My goal is to carry over an entire year's budget so that when next years budget is voted on, we can fund all our activities. That would mean that each years fundraising would be saved for teh following year budget (or fund emergencies). We haven't met this goal, but have gone from about 60% (when I took over as Treasurer a few years back) to about 75%.
We report on our balance at every meeting an no one has complained abouy carrying over a high balance each year. Like ScottMom#1 said, the outgoing parents realize that someone had raised PTO funds prior to when they became an incoming parent.
We have really only had 1 complaint where the funding was an issue at all. The parent was annoyed that we asked for donations for a particular event "when we had $X in the bank". Once we explained all the money was going to other budgetted items, well, I won't say the parent was appeased, but we felt we were doing the right thing.
We are a 6-8 grade school with 1100 students. Past boards have carried over $5000 for no real good reason. We try to carry over $2000 per year. One thing to keep in mind is that your bank MAY charge you if your balance drops below a certain amount. Ours charges us if we drop below $1000.
I like to carry over enough money to cover any costs before our first fundrasier including discretionary funds. As for the parents of the 5th graders, our 5th graders rarely participate in our fundraisers and this seems to be pretty common, and secondly, who do they think contributed to have funds there when their children were in K?
Just a word of advice, a few years ago we had a surplus and instead of hanging on to it as a cushion for any problems, it was spent on adding and replacing misc things that didn't have to be taken care of at that time. The next year some changes were made in the district and our enrollment decreased and we lost the majority of our families who weren't low income, thus losing us a lot of our fundraising $. This trend is still going on and each year our fundraisers are getting worse and worse. My idea to rollover enough funds for our budget from year to year so we would know what we could spend and wouldn't depend on what we raised so immediately was looked at as silly, but now everyone wishes they would have listened.
The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply liberating-in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life. --Anne Morris
I am a treasurer for a elem. school that has a little under 600 kids.
It was requested by a parent that we do not carry over much more than 1000.00. She feels that the parents of 5th graders are giving their money to the PTO and if it is not spent while their kid is in that school then her money has been wasted.
I can see her point because we are a brand new school and we dont need to purchase any big-ticket items yet. I think it depends on your school and needs.
In our bylaws, we have to leave at least 1000.00 for the next year.
I'm pto pres. for an elem. school but we always carry over our balances. We will put more in our savings as we start to save for big ticket items like playground equip., speaker equip...... It all depends on what you are saving for & your budget. Good luck!!!
