Financial Information

Each Branch must develop a Branch Financial Report and submit it together with a copy of their June 30 Bank Statements to ACEI Headquarters. A blank financial report form is included in Appendix 1.

Budget Planning Guidelines

An annual budget will assist in planning your income and expenses. Financial requirements for various branch projects must be estimated in order to establish a realistic budget based on anticipated income.

The following is a general set of guidelines for budget planning.

Start the planning process at your annual Board Meeting.
Review all existing programs and activities to assure they should continue.
Identify each new activity that the branch will be working on.
Each committee should complete their own activity worksheet(s) if there are budget dollars attached to the project. The worksheet should include a complete description of the activity.
All activity sheets should be submitted to the Treasurer prior to the Board Meeting so that a comprehensive budget can be created.
In the event, you do not have a balanced budget, individual projects should be prioritized and voted on by the group at the Meeting.
All anticipated expenses should be shown on the budget worksheet and should indicate the month that expenses are expected to be paid by the branch. The same should be done for income.
An outside auditor should reconcile your branch's books annually.
Budgets can be done on an Excel Worksheet or put into an Accounting Software package such as Quickbooks.

Activity Budget Worksheet (Sample)

Name of Activity:

Account number for billing:

Date or Time Span of Activity:

Description of Activity:

Assumptions on which budget is based:

Measurements of Success:

Planning Branch Cash Flow

Income

Month Description Amount

Total Income

Expense

Month Description Amount

Total Expense

Net Results

Setting up the Chart of Accounts

Prepare an index listing for each of the accounts required for reporting. Keep this list handy. Any account may be given a unique number. This process will help with monthly reconciliation of your branch finances and make record keeping easier. There are four categories of accounts: Assets, Liabilities, Revenues, and Expenses. If you are unfamiliar with how these types of accounts work you might want to consult with an accountant or bookkeeper.

ACEI branches generally have income and expenses of the following types:

Income:

Dues Rebates (expect $2 per member per year if your reporting requirements are met and your branch is in good standing)
Fundraising Events
Donations
Branch Development Grant (if new Branch)
Other

Expenses:

Publicity (newsletters, mailings, posters, fliers, etc.)
Secretary's materials (notebook for minutes, stationery, etc.)
Postage
Telephone bills (long distance calls, particularly on the State level)
Treasurer's expenses (notebook for records, etc.)
President's expenses (notebook/file folders for records, etc.)
Expense of fundraising projects
Program expenses
Refreshments (if not furnished by members)
Solicitation of new members (Membership Committee expense, if one is formed)
Contributions, donations, and special funds
Scrapbook, if Branch decides to keep one
Branch Welcome Kits
Funds for sending the Branch President or another representative to the ACEI Annual International Study Conference
Other

You may add or delete categories from this list of anticipated expenses. You may want to decide which ones you are willing to pay for with dues, and which ones you want to fund with other income, such as fundraising projects. For example, fundraising projects should be self-supporting; materials such as notebooks and office supplies may be donated. Newsletters and mailings may be a large item in the beginning, particularly if you do not have access to "School Mail." However, mailings serve to keep people informed, one of the most important tasks that can be done.

Sample Chart of Accounts

The following is a sample of how to set up the Chart of Accounts:

Acct. #	Description	Budget '00	Actual '00
Income
1000	Branch Rebates
1010	Development Grant/Branch Awards
1020	Branch Meetings
1030	Conference
1040	Newsletter Subscriptions
1050	Advertising
1060	Fees from Special Events
1070	Interest Income
1080	Sponsorship
Total Income

Acct. #	Description	Budget '00	Actual '00
Expenses
3000	Supplies
3010	Postage
3020	Publicity (newsletters, mailings, posters, fliers, etc.)
3030	Awards
3040	Membership Recruitment and Retention
3050	Program Expenses
3060	Telephone
3070	Officer Travel (including travel to Annual International Conference)
Total Expenses

Acct. #	Description	Budget '00	Actual '00
Assets
0100	Cash (Checking Account)
0200	Accounts Receivable
0300	Prepaid Expenses
0400	Property & Equipment
Total Assets

Acct. #	Description	Budget '00	Actual '00
Liabilities
0500	Accounts Payable
0600	Deferred Revenue
0700	Net Assets
Total Liabilities

Record Keeping Guidelines

The following is a list of items that your branch might have, with suggested retention periods. It is suggested that you maintain a "history" file to be passed to your successors. This history will become an invaluable resource to future branch leaders.

Documents Length of Time

Minutes of Board Meetings: Permanent
Bylaws: Permanent
Constitutions: Permanent
Approval of Federal ID Number: Permanent
Incorporation: Permanent
Approval Permanent: Permanent
Application for Tax Exempt Status: Permanent
IRS Determination Letter: Permanent
Tax Returns (Support Information): 7 Years
Branch Newsletter: Permanent
Branch Activity Forms (Names, Meeting Dates, Topics, Speakers): 3 Years
Regional Conference Records: 1 Permanent Copy
Branch Monthly Financial Reports: 1 Year
Branch Annual Financial Records (Includes: Bank Statements, Annual Financial Reports, Checks showing payment of Taxes): 7 Years
Membership Prospects: Permanent
Officer/Committee records/reports: 3 Years
Correspondence with ACEI office: 1-3 Years
Canceled Checks: 5 Years
Paid Invoices: 5 Years
Meeting Receipts: 3 Years
Photographs: Permanent

Reporting Responsibilities

The Treasurer, has a responsibility to keep your Branch, and particularly your Branch Board, informed of its financial status. This includes the following:

All receipts should be deposited promptly and recorded including source information. (Note: Failure to deposit Branch Rebate Checks will result in your next rebate being held at headquarters.)
All bills should be paid within a reasonable period of time. Significant or unusual expenses (such as printing or Officers Travel) should be approved in advance by the Board during the budget process or by Board members involved with the activity.
The Board should be given monthly reports of Assets and Liabilities (Balance Sheet) and change in net assets (called an Income Statement by for-profit companies).
Members of the Branch should be given the financial reports at least once a year.
Financial reports to the Board should include any anticipated cash flow concerns or unusual activity.
Some Branches have significant cash resources. The Board should determine if these funds should be invested. It is best to have other Board members work with the Treasurer and determine the best approach. If there are investments, the results should also be reported regularly.

Insurance for ACEI Branch Events

If you need insurance for an upcoming event, please contact :
Hilb, Rogal & Hamilton
Travelers Service Center
P.O. Box 1564
Elmira, NY 14902-1564

fax: 1-888-872-8921 (toll-free)
tel: 1-877-411-0770 (toll-free)

In order to obtain a certificate of insurance please send your request along with the following information:

Name, address and phone number of person making request on behalf of the
Branch. (Be sure to include your ACEI Branch name.)
Event Description.
Date.
Place--full name and address of location.
Contact person at the location.
Approximate number of people attending.

Your certificate of insurance will cover just the event that you requested it for. We are fortunate to be able to cover ACEI Branch events under an umbrella policy. Please follow these instructions and make your request at least 4 weeks in advance of your event. Most certificates will be ready in less than 24 hours. Do not send your request to ACEI Headquarters. We would, however, appreciate any information you can provide concerning your Branch events!

Thank you!

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