This is where a bit of legwork comes in. You need to contact each person (if possible) and find out what was purchased and where and if they are able to get a duplicate receipt or even if they still have a receipt that wasn't turned in.
Once you have weeded it down with that (some of them will readily remember what was purchased and there will be a few that may still have the receipts) Then you work on the ones that can't be located. You may get lucky and each person will be able to recall what and where.

I only have receipts for the last 6 months. As for checks etc... I have a list of the checks and their amounts, however, most of the checks were made out to individuals referencing materials they bought for events. So I am stuck without much detail as to what the checks were for or the backup to support the checks that are written.

I think that many of us have had an experience like this at least once in our volunteer "careers". [img]smile.gif[/img] Most recently, last year, I had a treasurer that not only was ill, but really had no idea how to do this beyond his own experience with personal finances. Luckily, everything was in a box and wasn't too hard to go through and recreate records.
Do you have any record of where the money went (a list of payments, anything)?
You can get copies of statements, canceled checks etc from the bank and most banks will charge little or no money to get them that far back. I would start there. Once you have that information, you can contact each individual for a receipt. If it's a business, they can send you a copy. If it's an idividual, they can write a statement or if they remember, contact the businesses they used.
Canceled checks can be a receipt. If there is a lot, you may want to enlist the help of a CPA. Call around and see if any of them will do the work pro bono.
As for the tax filing, you may not have to file a 990. If you made less than $25,000 a fiscal year, you don't have to file one. The IRS is fairly lax with non-profits in contrast to personal taxes.
Like i said, if there are a lot of expenses, it would be better for you to get a little professional help with this but if there wasn't a lot, then you can do it yourself. It's just a little bit of work but once it's done, it's done.

We have a new PTO that has been in existence for 2 school years. We have had 2 treasurer's one that was in place for the first 2 months and the second one which handled the finances until May of this year. I am the new treasurer. I finally got the "books" but found the treasurer had no clue how to keep records and to boot I cannot find any of the documentation to support the expenses. Additionally, last year's officers did not submit the application for 501c3 and no taxes have been filed either.

I need to know what I should do? Has anyone had this experience or similar issues? How do I handle the accounting, and tax filing?

Any assistance would be most appreciative. THanks you. :eek: