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Kantara Initiative - Finance Policy
Version 1.1
1. Definitions.
1.1. Fiscal Year. Kantara Initiative operates on a calendar year basis.
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1.6. Annual Audit. There shall be an annual audit of Kantara Initiative finances conducted by an independent auditor. Results of the audit shall be distributed to the Board of Trustees and to any Member requesting a copy.
2. Approval Authorities.
Any obligation or payment of Kantara Initiative funds must be approved, as defined in this section, prior to execution.
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2.2. Disbursements
2.2.1. The Budget Manager conducts the first-level review and approval for all expenses to be charged to his/her assigned line item(s). Vendors and contractors submit monthly invoices, as appropriate, to the Budget Manager. Invoices for services provided in the previous month must be submitted no later than the 15th of the following month. Upon approval, the Budget Manager electronically sends the invoice to Financial Services for payment specifying which budget line item to charge. Financial Services may not pay any bill without an associated budget line item.
2.2.2. The Executive Director and Treasurer shall be copied on all invoice approvals submitted by the Budget Managers to Financial Services for payment.
2.2.3. Expense items up to $5000 require only the Budget Manager's approval. When the Budget Manager is the Executive Director, this limit is raised to $15,000.
2.2.4. Expenses that exceed the limits established in 2.2.3 must be approved by both the Budget Manager and the Executive Director. When the Executive Director is the Budget Manager, the second level approver is the Treasurer (or the Secretary in the Treasurer's absence).
2.2.5. All expenses in excess of $15,000 must be approved by the Treasurer (or the Secretary in the Treasurer's absence) in addition to all cumulative approvals required by 2.2.4. When the Treasurer is also the Budget Manager, the second level approver is the Executive Director (or the Secretary in the Executive Director's absence).
2.2.6. Invoices submitted by the Executive Director, shall be approved by the President, or in the President's absence, the Vice-President.
2.2.7. Within any given quarter, Budget Managers are not permitted, except with the specific pre-approval of the Treasurer, to expend more than the forecasted amount for the particular line item within that quarter. Funds may not be moved between line items without permission from the Treasurer.
2.2.8. Budget Managers may not authorize payment of any invoices that fall outside of approved budget line items. Any exception to this rule requires the written approval of the Treasurer.
2.2.9. The Treasurer must approve any expenditure which would reduce the checking balance below a Board established minimum reserve amount. Financial Services shall not pay such expenditure without the explicit approval of the Treasurer. The Treasurer is responsible for conveying this limit to Financial Services.
3. Controls and Oversight.
3.1. Finance Committee. The Finance Committee reviews the appropriate budgets, monthly financial statements, quarterly forecasts prior to presentation to the Board, and other needed financial matters. The Finance Committee consists of three (3) Board members (one of whom must be a Leadership Council representative on the Board), plus the Treasurer, and the Executive Director. The Finance Committee is chaired by the Treasurer.
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3.7. Payments in Kind. Absolutely no payments in kind are authorized without specific Board approval.
4. Membership Fee Invoicing
4.1. "Membership Year". A "Membership Year" starts the first day of a particular month. For new Members, if the Membership Agreement is signed after the 15th of the month, the 12-month Membership Year begins on the first day of the following month. If the Membership Agreement is signed on the 15th or earlier, the Membership Year begins on the 1st day of that month. Membership benefits will be provided upon receipt of the executed Membership Agreement.
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4.6. Terminations. If the Member fails to submit payment in a timely fashion following receipt of the "Final Notice", the Board may take action as provided in the Membership Agreement to terminate the Member, or take other remedies available. Upon termination, outstanding invoices are immediately due. Refunds of paid Membership Board Fees are not provided; exceptions require explicit Board approval.
5. Membership Invoicing and Fee Collection
5.1. Membership Invoice Status Tracking Report. A Membership Invoice Status Tracking Report will be maintained by the Membership Manager and updated on a weekly basis. It will include, at a minimum, the following:
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1 day Past Due – Email from the Membership Manager notifying the Member that payment has not been received and is now Past Due.
30 days Past Due - 1st notice from the Treasurer ("your payment is 30 days past due" and "we will be taking action to place you in Not-in-Good-Standing Status").
45 days Past Due - 2nd notice from Treasurer ("Please respond and pay immediately") notifying the Member that the Member has been declared to be "Not In Good Standing" (NIGS) and can no longer realize Member-Only benefits. This notification of being placed in NIGS will also include a FINAL NOTICE ("you have 14 days to pay or your membership will be proposed for termination by an action of the Board of Trustees").
60 days or more Past Due - Treasurer requests the Board vote to terminate Member.
Immediately upon Board vote to terminate, the former Member is notified in writing (email) by the Treasurer that membership in Kantara Initiative has been terminated.
For Terminations, there will be no refund of membership fees.
6. External Funding Process.
One way for Kantara Initiative Work Groups and Discussion Groups (collectively "Groups") to fund an Activity is through contributions to Kantara by external parties.
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There is no requirement for the Kantara Initiative to accept External Funds that are offered.
If the External Funds received exceed the amount paid out for the Activity, the Group Leadership, Kantara Staff, and Board of Trustees Treasurer will work with the External Funder(s) to determine how to manage the excess funds (e.g. return the unused portion or roll it into the Kantara general fund for redistribution).
If a Participant of the Group sponsoring the Activity is interested in receiving some of the External Funds, he/she must recuse him/herself from votes relating to the Activity.
7. Policy Revisions.
- May 29, 2009 - Version 1.0 Policy Approved by Board of Trustees
- July 8, 2010 - Addition of External Funding Policy Approved by Board of Trustees for revision Version 1.1
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