Rocky Mountain Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. Finance and Audit. Committee Manual. Last Updated: 8/1/15

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1 Rocky Mountain Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Finance and Audit Committee Manual Last Updated: 8/1/15

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Purpose and Duties of Committee 2 Chapter 2 Committee Structure 3 Chapter 3 Timeline 4 Chapter 4 Responsibilities 5 Chapter 5 Vice- Responsibilities 6 Appendix A RMASFAA Committee Requirements 7 Appendix B Committee Report Template 9 Appendix C Action Item Template 10 Page Finance and Audit Manual 1

3 Chapter 1 Purpose and Duties of Committee Purpose: The Finance and Audit Committee is responsible for developing and maintaining proper fiscal controls for the Association. The committee works closely with the leadership and all committees in planning an annual budget, which enables each entity to achieve its goals and objectives. The Finance and Audit Committee continually monitors the Association's fiscal activities. Duties: Review the General Policies and Financial Policies. Hold an organizational meeting to plan its strategy for fulfilling the purposes of the committee. During the organizational meeting, review and update the calendar of committee activities. Develop and manage a budget, which stays within the limits approved by the Board, to support the activities of the committee. Develop, review and present the annual budget of the Association to the Board of Directors. Monitor income and expenses throughout the year. Assist the RMASFAA Treasurer with policy issues pertaining to accounting procedures, budget and audit issues. Make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding Association fiscal matters. Investment decisions of the Association will be made by the of Finance and Audit in consultation with the Treasurer. Schedule, review, and present to the Board the Association's annual external financial review. Review and act upon all write-offs recommended by the Treasurer. Monitor the incorporated and tax exempt status for the Association, which includes proper filing of tax forms and proof of continued existence as required in the state of North Dakota. Maintain and annually verify list of RMASFAA owned equipment. Finance and Audit Manual 2

4 Chapter 2 Committee Structure The structure of the committee is as follows: Membership consists of a chair and vice chair, plus two other members. When these names are determined, it is the job of the committee chair to update the list of committee members on the RMASFAA website. To update the committee listing on the RMASFAA website, please use the following procedure: 1) Maneuver a web browser to 2) Click on Member Services in the menu across the top of the page. 3) If you have committee chair access (which you should), you should see Administrative Access options listed toward the bottom of this page. (If you don t have this access, contact EIC to get access.) a. From the Administrative Access options, select the Board of Directors/ option. 4) At this point, you will be prompted for your RMASFAA password. 5) When you are logged in, you should see a box with Actions; select it. 6) An option listing your committee should appear next. Choose it and click on Continue. 7) Add Committee Members and Remove Committee Members are the first two options in the menu. You will need to remove any committee members that are no longer on your committee as well as add new ones. a. Removing is easy. Click the box in front of the names you wish to remove and choose Remove Participants. b. Adding is a little more challenging. First search for the person s name (you do not have to complete all the boxes), and then select the correct person from the database to add them to your list. If you don t find the person in the results of your search, uncheck the box marked Only Current Members? in the search fields. (Then, send that committee member a reminder to renew their membership in RMASFAA.) Finance and Audit Manual 3

5 Chapter 3 Timeline December Hold an organizational meeting to plan strategy for fulfilling the purposes of the committee. Review and update the calendar of committee activities. February Download prior year budget vs. actual report from RMASFAA online accounts and update the budget spreadsheet for the new year. Review current investment funds and overall direction, and then make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding Association fiscal matters. June Schedule, review, and present the annual external review. September Develop, review, and present the annual budget. October Maintain and verify the list of RMASFAA equipment. Finance and Audit Manual 4

6 Chapter 4 Responsibilities Take office immediately following the Annual Conference Send personal photo to EIC Committee to be added to the website Work with President-Elect to finalize committee members Financial Review o Treasurer will grant you access to QuickBooks online o Monthly review reconciliation of accounts o Quarterly review bank statements Hold an organizational meeting to plan strategy for fulfilling the purposes of the committee. Review and update the calendar of committee activities. Create committee report of the meeting and activities and post it to the RMASFAA website Download prior year budget vs. actual report from RMASFAA online accounts and update the budget spreadsheet for the new year. Review current investment funds and overall direction. Make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding Association fiscal matters and submit action items if needed. Attend RMASFAA Winter Board meeting in February/March and present committee report Maintain and verify the list of RMASFAA equipment. Schedule and assess the annual external review. Participate in RMASFAA Summer Board conference call, if held Write blog post highlighting committee activities upon request. Review and update committee handbook Budget - September o Obtain year-to-date figures from the Treasurer for all categories and add this information to the budget spreadsheet. o Disseminate the budget to responsible parties (incoming Executive Council, state delegates, and committee chairs) and ask that they provide their budget for the upcoming year. o Collate the responses to create the proposed budget for the following year. o Send the proposed budget to the incoming Executive Council and Finance and Audit Vice- prior to the Board Orientation Meeting at the Annual Conference. o Present and review the budget with the incoming board. Attend RMASFAA Board Meeting in conjunction with Annual Conference Present committee report during Business Meeting at Annual Conference Finance and Audit Manual 5

7 Chapter 5 Vice- Responsibilities Participate in all committee meetings Attend RMASFAA Transitional Board Meeting Review current committee budget and propose budget for the following year in September. Attend final meeting of the current board as an observer. Present committee budget at board orientation meeting prior to the Annual Conference. Finance and Audit Manual 6

8 Appendix A RMASFAA Committee Requirements The information concerning committee membership can be found in the RMASFAA Policies and Procedures Manual in Section 5 Committees of the Association. The information is summarized in this appendix. Committee Membership Guidelines Committee members may be institutional or associate members of the association. The President-Elect, with the assistance of the committee chair, will solicit names of potential committee members from the state delegates, the associate member delegates and from volunteer form submissions. A member may serve on more than one committee during the same year, although it is recommended that as many members as possible be included on the committees. To the extent possible, committee members will represent the diversity of the association membership with regard to state affiliation, institution size, institution type, gender, and multicultural characteristics. Travel and other expenses incurred by committee members attending committee meetings and performing authorized committee activities will be covered according to the policies of the association. Travel expenses for meetings held in conjunction with the annual conference will not be reimbursed. Committee Association Governance Association News Conference Planning & Evaluation Corporate Development Diversity & Multicultural Initiatives Required Membership Immediate Past President, Members include: President, President-Elect, Vice-President, plus the four most recent past presidents. Other members may be recommended by the President and approved by the Board of Directors. Vice One representative from each member state. (Institutional Member) Vice (Institutional or Associate) (These are appointed by the current RMASFAA President upon the recommendation of the host state delegate) Other such members as required. Associate Member Delegate Immediate Past of Most Recent Conference Planning committee should serve as an advisor to current committee Vice At Least 2 other members Vice 4 additional members with majority representing association s underrepresented membership. Finance and Audit Manual 7

9 Electronic Initiatives Finance and Audit Leadership Pipeline Membership Committee Nominations and Elections Summer Institute Training Committee Vice Vice Two additional members * (will serve two years as chair; one development year plus one implementation year) Vice (Note: accepting Vice-chair role is a 3-year commitment; Year 1 Vice ; Years 2 & 3 - ). Will select a new Vice- every other year as current chair begins 2 nd year as chair which is the implementation year) One representative from each member state Vice One representative from each member state President-Elect, State Delegates from each member state Associate Member Delegate RMASFAA s member of the NASFAA Nominations & Elections Committee Vice Past One representative from each member state Vice One representative from each member state Finance and Audit Manual 8

10 Appendix B Committee Report Template Date: 2/27-28/15 Location: Denver, CO Submitted by: Becky Pribyl, (SD) Committee Members: Donna Carter, Vice (KS); Judy Hager, member (ND); Jon Dechant, member (CO) The Finance and Audit Committee is responsible for developing and maintaining proper fiscal controls for the Association. The committee works closely with the leadership and all committees in planning an annual budget, which enables each entity to achieve its goals and objectives. The Finance and Audit Committee continually monitors the Association's fiscal activities. -Restricted Reserve (Charles Schwab/NASFAA): The Restricted Reserve account had an ending balance (xx/xx/20xx) of $xxx,xxx.xx. -Unrestricted Reserve (Wells Fargo Savings and Investments): The Unrestricted Reserve account had an ending balance (xx/xx/20xx) of $xxx,xxx.xx. -Operating Account (Wells Fargo Checking): The operating account had an ending balance (xx/xx/20xx) of $xxx,xxx.xx. -Fixed Assets (equipment): Fixed assets ended the year (xx/xx/20xx) with a total of $xxx.xx. Summary of Activities since Last Meeting: Finance and Audit Manual 9

11 Appendix C Action Item Template To: Board of Directors SUBMITTED BY: Becky Pribyl, Finance & Audit Committee PROPOSED ACTION: Recommend the approval of Widmer Roel PC to perform the 2014 annual audit and tax return filing. DISCUSSION AND BACKGROUND: (Briefly explain committee discussion and rationale behind the action item.) Due to RMASFAA s gross income being over $200,000, the IRS requires that we file the long form version of the tax return required for non-profit organizations. Not that the short form was all that easy, but the long form is quite complicated. No one within RMASFAA has come forward to volunteer to complete our annual tax return. In addition, prior conversations that David Martin, Treasurer, has had with Widmer Roel indicates that doing an audit prior to filing the return ensures the overall accuracy of the association s financial records. An audit also increases the confidence our membership, the RMASFAA board and the auditors have in the data used to file the return with the IRS. As a result, it is recommended that Widmer Roel PC perform both an annual audit and file the appropriate tax return for CURRENT RELATED POLICY (if applicable): (List current policies this action may affect.) Bylaws Article IX; Section 3 currently states The financial records of the Association shall be reviewed biennially in a manner approved by the Board of Directors. Policies and Procedures Audits (page 39) currently states As approved by the Board of Directors, an external auditor will perform an annual financial review of the Association s records. In addition, an external audit will be performed for a year in which the Office of Treasurer changes occupants or once every four years, whichever comes first. RELATIONSHIP TO STRATEGIC LONG-RANGE PLAN: (Explain how the proposal is related to the strategic plan.) Finance and Audit Manual 10

SASFAA Guide to Financial Management TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 SASFAA UPDATED 03/16/2016 SASFAA Guide to Financial Management Section 1: Purpose and Scope TABLE OF CONTENTS Section 2: Budget Planning and Preparation 2.1 Budget Preparation 2.2 Initial Operating Budget