Monitoring acceptable use of F.O. expenses at the Stake level using CFS
Posted: Wed Sep 07, 2011 12:24 pm
Looking for tips on monitoring F.O. disbursements
using the Consolidated Financial Summary, and
what is or is not acceptable.
Here are the current errors/flags I look for:
Is the payee and the recipient the same name ?
Is the payee a relative ?
Is the payee a ward leader seeking reimbursement instead a check to the vendor ?
Does the purpose provide details of the expense ? ("F/O assistance" is poor documentation) ?
Does the amount look reasonable ? (a water bill over $500 better be in the desert)
Questions I had:
1) What the guidelines for assigning to Recipients ? Specifically, I often see a Water
Bill that is paid for on behalf of the husband one month, and the wife the next
month. Is there currently a guideline that the Recipient should be the Head of
Household for example (or at least for the household expenses) ?
2) What is not allowed by policy ? I remember reading once that the payment of
consumer credit card debt was forbidden, but don't remember what else is.
Some, I'd be interested in knowing for sure include:
a) Bail / Traffic tickets / legal fees (basically costs for the commission of a crime)
b) Impound Fees
c) Costs to reclaim property - Payments to self-storage, pawn shops, etc.
d) Insurance. Is it different if it is state-mandated minimum coverage ?
e) Gasoline/Car repair/vehicle inspection/registration.
3) What are the maximums without First Presidency approval ? Is it one time,
or accumulated ? For example, I remember hearing a while back that there
was a $5,000 max/yr for medical expenses. Does this mean no single expense
can exceed $5,000, or that the total of medical expenses for the year cannot
exceed $5,000 ? Does it reset at year-end, or is it the "rolling" year (i.e. can't
exceed $5,000 over any 12-month period ?). How about "Housing" or "Other" ?
4) Is anyone at CHQ looking at the data ? For example, if I see that a clerk has
classified an Electric Bill as "Other", do I need to tell him to adjust it so it is
"Utilities" ? Or are these classifications solely for local reporting ? Continuing
with the classification question, how do you classify repairs ? If the Air
Conditioner is repaired, do you call it "Other" or an "Utility" expense or do you
consider it repairing a part of the house and call it a "Housing" expense ? Do you
count counseling visits to LDS Family services as "Medical" expenses, and if
so, do they accumulate against a maximum medical disbursement limit ?
Thanks
- Atticus
using the Consolidated Financial Summary, and
what is or is not acceptable.
Here are the current errors/flags I look for:
Is the payee and the recipient the same name ?
Is the payee a relative ?
Is the payee a ward leader seeking reimbursement instead a check to the vendor ?
Does the purpose provide details of the expense ? ("F/O assistance" is poor documentation) ?
Does the amount look reasonable ? (a water bill over $500 better be in the desert)
Questions I had:
1) What the guidelines for assigning to Recipients ? Specifically, I often see a Water
Bill that is paid for on behalf of the husband one month, and the wife the next
month. Is there currently a guideline that the Recipient should be the Head of
Household for example (or at least for the household expenses) ?
2) What is not allowed by policy ? I remember reading once that the payment of
consumer credit card debt was forbidden, but don't remember what else is.
Some, I'd be interested in knowing for sure include:
a) Bail / Traffic tickets / legal fees (basically costs for the commission of a crime)
b) Impound Fees
c) Costs to reclaim property - Payments to self-storage, pawn shops, etc.
d) Insurance. Is it different if it is state-mandated minimum coverage ?
e) Gasoline/Car repair/vehicle inspection/registration.
3) What are the maximums without First Presidency approval ? Is it one time,
or accumulated ? For example, I remember hearing a while back that there
was a $5,000 max/yr for medical expenses. Does this mean no single expense
can exceed $5,000, or that the total of medical expenses for the year cannot
exceed $5,000 ? Does it reset at year-end, or is it the "rolling" year (i.e. can't
exceed $5,000 over any 12-month period ?). How about "Housing" or "Other" ?
4) Is anyone at CHQ looking at the data ? For example, if I see that a clerk has
classified an Electric Bill as "Other", do I need to tell him to adjust it so it is
"Utilities" ? Or are these classifications solely for local reporting ? Continuing
with the classification question, how do you classify repairs ? If the Air
Conditioner is repaired, do you call it "Other" or an "Utility" expense or do you
consider it repairing a part of the house and call it a "Housing" expense ? Do you
count counseling visits to LDS Family services as "Medical" expenses, and if
so, do they accumulate against a maximum medical disbursement limit ?
Thanks
- Atticus