What a board treasurer Actually Does.

Small organizations often give the treasurer role to whoever is most comfortable with numbers and then ask that person to do everything financial. That arrangement tends to fail in one of two ways. Either the treasurer becomes an unpaid bookkeeper and burns out, or the rest of the board stops paying attention to finances because someone else is handling it.

What the role is

The treasurer is an officer of the board who leads its financial oversight. The whole board remains responsible for the organization's finances. The treasurer's job is to make that responsibility practical.

Regular duties

• Review the monthly bank statements and financial reports prepared by staff or a bookkeeper, and ask about anything unusual.
• Present a short financial report at each board meeting in language every director can follow, comparing actual results to the budget.
• Lead preparation of the annual budget with the executive director and bring it to the board for approval.
• Make sure the annual Form 990 and state filings are completed on time, and that the board sees the 990 before it is filed.
• Oversee the audit or financial review, if the organization has one, often through a finance or audit committee.

Controls, not transactions

The treasurer should make sure good financial controls exist, such as two approvals for large payments and a second person reviewing bank statements. That is different from being one of the people who writes checks. In a small organization it is often better if the treasurer is not the only signer, so that review stays independent.

Questions a treasurer should keep asking

• How many months of expenses could we cover if revenue stopped?
• How much of our money is restricted, and are we spending it as promised?
• Which single funding source would hurt most to lose?
• Are payroll taxes and required filings current?

A treasurer who asks these regularly, and makes sure the answers reach the full board, is doing the job well, whatever their accounting background.