Guides for Volunteer Treasurers

Written by people who have done the job. Practical help for PTA, PTO, and booster club treasurers, plus honest comparisons of the tools you might use.

Guides

The Complete PTA Treasurer Handbook

A former PTA treasurer's complete guide to the job: the budget, authorizing and paying expenses, the two-signature rule, deposits, the books, the annual financial review, IRS 990 filing, and the year's rhythm month to month.

The PTA Reimbursement Process, Step by Step (and How to Make It Faster)

A former PTA treasurer's step-by-step guide to the PTA reimbursement process: collecting receipts, checking the budget, the two-signature rule, paying without a chased check, and getting every expense into your books automatically.

Best PTA Treasurer Software (2026): An Honest Guide

A former PTA treasurer's honest guide to the best treasurer software in 2026, with the right pick for each situation: workflow, bookkeeping, all-in-one, and budget options compared.

PTA Expenses on Google Forms and a Spreadsheet: Where the DIY Setup Breaks

How PTAs run expense requests with a Google Form and a spreadsheet, from submission to approval to tracking, and where the stitched-together setup strains: enforcing the budget, capturing approvals, the required Google sign-in, and the annual handoff.

How to File Your PTA's Form 990: The 990-N and 990-EZ, Step by Step

Which IRS Form 990 your PTA files, how to file the free 990-N e-Postcard yourself in minutes, when the 990-EZ applies, the November 15 deadline, and why missing three years in a row revokes your tax-exempt status.

PTO vs PTA Finances: What's Actually Different (and What the Name Tells You)

A former PTA treasurer explains what actually differs between PTA, PTSA, and PTO finances, and the many other names independent parent groups use: where the dues go, who grants your tax-exempt status, who files the 990, and who sets your money rules.

How to Do a PTA Audit: The Year-End Financial Review, Step by Step

A former PTA treasurer walks through the year-end financial review most people call the audit: when it is triggered, who is allowed to do it, the records to hand over, what the reviewers check line by line, and the report the membership adopts.

What to Put on a PTA Reimbursement Form (with a Free Template)

A former PTA treasurer's guide to the PTA reimbursement form: every field it needs and why, the signature block, and a free fillable template you can make your own.

Are PTA Donations Tax Deductible? Tickets, Gifts, and Fair Market Value

When a PTA donation is tax deductible and when it isn't: why event tickets only count above fair market value, what to put on a donor receipt, and why PTA funds can't be used to buy gifts for individuals.

How to Build a PTA Budget (with a Free Template)

A former PTA treasurer's guide to building a PTA budget: who to involve, starting fresh vs. continuing last year's, how detailed to make it, aiming for breakeven, and a free Google Sheets template you can copy.

PTA Insurance Requirements: The Records That Keep Your Coverage Valid

A former PTA treasurer explains what your PTA's insurance actually requires to keep the fidelity bond valid: an annual financial review, a monthly bank statement reviewed and signed by a non-check-signer, and why reconciling inside software alone does not count.

PTA Treasurer Duties: A Year-Round Checklist

A former PTA treasurer's year-round checklist of treasurer duties: the tasks you repeat every month, plus the budget, the IRS 990 filing, the year-end financial review, and the summer handoff, in the order they come up.

How PTA Expense Approvals Work: The Sign-Offs Most PTAs Follow

A former PTA treasurer walks through the expense-approval sign-offs most PTAs follow, from the committee chair and the secretary recording it in the minutes to the president authorizing it and two officers signing the check, plus how to run all of it, or a simpler version, without the paper chase.

How to Document the PTA Treasurer Role

A former PTA treasurer's guide to documenting the treasurer role so the knowledge belongs to the position, not the person: capture the annual calendar of recurring tasks, and use reminders that reach whoever holds the role at the right moment.

How to Hand Off the PTA Treasurer Role

A former PTA treasurer's guide to a clean treasurer transition: close out the year, build the handoff packet, transfer the bank signers and logins, pass on the knowledge that lives in your head, and review the books before you go.

Taking Over as PTA Treasurer: Your First 30 Days

A former PTA treasurer's first-30-days plan for a new treasurer: get the accounts and records transferred, learn the controls your bylaws require, handle the time-sensitive filings, and set up a system you can actually keep up with.

Comparisons

FutureFund BeeKeeper Alternative: Volo Cash for Volunteer Treasurers

An honest, hands-on comparison of FutureFund's BeeKeeper and Volo Cash from a former PTA treasurer. BeeKeeper is general accounting software; Volo Cash is built around the approval, signature, and reconciliation workflow.

myPTEZ Alternative: Volo Cash for Volunteer Treasurers

An honest comparison of myPTEZ and Volo Cash from a former PTA treasurer. myPTEZ is a low-cost legacy PTA tool; Volo Cash is a modern approval-and-signature workflow for volunteer treasurers.

MoneyMinder Alternative: Volo Cash for Volunteer Treasurers

An honest comparison of MoneyMinder and Volo Cash from a former PTA treasurer. MoneyMinder is great bookkeeping; Volo Cash is built around the approval and signature workflow your bylaws require.