If you have an accountant going over the books, that is your audit. So you are in good shape there.

As additional backup you might want to ask your accountant for a letter or list of expected safeguards (no cash disbursements without documentation, two signatures on checks, two people counting money, etc.) It's one more "official" document to bolster your case.

(I think I still have a version of what ours gave us if you need it. It's just a short one pager.)

Everyone's advice above is great, so you can incorporate it all. Your magic words just change a little bit to be something like. "We have to follow these rules. It's one of the things the accountant will be auditing for at the end of the year."

Heaven forbid they believe it just because YOU (who they probably trust with the money, keys to the building, and children) say it's necessary. It's the idea of formal accountability to a third party that often gets their attention.

As I said, it's not that this method is right or the total solution. I've just found it expedient.

We do have an accontant go over our books and file our tax forms - at our school it would be impossible to actually get an "auditing committee" to volunteer (unless someone has an "issue" & in that case a third party is a must)
I will use our accountant as my "enforcer" My propblem right now is that I have a president and vice president who "don't care to follow the bylaws" which sets a tone of no rules. As the former pres. it drives me nuts - I'm running for pres. next year so the overall tone of the organization will be back on track - with having the baby this year and the lack of parental involvement with pto bad leadership is better than no leadership - the current pres is a very nice person she just does't want to put the effort into the "business" part of it. Thanks everyone!!!

We have a preset, budgeted and approved amount that the teachers can request for reimbursement; to get this money, they must submit receipts for these expenses, and then our principal (the wonderful person that she is) actually reviews and signs off on the requests prior to the PTA disbursing funds. In addition, we request that the teachers make their reimbursement requests by a certain date (usually the end of January or beginning of February), so that we have a good idea as to what monies we have left for the year.

...and to make it a little easier to implement this new "policy", you can tailor the forms we use to your specific PTO. If you copy each type of form on a different color paper, they look that much more official, are easier to use ("Pick up a yellow Reimbursement Request form...") and file. You can copy the forms from this website under the Useful Resources tab.

JHB is right about the easiest time to implement a policy change, but if you really want to make changes now, announce you read about it in this important national magazine, PTO Today! Takes spotlight off you and lends outside credibilty to your recommendation to tighten up controls.

I feel for you! Luckily, we're just starting out, so lessons like this are VERY helpful (at least something good came out of it!). Right now we're dealing with some "queens" in our main office, and I'm at a loss on how to handle them. They've been there since the invention of sliced bread, and love telling anyone who'll listen that. What a spot for you to be in! Give in and you hate yourself and worry you're setting a bad precedent ("well she didn't have to fill out a request form...."), stick to your guns and you're "that PTO bi***" and will never be able to redeem your good name).

Maybe, without mentioning any names, send a flyer to each teacher saying something like, "We've had several(say it was just one and everyone will know who you're talking about), recent incidents concerning reimbursements to staff/administration for supplies where the necessary paperwork was not submitted prior to the purchases being made. We all know what a pain paperwork can be, and it's easy to forget to do. Please understand that when the PTO has procedures set in place it's not to make things difficult, but to protect ALL parties involved. We are a tax-exempt organization, and every penny must be accounted for when we file with the IRS. (And as JHB pointed out, putting the blame on an auditor/accountant can come in handy), Our auditor (or accountant, or whatever you use) has informed me that no further disbursements can be made without the proper forms being submitted.

Going on to explain the procedures would probably come next, then blah blah THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR COOPERATION! My first instinct is always the less diplomatic and straight to the point, because one thing I detest is BS. I've learned the hard way though, especially in a small community, that that is a quick ticket to social purgatory.

Good Luck! Take strength in knowing others feel your pain!

There's no way we would agree to such lax practices. Not to say we've never, ever written a check without documentation, but it would be pretty darn rare. There's a standard form, everyone fills it out, receipts must be attached. Period.

I've found it's usually easiest to implement these policies at a transition point - like when new officers take over. (Of course, right after recovery from an embezzlement works, too. But I can suggest less painful routes. :cool: )

And it's far easiest to place the blame elsewhere -- er, that is provide an "official explanation".

Here are the magic words and they really do work...

"That's the process EVERYONE has to follow. The auditor said so."

Yes, you can explain it's a best practice, that's it's common sense, that it's the way the rest of the world operates. But, the fact is, the statement above is easier.

And of course you want to lay the ground work. Set up your policy, document it, explain it to everyone. But then just enforce it because "the auditor" said we had to.

Good luck.

P.S. You really should have your books audited each year, whether it's by a CPA or an internal committee. One of the things they will look for is that you are following best practices like this.