Troop Finance-Best Practices
Winter 2013
Who can be on a Girl Scout
Bank Account?
To be on a Girl Scout Bank Account you must:
• Be a registered Girl Scout Member
• Apply to be ─ at minimum ─ a Troop Parent Helper
• Pass a criminal background check
• Sign a Volunteer Financial Agreement
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What are the signers
Responsible for?
All Signers are Responsible for:
• Completing AND Turning in the Annual Troop Finance
Report
• Making sound financial decisions
• Insuring troop funds are used by the troop
• Adults are to guide the girls and coach them on how to
spend their earnings in responsible ways to support
their Girl Scout Program.
ALL bank account signers are held accountable for
ALL FINANCIAL ACTIVITY on accounts they sign for.
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How we use the Annual
Troop Finance Report
The Annual Troop Finance Report is used:
• To help girls and parents understand how the troop funds
have been used.
• To hold troops accountable for clean financial reporting.
Girl Scouts of Western Washington holds all bank account
signers responsible for maintaining clear accounting
standards and practices.
• To confirm bank account responsibility and to itemize the
account.
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The Annual Troop Finance
Report Includes:
• A detailed account summary (a spread sheet of all the
income and expenses throughout the Girl Scout year
for the troop and bank account). GSWW provides an
easy to use editable template.
• The most current bank statement
• A completed Annual Troop Finance Report
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Why is the Annual Troop
Finance Report Important?
The report models transparency, integrity, and financial
literacy for the girls. It’s also a safeguard in the event a
parent or leader questions management of troop funds. A
detailed explanation is available on our website.
A Troop Finance Report also:
• Gives leaders, parents, and girls an opportunity to review
the year’s finances
• Gives girls the opportunity to set financial goals and learn
money management, a key part of the Girl Scout
Leadership Experience
• Provides clarity on the ins and outs of troop finances and
participate in troop financial planning
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How to do the Annual Troop
Finance Report
Financial Reports are due for review to Service Unit
Manager by June 18th each year.
Start right when you start meeting for the year:
• Keep all receipts from all Girl Scout transactions
• Balance your checkbook each month by comparing
receipts with the bank statement
• Use your Girl Scout Bank Card or checks for all Troop
purposes. Do not pay in cash.
• Be sure all troop money goes through the Girl Scout
Bank Account
• Deposit all money, do not keep cash on hand, do not
hold on to checks or other forms of payment for more
than a week before depositing them.
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GSWW Detailed Cash Record
and Account Summary
• Either create your own or use our Excel version
• This form separates income and expenses into
correct categories, which are then used for the
Annual Troop Finance Report
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Troop Financial Form
• The categories
from Detailed
Cash Record will
help you
complete the
Annual Troop
Finance Report
• It’s important to
be as detailed as
possible
throughout the
year so it’s
easier to fill out
this form at the
end of year
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Banking Best Practices
• Keep a file of all receipts and each year’s annual
reports.
• Share and review your detailed account summary with the
troop parents on a regular basis (monthly, bi-monthly, or
quarterly). Some troop treasurers improve transparency by
keeping it as a Google doc so parents can access it at
anytime.
• Include girls on all financial decisions – It’s part of the
GSLE!
• Even Daisies can help make decisions about what they
want to do with the money they earn.
• As girls get older, they can help balance the bank
account under adult supervision and take a more active
roll in financial planning.
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Resources
Volunteer Essentials:
• Chapter 5, “About Finances”
• Page 32, “What a Girl Can Do”
Banking and Finance section of the Girl Scouts of Western Washington
website:
• Volunteer Financial Agreement
• Bank Account guidelines (new accounts, change of signers)
• Financial Report Tools for Troops and Service Units
“What a Girl Can Do” – GSUSA and GSLE Info:
• Transforming Leadership – Leadership Outcomes
• Exploring Girl Leadership – A Girl Scout Research Institute Study
• Financial Literacy
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Thank You Girl Scout
Volunteers!
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