. If I knew the person, would I call and give 'em a chance to make it right? Yah, sure. Always easier to be friendly. Are there times when I think it's better to make a "business decision" to forgive a small error on the part of an otherwise big and reliable customer, just to maintain goodwill? You bet. If the person gave yeh a cash donation this last year that amounted to more money than is at issue, for example.

 

But beyond that, I think yeh need to do what the boss says, eh?

 

Be thankful yeh have a "real" CO. There's goin' to come a time when you need 'em.

 

Beavah

(This message has been edited by Beavah)