No true and fair view required if using the cash basis?
Recent survey evidence[i] shows that there are great many associations that report using the cash basis. Many of these associations are charities. And many of these charities are yet to submit their 2014 Annual Information Statement to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC)[ii]. If they used the cash basis ‘in the past’ they can...
Leadership: is following the spirit of rules OK?
Not long ago, a charity leader, in response to a complaint that the AGM had deviated significantly from the procedure laid down in the constitution, admitted that the process should be ‘tightened up to meet the letter of the law.’ However, he also said that he was not unhappy with the process, believing that ‘the...
Minutes: be clear about what you are confirming
The prime purpose of a board (committee) or members’ meeting is to make decisions. The prime purpose of the minutes of that meeting is to record those decisions. The law says that you don’t need to wait for the second before you can take action on the first. As soon as the meeting decides, then...
NSW associations: is Class order 11/01 effective relief from reporting rigour?
Preparing for the audit of a Tier 1 NSW association, we naturally came across Class order 11/01[i]. Without this Order, issued by the Director-General of Office of Fair Trading in May 2011[ii]an association with revenue greater than $250 000 would be required to prepare financial statements ‘in accordance with the Australian Accounting Standards’[iii]. Instead they...
A new head on an old body: the ACNC on choosing between general and special purpose financial statements
In a post a few weeks ago, I showed the invalidity of the ACNC’s advice that general purpose (GPFS) or special purpose financial statements (SPFS) was a choice based on the Positives and Negatives of each. In response they have now Deleted the heading ‘Deciding between general purpose or (sic) and special purpose’, and Changed...
Some data on whether charities are doing what the ACNC has asked them to do
We had occasion to look up a couple of ACT churches on the ACNC register recently. What we found was interesting. And made us wonder. So in no time we had a spreadsheet full of information. An Advanced Search for all charities with an ACT address, a status of ‘Active Registered’, and the ‘Charity Entity...
General purpose versus special purpose financial statements: not much choice for charities?
Financial statements, type thereof. You, the CEO or director make the decision; you, the auditor, check this decision; you, the ‘stakeholder’, use the result to make judgements about the organisation. Two types only: general purpose and special purpose. But general purpose versus special purpose is not the decision. That would make it a choice, and...
The ACNC and right and wrong ways to decide between general purpose and special purpose financial reports
If you are a non-accountant charity CEO or board/committee member (and maybe even if you are an accountant), it would be reasonable for you to turn to your regulator’s website for help with deciding whether general purpose or special purpose financial statements were required for your charity. But at the moment you need to take...
Special or general purpose report: don’t ask your users
Well I don’t think they actually asked their users individually, but they certainly thought about them in order to come to the conclusion that ‘there are no users dependent on a general purpose financial report’. I’m talking about the management and auditor of a $1m charity. And it appears from a Google search of the...
Finding the kingdom in the troubled Anglican Diocese of Bathurst
Help me out Bishop Ian, I’m struggling to understand your stance. Your Diocese borrowed a heap of money from another institution (and I mean a heap), and the plans didn’t work out as the Diocese hoped. Then the institution, to minimise its losses, didn’t want to wait to see if you can repay the amount...