The "Top Q and A" newsletter I sent out a couple of months ago received quite a bit of positive feedback, so I'm going to continue on with more "top" questions and answers in this newsletter and in the months to come.
What reports should I create each month?
That depends on your audience =)
If you are presenting reports to the governing body AND have a budget, a "BTA" (Budget to Actual) report is number one my list! If you don't have a budget, a "Statement of Activity" (Income Statement) is good to create and put in your report package.
Another important report to add to your report
package is a "Statement of Financial Position (Balance Sheet) as it provides a quick "snapshot" of your bank and credit card balances, loan balances, and restricted and unrestricted fund balances.
If you paid on liabilities or purchased assets during the report period, the activity will not show on the
SOA (Statement of Activity), so you will want to create a Statement of Cash Flows. That financial statement take the SOA and adds or subtracts "cash" items like I mentioned above.
Another report I like to create and at least bring to the board meeting is a "transaction detail by account" report. That way if
the governing body wants to know why a particular category is higher or lower than usual...you will have a report that will outline all of the transactions in a particular line item in the SOA.
Read more on these financial statements and what order you should present them in...
2) Can we a pay a housing allowance and withhold and match FICA?
I have mention this before, but it is a question that I am asked quite often and it can cause BIG headaches for churches and their ministers when it is handled incorrectly.
You CANNOT set up and pay a minister a housing allowance and then treat them like a non-minister employee and withhold and pay FICA (Social Security and Medicare taxes).
Only eligible ministers qualify for a "Housing Allowance" and must be set up as ministers in regards to their payroll.... which means you have to pay them through the SECA system. It is not a choice!
See more on how to set up and pay a minister through the SECA system ...
Save 10% on the resource book: QuickBooks Online: Step by Step Guide by using the discount code: FCA
You can also bundle the QBO book with our "How To book" for even more details on handling contributions, minister compensation, etc. See the "Money Saving Bundles for Churches" on the Accountant Beside You site:
