TO: Smaller Evangelical Churches                                                                                   FROM: Jim Bramer, Retired CPA-Auditor 
                                                                                                                                                                                      FILE: 5109-99/chu   

                                  RE:  INTERNET CHURCH  FINANCIAL SERVICES - see below for details           Originated:  December 2002                                            

W H A T  is  "INTERNET CHURCH  FINANCIAL SERVICES" ?

•   First be sure you understand go to   eFinFax   and understand this accounting system unique to Internet Centric users who are usually  Christ-Centered Small Ministries.   It is a straight-forward computerized Church (or Ministries) Fund Accounting and Reporting system.

•   Be sure and digest the content as of May 2009 of this editorial:   http://www.bcidot.org/jrnl/2009/0205-09.html 

•   The key accounting software product is Quickbooks (QB).  Go to www.ebay.com and obtain inexpensive, non used, older versions of QuickBooks Pro ... the Non Profit version is also not needed.

•   As serviced by qualified personnel via the Internet.  Please also go to  0930  for information about a proposed  eExchequer Service  re  Churches who handle $500,000 or so annually.

•   The results include: 1>  Report of who belongs to the money on deposit - 0601 for sample 2>  "Actual to Budget" General Fund expense reporting - see 0691 for a sample,  and 3>  electronically handling clergy payroll.

•   It could include the use of Excel spreadsheet software

•   The service could include some ASSUROR aspects - see 0063 for more info.

•   Please  Click Here and go to a website that provides a resource for Churches that utilize Ministry Finance  Internet Centric  (or Internet Friendly) people.

W H O needs  this  service  ?

•   Smaller Evangelical Churches (or Ministries)
•   Whose staff/volunteers have limited Church Fund Accounting experience and are comfortable using Computers and the Internet
•   The Church has less that $500,000 annual income
•   The Church is located anywhere in the USA or Canada 

H O W  does  it  work ?:

•   A ministry savvy CPA-Auditor provides this via their staff or they retain a HOMER; or a Mom or a Keenager who works via the Internet from their home.  See 0905  for more details.

•   The service would include use of inexpensive older versions of the desktop QB Pro obtained via eBay or other sources. Or the QuickBooks Online Edition (QBOE) explained more in depth when you Click Here

•   The service has a weekly finance emphasis;  Click Here for information about "accrued" or "cash" basis of accounting.

•   Please link to  Internet  Financial Services  below for more specifics

SUPPOSED FACT PATTERN:

Generic interested CHURCH  info:

•   It is located anywhere in the USA or Canada.

•   This particular CHURCH handles no more than $500,000 per annum

•   Weekly emphasis (see 0912 for more info) of transactions having to do with: Income; Plastic; Payroll ; Bank Rec

•   Semi-Weekly Examples are: Payroll ; Missionary payments; Debt Servicing

Paid Staff of CHURCH are:

•   Pastors - one full time and one part time.

•   CLARE ---- the Administrative Assistance whose Office responsibilities Includes mgt of "Church Management Software - CMS" system and weekly DonaMail processing.  In some cases CLARE also covers FRAN's responsibilities below.

Volunteers of CHURCH include:

•   FRAN --- Local member who is Volunteer Finance Administrator as FRAN works from their Computer system at Home.

•   LEE --- Volunteer Board Treasurer/Chief Financial officer - Internal Auditor- see  0038   for more info.

Potential financial people retained by CHURCH:

•   A Ministry Savvy CPA-Auditor who serves almost exclusively via the Internet

•   A HOMER (see 0905 for details) who works directly for the Church (or sometimes for the above CPA)  via the Internet.  This is either a paid MOM at home or a volunteer retired Keenager; living virtually anywhere in the USA or Canada as usually trained via the Internet by the CPA..

Financial Institutions:

•   INTERNET: ECCU   (Evangelical Christian Credit Union) located in SouCalif via CHURCH's  local Bank --  like Bank of America.  Please discuss with us the prospect of other Banks providing Online Banking services like ECCU.

CPA provides INTERNET  "Fiscal Exam" Services whereby a remote evaluation is made of CHURCH's business management functions. See  0129  for more info.

•   This results in a Grade report --  see sample at  5128

•   Makes maximum use of Internet conferences etc.  See more info at  0130.

•   The intent is for CHURCH to remedy agreed poor grades

•   We are supposing that the Accounting system does not get a good grade, so a corrective option is to retain CPA to provide the following:

 INTERNET  FINANCIAL SERVICE

 This service consists of at least the following:

•   CHURCH has inexpensive DonaMail software so that weekly deposit designation (by total; not by each donor) info will be available to FRAN.  Ask us about remote DonaMail systems out there.

•   CHURCH, FRAN, CPA and HOMER have Email -- preferably via Microsoft Outlook;

•   CHURCH has QBPro2001 software -- this older edition is obtained via  eBay  and is more than OK. 

•   CHURCH uses ECCU's Web services (Online Banking) that provides weekly access to the equivalent of the CHURCH's  ECCU Bank Statement.

•   Learn more about the No-Brec System  whereby HOMER uses  GoToMyPC  software to both transfer files and to view the QBooks file contents on the HOMER's desktop for transaction clarification, etc.

•   CPA and HOMER structure the Church's books to parallel that found in :

•         0601  Method One

•         0603  Method Three

•         QuickBooks Online Edition 0801.

Implementation steps would probably include at least the following:

•   CPA provides CHURCH with the Internet "Fiscal Exam" Services and resultant grades

•   As part of correcting poor grades from above, CHURCH retains  CPA to provide INTERNET  FINANCIAL SERVICES

• CHURCH Counters see that the weekly deposit gets to local Bank of America where it is credited to CHURCH's  Bank Account at   ECCU

•   CLARE posts weekly receipts and balances to the DonaMail system and provides FRAN with needed deposit detail.

•   CPA either works from their office or retains HOMER to provide said services and structures the QB Accounting system accordingly

•   FRAN is trained via something like  0079  to do at least the following with the QB Software system:
  
  -- Understand and utilize the QB Fund Accounting features; GPFund and SPFunds.
  -- Establish the Chart of Accounts and inputs the annual GPFund budget
  -- Post the beginning of the year balances, or repost tranx since the first of CHURCH's fiscal year etc.
  -- Establish and utilize the Plastic Buying Process - which includes writing a weekly check for such purchases.  See 0114  for more info
  -- Structure and process the weekly payroll checks via Intuit so that the Staffer's Net Pay is automatically posted to their personal bank account.  Intuit handles all payroll tax return filings. May have to begin anew for the calendar year.
  -- Use the appropriate Chart of Accts codes when posting deposits, paying bills and doing the weekly payroll.
   

•   FRAN attaches the current QB Company file to Email and sends to CPA or HOMER on agreed week day - Tuesday through Thursday.
  
  -- No entries are permitted to the inactive QB file by FRAN until CPA or HOMER finishes her work - see below - and has updated the one active QB Company file etc.
  -- If an emergency check is needed, then hand write (or type) and later manually post to active updated system
   

• HOMER receives the active QB Company file that day; she is responsible for at least the following:
  
  -- Does the agreed  veracity proofs to show that the posted tranx by FRAN within QB make sense and and the Chart of Acct/QB Class coding is complete
  -- Has needed clarification Interaction by Email with FRAN -- no phone calls. Might include CPA or HOMER inviting FRAN to Internet CHAT and look at her desktop which contains this active  QB file info, etc. See  0130  detail.
  -- Electronically goes to ECCU and gets the weekly Bank Statement and do the weekly Bank Reconciliation. 
  -- Does the applicable QB financial weekly reports that might include conversion of QB reports to Excel for agreed personalization
   

• A report showing "Who belongs to the money on deposit" -- See Sample within  0601
   

• A report of "Year to date operating expenses in relationship to authorized annual budget" - See Sample within  0691
  -- Does the applicable non-QB periodic reports that might include A Big Pix Report -- see sample

• Closes the books (so that FRAN can not go back and make unauthorized changes) through the agreed period of time ..... usually after three/four weeks, etc.
   

•   CPA or HOMER's goal is to return the updated active QB file to FRAN the same day received so FRAN can process transactions ASAP.
   

•   LEE gets training from CPA and does some periodic agreed methods, procedures and some documentation "Internal Auditing."
   

•   LEE as Internal Auditor receives the detailed QB G-Ledger at least quarterly. This can be received Via printout hard copy or via Excel doc. LEE then is able to review all of CHURCH's recorded financial tranx.
   

•   Every few months a copy of QB file goes to the Ministry Savvy CPA for over-viewing etc
   

•   CPA provides agreed year end "Attest" services. Please go to the Church FYE effort displayed within   5432. CPA makes maximum use of this Internet effort as might be professionally appropriate.
   

•   Ideas;  1>  From returned active copy, FRAN provides additional financial reports etc -  see Samples 2>  Have a tie in with some People (DonaMail) CMS outfit geared to this smaller market-target. 3>  Periodically have some "In Person" time - especially re Fiscal Exam and Grade reporting etc etc  4>  Make known via Church Assns or like groups  5>  Have periodic training or Seminars in various locations at the Church Assn Offices etc  6>  Local HOMERs do CPA's needed attest audit field work.

" FREQUENTLY USED NAMES/TERMS"   HEREIN  INCLUDE:

    ASSUROR = Person providing some Assurance Services -- see  0063
    Attest = Year End Audit-Review CPA-Auditor Services  - see  0003
    CHURCH = Small Evangelical Church being serviced
    CLARE = Church Paid Administrative Assistant 
    CPA = Certified Public Accountant-Audit firm that is Ministry/Church Savvy
    DonaMail = See 0021 for details about a Donation and People database system.
    ECCU =   Financial Institution called Evangelical Christian Credit Union
    ECFA =    Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability
    FINFAX =  Click Here  for more information about this "financial facts" accounting system
    Fiscal Exam Services = Non Attest CPA Church finance system evaluation effort
    FRAN = Church Volunteer Bookkeeper
    General Purpose Fund; GPFund; GPF = see  0042  for specifics
    HOMERs = Remote service providers as defined in  0905
    INTERNET = Use of the Internet and works from anywhere in the USA or Canada
    LEE = Volunteer Board Treasurer and Internal Auditor
    QB = QuickBooks Fund Accounting system - see 0601
    QBOE = QuickBooks Online Edition
    Special Purpose Funds; SPFunds; SPFs = see  0041  for specifics