I. INTRODUCTION:
The Troop 111 accounting policies are established by the Troop Executive Committee and the Parents’ Committee. It should be understood that Troop 111 only rarely receives any external financing, with the exception of St. Agnes Church’s considerable contribution of physical plant for many activities and the many contributions from the non-family volunteer Scouters (e.g. Scoutmaster and Assistant Scoutmasters). Thus, almost all costs are borne by the Scouts and their families. Costs include equipment such as tents, tarps, lanterns, and troop vans, as well as registration fees, merit badges, gas, food, admission/housing costs, etc. To meet the costs of the troop, there are three sources of income: fundraising events, troop registration fees, and charges for outings (hikes, trips, campouts) and summer camps.
II. PHILOSOPHY:
The troop is a volunteer organization, dependent on large contributions of adult time and energy. We should husband our adult resources wisely, spending most of our energy on working with the boys, particularly since the troop has grown so large. Therefore, our accounting policies should be:
Honest/accurate to protect the troop’s and its members’ financial resourcesEquitable to promote troop loyalty/togetherness and avoid grousing
Simple to use adult time/energy in the best possible way
III. FUNDRAISING:
Each year the troop sponsors a Poinsettia Sale in early December. The proceeds are used to buy troop equipment. At least every other year, the troop runs a Garage Sale in June. The proceeds are split between the troop and the family who donated the sale items. Any unsold items are donated to charity, if possible. From time to time there are other special fundraising activities, such as the recent solicitation of funds to obtain a replacement van for the troop.
IV. REGISTRATION:
Once a year, in February, each Scout must be re-registered with the National Capital Area Council of Boy Scouts of America. At that time a registration fee is collected per Scout. This fee is set to cover the national/local BSA registration fee and insurance and the cost of a subscription to an appropriate magazine (Boys’ Life for the younger Scouts, Outside for the senior Scouts), as well as to provide the troop with the additional funds needed to purchase some equipment and badges/awards. No part of this registration fee is used for weekend outings or summer camp registration fees/expenses.
V. TRANSPORTATION--VAN FEE:
Troop 111 is fortunate to have the use of two vans for transport of Scouts and gear. In order to provide funding for purchase, maintenance, licensing, etc., of these vans, the troop assesses each participant in any event for which the troop uses the vans a "van fee" of $5 for trips less than 100 miles total, $10 for trips over 100 miles total, and up to $25 for more lengthy High Adventure trips such as Canada or Killington, etc. This means that even those adults who drive their own vehicles, carrying Scouts, gear, other adults, or themselves, will be charged the van fee. This is in keeping with the troop philosophy that all cost elements of an event must be accounted for to keep accurate records and allocate costs equitably. Of course, adults driving their own vehicles will still have the option to submit receipts for their gas expenses. (Also see Section VI.B. Van/Gas Expenses.)
VI. OUTINGS AND SUMMER CAMP/HIGH ADVENTURE TRIPS:
Throughout the year, the troop goes on a number of outings, usually about one per month. Attendance is variable, and obviously costs are variable depending on the trip length, destination, and activities (high cost example: skiing, low cost example: hiking/camping). The following explains troop accounting policies for outings/trips:
A. General Information about Trip Expenses
When a Scout attends a trooop event such as a campout or ski trip, there is a cost for food, shelter, and other expenses. Accordingly, the troop permission slip (filled out by a parent to register a Scout for any activity other than meetings at St. Agnes) includes an estimate of the cost of the upcoming event. Parents are asked to pay that amount when the permission slip is turned in. After the trip, expenses are tallied and allocated to the Scouts and adults who attended.
A summary sheet is then prepared that shows both the payments from the individual attendees and the actual expenses allocated to each for that trip (debits). These summary sheets are available for review at the Parents’ Committee meetings or at other times as arranged with the Troop Accountant or Troop Treasurer. All reported purchases made for the troop (groceries, for example) are treated as payments by that individual (credits), and these expenses are included in the total trip costs and are allocated to all who went on the trip. A positive number means that the total amount paid by the family toward this trip exceeds the cost allocated, and a negative amount means that the cost exceeds the amount paid in. The net amount is then subtracted from or added to the running total balance in the family account.
All Scout families should note that receipts for expenses incurred for any troop activity must be submitted to the troop within two weeks after the event. Generally, such receipts should be given to the Trip Accountant (explained below) during or soon after an event. Receipts for troop activities not connected with a trip should be submitted to the Troop Accountant.
Where “troop credit” is checked on the permission slip as the method of payment, the summary sheet will show no payment from the family (unless there are other payments for food, gas, etc.); but it will show the expense allocated for the trip. Thus, the result will be a charge (debit) against the family account for the trip. Families should be careful not to check the “troop credit” box on permission slips unless they know they have a credit balance overall with the troop.
B. Expense Allocation Policy
In general, the charges for a trip are allocated on a per capita basis to all of the Scouts and adults who go on a trip (and in some cases, also to Scouts/adults who signed up but failed to attend--please see below under “No Shows”). Note that the troop does not subsidize adults, even the Scoutmasters; all participants share equally in the costs of each event. However, there are some events where expense allocation is based on how and when participants actually participated in an event. Please see below for further information:
All trip costs are averaged across all participants for day and weekend activities with estimated costs below $75 per person. This includes planning costs (telephone/mail), van fees, gas and related car expenses, food, admissions, housing, photos, supplies (bait, ice, ammunition and targets, batteries for cave helmets, etc.), and any other costs specific to the event. Please note: for these activities there will be no credits/refunds or separate cost allocations for late arrivals, early departures, missed meals, etc.
In order to avoid complicated allocations of van/gas expenses based on who drove/rode on particular trips, the troop reimburses families driving their own vehicles for the benefit of troop events for their expenses. This will allow common averaging of the van fee across all participants, which is appropriate since all benefit from the troop vans, without penalizing drivers. (Please note under General Information above that all gas/trip receipts must be submitted within two weeks after an event.)
Longer trips and more expensive trips, such as summer camp or ski trips, require some adjustments in the standard accounting policy outlined above. On ski trips and some other events, there may be significant differences in the prices of ancillary expenses (skiing/not skiing, own skis/rent skis, spend 1/2 week at summer camp instead of the whole week, for example). The troop defines “significant difference” as more than an estimated 25% difference from the highest price to the lowest price as determined by the trip planner/accountant. In these cases, the following approach is used: All common costs will be averaged on a per person basis as explained above, but significant disparate costs will be allocated to individuals as appropriate. This will allow adults to support the troop by attending part of a long trip, for example, without being penalized financially. It will also allow adults to drive or supervise ski trips for the troop (by serving as the designated first aider or lodge chaperone) even if they do not ski, without being penalized.
Occasionally a Scout will sign up for an event but cancel (or simply not appear) at the last minute. In some cases, this can deprive another Scout of the opportunity to go on a trip. Also in some cases, the troop has already incurred expenses on behalf of this Scout (or will incur higher expenses by his absence--for example, losing group rates for an event). When this occurs, the Scout will be charged for at least part of the event, even though he did not actually attend. Of course, every effort will be made to refund as much of the fee as possible, provided the Scout has a valid excuse (illness, family emergency, etc.) rather than a simple failure to honor a commitment. All Scouts are encouraged to attend events frequently but also to make sure of their plans before signing up.
After the troop calendar is set each year with Scout and adult input, trips are generally planned by the Camping/Trip Chairmen with the help of Scouts working toward Life Practical skills. On each trip, however, an adult participant takes charge of collecting receipts for expenses incurred, recording the payments made during the trip, and noting who attended/drove/etc. These records are returned to the Camping Chairmen at the end of the trip so that final accounting and recordkeeping may be done with the help of the senior Scouts doing their Life Practical exams, Troop Accountant, and Troop Treasurer. Parents are asked to serve as trip accountants regularly.
As noted in Section II. Philosophy above, trip accounting should be completely accurate, and cost allocation should always seek to balance equity and simplicity so that it is manageable in a troop this size. Basic equity of opportunity exists within the troop, and while boys/families may choose from a variety of activities throughout each year, many troop expenditures are made which simply benefit the whole group by allowing for such an abundance of opportunity. In this sense, Scouting is a bargain for all of us. And we are all in this together, so Scouts and parents are cautioned against "hair-splitting" on expenses. If one meal or night's lodging is missed by one Scout on one trip, we should recognize that this will probably happen to all of us at one event or another, sooner or later. Therefore, the troop encourages everyone to accept that small disparities in cost allocations on individual events will even out over a Scout's/family's career in Troop 111.
2006 Edition