Last updated 2026-07-24
TL;DR
A treasurer tracks every dollar in and out, keeps bank and cash records straight, reports finances to the board, and files the group's annual IRS return (Form 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990). Small nonprofits with under $50,000 in gross receipts usually file the 990-N e-Postcard [1]. It's a stewardship job, not an accounting degree job, but it demands consistency.
What does a treasurer do?
A treasurer is the person who keeps a nonprofit, club, or booster group's money organized and accountable to everyone else. That means tracking deposits and expenses, reconciling the bank account, building a budget, reporting numbers at meetings, and making sure the group files whatever the IRS and the state require each year. It's not a bookkeeping job in the strict sense, though bookkeeping is most of the daily work. A treasurer also acts as an internal check: two signatures on big checks, a second set of eyes on cash counts, a paper trail anyone could follow later. If you've ever taken over a booster club's books mid-year and found a shoebox of receipts and a bank statement nobody reconciled since spring, you already know why that check matters. Most booster clubs, PTOs, and youth sports leagues are run entirely by volunteers who rotate every year or two. The treasurer role is often the one job nobody wants and everybody depends on. Get it wrong and the group can lose its tax-exempt status without anyone noticing until a bank freezes an account or a grant application gets rejected.
What is a treasurer, exactly?
A treasurer is an elected or appointed officer responsible for an organization's money: cash, bank accounts, budgets, financial records, and required filings. In a small nonprofit, the treasurer is usually a volunteer parent, coach, or community member, not a paid professional. The title carries legal weight even in a volunteer group. Many state nonprofit corporation statutes require a designated financial officer, and IRS Form 990 asks whether the organization has written policies for financial oversight, conflicts of interest, and document retention [1]. Bylaws typically spell out what the treasurer must do: maintain records, report at meetings, prepare a budget, and hand off complete books to a successor. A treasurer is not the group's accountant unless they happen to also be a CPA. Most booster and PTO treasurers have no accounting background at all. That's fine. The job is procedural, not technical: follow a routine, keep receipts, reconcile monthly, don't let one person control both the checkbook and the count of cash from a concession stand.
What do treasurers do day to day?
Day to day, a treasurer records transactions as they happen instead of trying to reconstruct them later. That's the single biggest difference between a smooth year and a nightmare handoff. A realistic weekly or monthly rhythm looks like this: - Deposit checks and cash promptly, ideally within a few business days, with a second person confirming the count.
- Log every transaction in a simple ledger or spreadsheet, categorized by fund or program (uniforms, concessions, travel, etc.).
- Reconcile the bank statement against the ledger every month, more than at year end.
- Pay approved bills and reimburse volunteers, with receipts attached to every payment.
- Report a current balance and recent activity at every board or general meeting.
- Track restricted funds separately if donors gave money for a specific purpose, like a scoreboard or a specific team's travel costs. None of this requires expensive software. A lot of small booster clubs run fine on a shared spreadsheet and a dedicated bank account, as long as someone updates it consistently and the board actually reviews it.
What does a treasurer do in a club or booster organization specifically?
In a club, the treasurer usually handles four things: the bank account, the budget, fundraising money, and reporting to the board. Booster clubs add a fifth: compliance, because most are set up as tax-exempt nonprofits under IRC Section 501(c)(3) or sometimes 501(c)(4), which brings annual filing obligations. Concretely, a booster club treasurer typically: - Opens and controls the bank account (never a personal account mixed with club funds).
- Builds a season budget with the board, comparing actual spending to plan.
- Counts and deposits cash from concessions, gate admissions, and fundraisers, with a second counter present.
- Tracks raffle or fundraiser proceeds separately if the state requires it for licensing or reporting.
- Prepares or coordinates the annual IRS filing (990-N, 990-EZ, or full 990 depending on gross receipts).
- Keeps records for at least the current year plus several prior years for handoff and any audit. A club treasurer who skips the annual IRS filing for three years running risks the organization's exempt status being automatically revoked. That's not a hypothetical: the IRS has revoked exempt status from hundreds of thousands of small nonprofits exactly this way since the requirement started in 2011 [2].
What is Form 990?
| Form 990-N (e-Postcard) | Smallest orgs | Normally $50,000 or less [4] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form 990-EZ | Mid-size orgs | Gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000 [5] | |
| Form 990 (full) | Larger orgs | Gross receipts $200,000 or more, or total assets $500,000 or more [5] | Filing the correct version, on time, is squarely the treasurer's job in most small groups. See our 990 tax form guide for a line-by-line walkthrough. |
Form 990 is the annual information return that most tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS to report income, expenses, and activities. It's not an income tax return in the traditional sense (exempt organizations generally don't owe income tax on mission-related revenue), but it's the IRS's main tool for checking that an organization still qualifies for exemption. The IRS describes it plainly: "Form 990 is used by tax-exempt organizations, nonexempt charitable trusts, and section 527 political organizations to provide the IRS with the information required by section 6033" [3]. Which version a group files depends on gross receipts and total assets, and the thresholds matter a lot for small booster clubs. | Filing | Who files it | Gross receipts threshold |
What is a 990 tax form used for, in plain terms?
In plain terms, the 990 tax form tells the IRS (and the public) how much money came in, how it was spent, who runs the organization, and whether there's any red flag like excessive compensation or conflicts of interest. It keeps the exemption honest. Donors, grantmakers, and state charity regulators can pull a group's 990 through free databases like the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search [6] or GuideStar/Candid. A booster club applying for a local grant will sometimes get asked directly for its most recent 990. If the group hasn't filed in years, that conversation gets awkward fast. The 990 also has a public disclosure requirement: exempt organizations generally must make their three most recent 990s available to anyone who asks, under Section 6104(d) [7]. A treasurer who keeps clean digital copies saves a scramble later.
What is the 990 e-Postcard (990-N), specifically?
The 990-N, nicknamed the e-Postcard, is the short annual filing for the smallest exempt organizations, those with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less [4]. It's filed entirely online through the IRS's Tax Exempt Organization portal and takes most treasurers under fifteen minutes once they have the EIN, tax year, and a few basic answers ready. The IRS states the 990-N "is due every year by the 15th day of the 5th month after the close of your tax year" [4]. For a group on a calendar tax year (ending December 31), that's May 15. Miss it once, nothing happens immediately. Miss it three years running and the exemption is automatically revoked by law, no warning letter required, under Section 6033(j) [2]. There's no dollar penalty for a late 990-N itself, which surprises people. The real cost is the automatic revocation after three consecutive missed years, and the mess of applying for reinstatement afterward. See form 990-n for the exact filing steps and what to do if a group already lost its status.
What does a club treasurer do differently from a nonprofit accountant?
A club treasurer runs the daily and monthly financial routine; a nonprofit accountant (if the group hires one) usually handles the technical stuff, like preparing complex 990s, doing an independent audit, or advising on unrelated business income tax. Most small booster clubs and PTOs never hire an accountant at all, and don't need one for a 990-N or even most 990-EZ filings. Where an accountant earns their fee is complexity: gambling or raffle income triggering unrelated business income tax, a group crossing the $200,000 gross receipts line into full Form 990 territory with its extra schedules, or a state audit requirement kicking in above a certain revenue threshold (thresholds vary by state; confirm with your state charity office). Below that, a diligent volunteer treasurer following a consistent monthly process handles it fine. The honest advice: don't pay for an accountant you don't need, but don't be too proud to hire one for an hour of consultation the first year a group crosses a new threshold. A single consultation is cheap insurance against filing the wrong form.
What other duties does a treasurer have besides filing taxes?
Filing the annual return is one item on a longer list. A treasurer's full job usually includes: - Maintaining the chart of accounts and a clean ledger, whether that's QuickBooks, Wave, or a spreadsheet.
- Managing internal controls: two signers on the bank account, dual counts on cash, a reimbursement policy that requires receipts.
- Preparing a written budget each year and tracking actual-versus-budget at every meeting.
- Handling state-level obligations, including charitable solicitation registration in many states and a raffle or gaming license if the group runs a raffle (confirm current rules with your state charity office or attorney general).
- Keeping insurance and bonding information current, since some groups bond their treasurer against theft or error.
- Preparing a clean handoff packet for the next treasurer: bank statements, the ledger, tax filings, board minutes referencing budget approvals, and passwords for any online accounts. A State-Personalized Treasurer Kit ($99 one-time) is built exactly for this list: a state-specific packet covering the recurring filings, a raffle license checklist if relevant, and a handoff template, so a new volunteer isn't rebuilding the whole system from scratch every year.
What happens if a treasurer doesn't file the 990 or 990-N?
If an organization fails to file its required 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N for three consecutive years, the IRS automatically revokes its tax-exempt status by operation of law, no notice or appeal required, under Internal Revenue Code Section 6033(j) [2]. The IRS publishes an Auto-Revocation List showing every organization this happened to [8]. Once revoked, the organization is treated as a taxable entity going forward and generally can't offer donors a tax deduction until it's reinstated. Reinstatement means filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ again (yes, re-applying for exemption) along with the delinquent returns, sometimes with retroactive reinstatement available under Revenue Procedure 2014-11 if applied for within 15 months of revocation [9]. For a booster club, the practical fallout usually shows up first as a bank freezing the account, a school district asking for proof of exempt status before letting the group fundraise on campus, or a grant application getting bounced. It's rarely dramatic in the moment. It's a slow-motion problem that becomes a fast, expensive one the day someone finally checks.
How is a treasurer's role different in a PTO versus a booster club versus a youth sports league?
The core job (track money, report to the board, file the annual return) is the same across a PTO, a booster club, and a youth sports league. The differences show up in scale and in the extra state-level requirements layered on top. A PTO treasurer often deals with school-year cash flow that's lumpy: a big rush during the fall carnival or book fair, quiet stretches in between. A booster club treasurer more often deals with sport-specific fundraising, concessions at every home game, and sometimes a raffle, which pulls in state gaming or charitable raffle licensing rules that vary a lot by state (confirm specifics with your state's charity office or gaming commission). A youth sports league treasurer often handles registration fees at scale, which means more transactions and a bigger argument for simple accounting software over a spreadsheet once the group crosses a few hundred families. Whatever the flavor, the same three habits keep a treasurer out of trouble: separate the money from any one person's control, reconcile monthly instead of yearly, and file the IRS return every single year even in a year when nothing much happened.
Frequently asked questions
What does a treasurer do?
A treasurer tracks all of an organization's money: deposits, expenses, bank reconciliations, budgets, and reporting to the board. In a nonprofit or booster club, the treasurer also handles annual IRS filings like Form 990-N or 990-EZ and keeps records clean enough for a successor to take over easily.
What is a treasurer?
A treasurer is the officer, usually a volunteer in small nonprofits, responsible for an organization's finances: the bank account, the budget, financial reporting, and required tax filings. Bylaws typically define the exact duties, but the core job is stewardship and accountability for every dollar that moves.
What do treasurers do that's different from a bookkeeper?
A bookkeeper records transactions. A treasurer does that plus governance work: reporting to the board, setting internal controls like dual signers on checks, building the budget, and making sure required filings happen. Many small-group treasurers do both jobs at once, which is normal for a volunteer role.
What does a treasurer do in a club?
In a club, a treasurer manages the bank account, collects and deposits dues or fundraiser proceeds, pays approved expenses with receipts, reports the balance at meetings, and prepares the annual budget. For an exempt club, that includes filing the IRS's 990-series return each year.
What does a club treasurer do about fundraisers and raffles?
A club treasurer tracks fundraiser income separately, counts cash with a second person present, deposits promptly, and checks whether a raffle or gaming license is required. Most states regulate charitable raffles separately from general fundraising, so confirm current rules with your state charity office or attorney general before running one.
What is Form 990?
Form 990 is the annual information return the IRS requires from most tax-exempt organizations, reporting income, expenses, governance, and compliance details under Internal Revenue Code Section 6033. Which version an organization files (990-N, 990-EZ, or full 990) depends on gross receipts and total assets.
What is a 990 tax form used for?
It's used to show the IRS, and the public, that a tax-exempt organization is still operating within the rules: spending money on its mission, avoiding excess private benefit, and reporting honestly. Donors and grantmakers often check a group's 990 before giving, since it's public record.
What is the 990 e-Postcard (990-N)?
The 990-N is the short, free, online-only annual filing for the smallest tax-exempt organizations, generally those with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less. It's due by the 15th day of the 5th month after the tax year ends, and missing it three years running triggers automatic revocation of exempt status.
Does a small booster club really have to file taxes every year?
Yes. Even a booster club with almost no income still has to file something with the IRS every year, usually the free 990-N e-Postcard, unless it's specifically exempted. Skipping it for three consecutive years causes automatic revocation of tax-exempt status under IRC Section 6033(j).
How much time does the treasurer job actually take each month?
It varies with activity level, but a typical small booster club or PTO treasurer spends a few hours a month on reconciliation and record-keeping, with heavier weeks around big fundraisers or the annual filing deadline. Groups running frequent cash events (concessions, raffles) need more frequent, more than monthly, attention.
What records should a treasurer keep and for how long?
Keep bank statements, reconciliations, receipts, the ledger, board-approved budgets, and copies of every IRS filing. Many practitioners keep at least 3 to 7 years of records for handoff and audit purposes; check with your state charity office and consider your organization's own document retention policy for the exact period.
Can a treasurer get in personal legal trouble for financial mistakes?
Honest mistakes rarely create personal liability, especially for volunteer officers, but that depends heavily on your state's nonprofit and volunteer protection laws. Fraud, self-dealing, or knowingly ignoring required filings is a different story. This isn't legal advice; confirm your specific exposure with a local attorney if you're worried.
What is the difference between a treasurer and a financial secretary?
In organizations that split the role, a financial secretary usually collects and records incoming money (dues, donations) while the treasurer manages the bank account, pays bills, and handles overall reporting and filings. Most small booster clubs and PTOs combine both jobs into one treasurer position.
Sources
- IRS, Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations (Form 990-N): 990-N eligibility (gross receipts normally $50,000 or less) and due date (15th day of 5th month after tax year end)
- IRS, Form 990 instructions (governance and policies section): Form 990 asks about written policies for conflicts of interest and document retention
- IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption: Three consecutive years of not filing triggers automatic revocation under IRC Section 6033(j)
- IRS, About Form 990: Definition and purpose of Form 990 under Section 6033
- IRS, Form 990-EZ instructions (who may file): 990-EZ eligibility thresholds: gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000
- IRS, Tax Exempt Organization Search: Public database for looking up an organization's filed 990s and exempt status
- Cornell Legal Information Institute, 26 U.S.C. Section 6104: Public disclosure requirement for the three most recent Form 990 filings
- IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption List: IRS publishes a list of organizations that lost exempt status through automatic revocation
- IRS, Revenue Procedure 2014-11: Streamlined retroactive reinstatement process available if applied for within 15 months of revocation