As the Troop Treasurer, you're taking the financial tracking off the troop leader's plate. Here's what that looks like in practice:
Track troop dues. Keep a record of who's paid their troop dues and follow up with families who haven't. This is usually a simple spreadsheet.
Manage reimbursements. When parents buy supplies for the troop, they submit receipts to you. You reimburse them from the troop account -- but not for sales tax (Girl Scouts is tax-exempt, so a Tax Exempt Form should be used at the register).
Open and manage the troop bank account. Once troop funds reach a certain amount, council policy requires a dedicated bank account. Some councils have already picked a banking institution, others let you choose. Either way, you'll need to coordinate with the troop leader, cookie manager, and your Service Unit Treasurer on account signers when setting up the account.
File the year-end financial report. At the end of the troop year, you'll submit a financial report to Council. Your troop leader should have a tracking spreadsheet that makes this easier -- ask for it early in the year.
Keep all receipts and deposit slips. You'll need these for the year-end report. A simple envelope or folder works fine.
After completing your background check, login to MyGS, nagivate to gsLearn (on the left side panel), and look for the following courses. Course names and numbers vary by Council.
Money Manager - Covers the do's and don'ts of troop bank account setup, troop finances, allowed money-earning activities, and the required year-end financial reports.
Service Unit Treasurer Training (optional by highly recommended) - This is technically a Service Unit-level course, not a troop-level course, but the information is incredibly helpful. It covers everything you'll ever need to know about how Girl Scouts manage their money. This course is usually also offered in-person between April and August.
Troop money is community money. Once dues or cookie profits are deposited into the troop account, they belong to the whole troop -- not to individual girls. This is a Girl Scouts policy and it applies even when some girls sell more cookies than others. Don't keep records of how much each girl earned. DO keep records of who's paid troop dues.
The Tax Exempt Form is your friend. Girl Scouts is a nonprofit, so the troop doesn't pay sales tax on supplies. Keep copies of the form handy and remind parents to use it when shopping for the troop. If a parent forgets the form, you can reimburse the supplies but not the tax.
Cookie season gets busy. Make sure the troop bank account is open and running before cookie season starts in January. You'll be glad you didn't wait.
Find your Service Unit Treasurer. This person is your lifeline. They've done this before and can answer questions your troop leader might not know. Ask your troop leader to connect you.
Download the Treasurer role sample letter.
This is a customizable Word document that your troop leader can fill in with your Council's specific training links and hand to you.