Daniel W. Elliot, CPA

Can you imagine turning down a job because they have a pension plan? Recently I was working on the annual contributor report for a Defined Benefit Pension Plan. While the corporate world has traded these in favour of Defined Contribution Pension Plans to no longer deal with the headache and liability, there are many reasons why employees should want conversion as well. For those who are unsure of the difference: Defined contribution plans are where the employee and employer each make a contribution to a plan such as a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) in Canada. The contribution is defined, for example 9% : 9 % of your salary, it is your fund to manage as you wish and is yours regardless of where you work. A Defined Benefit plan is similar in that you each contribute a portion, but the plan belongs to the employer, the terms dictate what your payment will be when you retire which is typically calculated based on age and years of service; these typically work fine when you stay ...

This is not the days of old, and you are not the King’s Men; you exist to serve the public, the public does not exist to serve you.’   An area requiring a major overhaul in the not-for-profit sector is the relationship with funders, in particular for programs sponsored by government entities at the various levels. Not only are not-for-profit organizations treated as subordinate extensions of the government body they perform services on behalf of, but the demands imposed by funders are overwhelming thereby eroding the ability for effective service delivery.     In December 2006, the Treasury Board of the Government of Canada issued an independent report called: From Red Tape to Clear Results - The Report of the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel on Grant and Contribution Programs. In summary, government departments were making it far too complicated for not-for-profit organizations to deliver services, and these departments were to back off so more could be spent on service del...

There are many forms of business agreements each having their own intention and legal consequences; however, these titles are often used incorrectly, and users do not realize this until it becomes a problem. Take note the following information is general where jurisdictional nuances may apply; with this I encourage readers to seek legal counsel on what applies to them and their situation. When dealing with government or other nonprofit entities, you will normally be funded through either a Service Contract, or Contribution Agreement including Grants, Loans, and Subsidies. Take caution in although there is a great deal of literature regarding the differentiation between the terms which also varies by jurisdiction, you will find situations where an arrangement is called one thing where according to literature you have read, it more closely resembles another.    Throughout your nonprofit and public service careers, you will also find other nomenclature such as Memorandum of Agree...

  The nonprofit and public service sectors are often misunderstood when it comes to their place in the business world and the transferability of the skills of those who work in the industry. When most people think of the term ‘business’ they associate it with buying, making, or doing something with the intention of selling it and turning a profit which they will either reinvest into another earning endeavor, or spend on either a life sustaining need, or a frivolous want. Businesses normally require an investor of sorts who uses either their own money or that of others, to purchase the necessary infrastructure and materials, and hope it ends well otherwise they are in trouble. However, there is another type of business which although does not include an investor who aims to earn a profit, still participates in making or doing something, the activities of which have financial implications. This is the nonprofit and public sector.  So, why do I consider nonprofit a ‘business?’ Si...

This week I am revisiting how Administrative Costs are allocated to the various programs of a nonprofit organization, and this is where the science versus art of accounting collide. Most program funders articulate a maximum percentage for administrative services typically at 10%. What can vary is what they consider as Administration versus Program Delivery. For example some will consider Information Technology as administrative costs where others consider it program delivery. Liability Insurance is another example. Some will allow 12% versus 10% but consider certain costs to be included in administration where others consider the same as program costs. Then there is accommodation costs: some are power users of office, service, and reception space, where others are not. This leads me to accounting school where we covered what are called Cost Drivers. Cost Drivers are factors which drive costs: for example square feet may drive janitorial cost where cubic feet may drive heating costs. Nu...

We often throw around words like responsibly, accountability, and answerability; however, many do not really know what these words mean therefore use them in the wrong context.  First of all, responsibility refers to performing a task, while accountability refers to the result. As an example, the First Officer of a ship may be responsible to steer the craft in the right direction, but the Captain who is sleeping in her quarters is still accountable when the ship is ran aground. It is said you can delegate responsibility, but cannot delegate accountability.    In the above example as the Captain cannot be awake on the bridge for days on end, it stands to reason she passed on responsibility to the First Officer but did not have the luxury of absolving herself of accountability.  Then there is the term answerability, which means you must be prepared to answer why something happened as it did, but often no real accountability exists. All this said, neither accountability...

We have all heard the term ‘cooking the books’ and when we do, it almost always has a negative connotation. However, there may be times where this practice has its place. Many nonprofit organizations operate multiple programs and programs within programs. Sometimes similar programs are funded by the same organization, where others although similar, have different funders. Where it starts to become grey is when one program is over running its budget while the other has a surplus, which leads to the temptation to play with the expenditure coding in order to balance the bottom lines. Although funders may frown on such practices, I can tell you there is some legitimacy to this. For funders who are now jumping up and down, please hear me out as I provide some examples. We had two similar programs each with their own contract and each funded the same amount. Carrying out the services were a full time program coordinator and a full time program delivery officer each working somewhat equally i...