Duties of a nonprofit treasurer: the complete job description

Last updated 2026-07-25

what does a treasurer do?

A nonprofit treasurer is the officer responsible for the organization's money: tracking it, reporting on it, and protecting it. That means recording every deposit and every expense, reconciling the bank statement every month, preparing a financial report for board meetings, and making sure the organization files whatever it owes the IRS and the state each year. In a large nonprofit with paid staff, the treasurer is more of an oversight role. A bookkeeper or accountant does the data entry, and the treasurer reviews reports, signs checks over a certain amount, and reports to the board. In a small volunteer group, booster club, PTO, or youth sports league, the treasurer usually is the bookkeeper. There's no staff. The treasurer opens the mail, deposits the checks, pays the vendors, and builds the spreadsheet. The IRS doesn't hand out a job description for "treasurer" because it's a matter of your organization's bylaws, not federal law. But the IRS does care, a lot, about whether your organization files what it's supposed to file, and the treasurer is usually the person who has to make that happen. Missing three years of required returns triggers automatic revocation of tax-exempt status under Internal Revenue Code section 6033(j) ^[1]. That single fact drives a lot of what a treasurer's job actually looks like day to day.

what is a treasurer?

A treasurer is an elected or appointed officer of an organization who is legally and practically responsible for its financial affairs. The title exists in corporations, nonprofits, unions, and clubs alike. What's specific to nonprofits, especially small ones with no paid finance staff, is that the treasurer often personally handles the bookkeeping instead of just supervising someone who does. Most state nonprofit corporation statutes require a treasurer or equivalent officer, though the exact title can vary (some bylaws use "financial secretary" instead). Your own bylaws are the actual source of the job description; the IRS and your state don't dictate the internal org chart. Read your bylaws' officer section before you read anything else, including this article, because they may assign duties differently than the norm described here.

what do treasurers do day to day, month to month, and year to year?

The job breaks into three rhythms: daily/weekly handling of transactions, monthly closing and reporting, and annual filing and audit tasks. Skipping the monthly rhythm is the single most common way small nonprofits end up with a mess that takes a weekend (or a forensic accountant) to untangle. Daily or weekly

• Deposit checks and cash promptly (many treasurers set a rule: nothing sits in a drawer more than 48-72 hours)
• Record each transaction with a date, amount, payer/payee, and purpose
• Pay approved invoices and reimbursements
• File receipts (digital or paper) tied to each transaction Monthly
• Reconcile every bank and PayPal/Venmo-type account against the ledger
• Prepare a simple income statement (money in vs. money out) for the board
• Flag anything unusual: a missing deposit, a duplicate payment, dues that never got collected
• Update a running budget-vs-actual comparison if the board approved a budget Annually
• File the correct IRS annual return: Form 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990, depending on gross receipts ^[2]
• File any required state charitable solicitation registration renewal (confirm with your state charity office; requirements and fees vary by state)
• Prepare or support an internal financial review or outside audit if bylaws or a funder requires one
• Hand off a clean set of books to the next treasurer, or to yourself for the new fiscal year Gross receipts thresholds matter a lot here. Organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less can file the electronic postcard, Form 990-N ^[2]. Above that, up to $200,000 in gross receipts and under $500,000 in total assets, you generally use Form 990-EZ; larger organizations file the full Form 990 ^[3].

what is Form 990 and what is the 990 tax form?

990-N (e-Postcard)	Smallest orgs	Gross receipts normally $50,000 or less [2]
990-EZ	Mid-size orgs	Gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000 [3]
990 (full form)	Larger orgs	Gross receipts $200,000+ or total assets $500,000+ [3]	All three versions become public. Anyone can pull a nonprofit's 990 tax form history through the IRS's Tax Exempt Organization Search or sites like ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer. That means a treasurer's sloppy 990 isn't a private embarrassment; it's searchable by any parent, donor, or reporter who wants to look.

Form 990 is the annual information return that most tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS. It's not a tax bill in the way a personal 1040 is; it's a public disclosure document reporting revenue, expenses, assets, governance practices, and compensation of top staff. The IRS states plainly: "Tax-exempt organizations, nonexempt charitable trusts, and section 527 political organizations file this form to provide the IRS with the information required by section 6033" ^[3]. There are three versions, sized to the organization: | Form | Who files it | Rough threshold |

what is the 990 used for, and who actually reads it?

Donors, grantmakers, journalists, and watchdog groups use Form 990 to check financial health, executive pay, and program spending ratios before writing a check or a story. State charity regulators use it too, often as part of the state's own charitable registration renewal process. A poorly filled-out irs form 990 can cost a nonprofit a grant it never even applied for, because a program officer looked up the org first and didn't like what they saw. For a treasurer, the practical takeaway is simple: treat the 990 (or 990-N, or 990-EZ) as a document someone will actually read, not busywork. Numbers should tie back cleanly to your internal financial reports. If your board financials say $42,000 in program expenses but your 990 says $28,000, that gap needs an explanation, not a shrug.

what does a club treasurer do differently from a big nonprofit's treasurer?

A club treasurer, whether for a booster club, a PTO, a rec league, or a hobby association, wears more hats than a treasurer at a staffed nonprofit. There's no controller checking the treasurer's work, no accounts payable clerk cutting checks, no HR department handling payroll tax. It's one volunteer, sometimes with a co-treasurer or a helpful board member, running the entire financial operation. Practically, a club treasurer's job usually includes things a corporate treasurer would never touch personally:

• Counting concession stand cash after a Friday night game, with a second counter present
• Selling raffle tickets and tracking who bought what (see your state's raffle licensing rules, which vary widely; confirm with your state charity office or attorney general)
• Managing a Venmo or PayPal account alongside a bank account, and reconciling both
• Filing the 990-N solo, often for the first time, with no accountant on retainer
• Training the incoming treasurer at the end of the season, because there's no institutional memory otherwise Most booster clubs and PTOs are 501(c)(3) organizations (charitable, and often qualifying for extra grant eligibility) or occasionally 501(c)(4)/(c)(7); either way, the same basic bookkeeping and 990 filing duties apply regardless of the specific exemption subsection. What changes is the fundraising rules. Raffles, silent auctions, and concession sales each carry their own state and IRS wrinkles that a corporate treasurer never has to think about.

what does a treasurer of a club do about cash handling specifically?

Cash is where small nonprofits get hurt, not through embezzlement horror stories (though those happen), but through simple sloppiness: unlabeled cash boxes, one person counting alone, deposits that sit in a car trunk for a week. The fix isn't complicated, but it does take discipline. Basic controls that any club treasurer should have in place:

• Two people count cash together and both sign a tally sheet, every time
• Cash gets deposited within a few days, not weeks
• No single person both approves an expense and writes the check for it
• Bank and payment app statements get reviewed by someone other than the person who made the deposits, even if that's just a second board member glancing at the statement each month
• Receipts get kept for at least as long as your state and the IRS require records to be retained for tax and audit purposes (record retention periods vary by document type and state; confirm with your state charity office) None of this requires accounting software or a CPA. It requires a habit and a second set of eyes. The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners' biennial *Report to the Nations* has repeatedly found that organizations with basic anti-fraud controls in place detect fraud faster and lose less money than those without ^[4], and small organizations (under 100 employees, which covers essentially every booster club and PTO) are consistently overrepresented among fraud victims relative to their size.

what happens if the treasurer misses a required IRS filing?

Missing three consecutive years of required annual returns (990, 990-EZ, or 990-N) triggers automatic revocation of federal tax-exempt status, by law, with no warning letter required first. The IRS's own guidance is direct: "the law requires the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt status of any organization that fails to file required Form 990-series returns for three consecutive years" ^[1]. Once revoked, the organization shows up on the IRS's public Auto-Revocation List, loses its ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and may owe corporate income tax on money it takes in going forward. Getting reinstated means filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ again (essentially re-applying for exemption) and often paying a filing fee that runs from $275 for the streamlined EZ version up to $600 for the full Form 1023, depending on current IRS fee schedules ^[5]. Confirm current fees directly with the IRS before filing, since the agency updates fee schedules periodically. This is the single biggest reason a treasurer's filing calendar matters more than almost any other duty on the list. A missed 990-N for one small club, three years running, undoes years of fundraising goodwill in a single IRS database update.

does a treasurer need to be a CPA or have accounting training?

No. Nothing in the IRS code or in most state nonprofit statutes requires a treasurer to hold a CPA license or formal accounting credential. What's required, practically, is attention to detail, consistency, and a willingness to ask for help when something looks wrong. Many successful volunteer treasurers have never taken an accounting class. They use a simple spreadsheet or a low-cost tool like QuickBooks or Wave, they reconcile monthly without exception, and they ask their state charity office or a local CPA volunteer (some CPA societies run free nonprofit clinics) when something looks off, like an IRS notice or a state registration lapse. Where organizations do run into trouble is complexity: managing payroll for even one part-time employee, handling significant investment income, or running a raffle across state lines. At that point, a bookkeeper or accountant, even for a few hours a year, is worth the cost. A Boosterledger Treasurer Kit can hand a new volunteer a state-specific starting checklist and filing calendar for a flat $99, which is far cheaper than an accountant's hourly rate for the same orientation conversation, but it's not a substitute for professional advice on anything genuinely complicated.

what should a new treasurer do in the first 30 days?

Taking over mid-year, especially from a treasurer who left in a hurry or without much of a handoff, is common and stressful. A focused first month looks like this: 1. Get login access to every bank account, payment app, and accounting software the organization uses 2. Pull the last 12 months of bank statements and compare them line by line against whatever ledger exists 3. Find out the organization's fiscal year and figure out which 990 variant was filed last, and when 4. Check the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool directly to confirm current exempt status hasn't lapsed ^[6] 5. Check your state's charity registration status; many states require annual renewal separate from the IRS filing (confirm current requirements with your state charity office or attorney general) 6. Ask the outgoing treasurer (or board president, if the treasurer is already gone) for any outstanding invoices, pending reimbursements, or grant reporting deadlines This is also the moment to build (or rebuild) a written filing calendar with hard dates: 990-N/EZ/990 due date, state registration renewal date, any grant report deadlines. Treasurers who inherit chaos almost always trace it back to no calendar existing in the first place.

what financial reports should a treasurer bring to board meetings?

At minimum, a treasurer should bring three things to every board meeting: a bank reconciliation summary, an income-and-expense statement for the period since the last meeting, and a budget-vs-actual comparison if the board has an approved budget. Larger organizations add a balance sheet showing assets, liabilities, and net assets. The report doesn't need to be fancy. A one-page spreadsheet that clearly shows where money came from, where it went, and how the year-to-date numbers compare to the plan is more useful to a volunteer board than a polished PDF nobody understands. Board members should be able to ask "why did concessions revenue drop 20% from last spring" and get a real answer, not a shrug. Board minutes should also record that the treasurer's report was given and reviewed. This matters more than it sounds like it should: if a state charity office or an IRS auditor ever asks for evidence of financial oversight, board minutes showing regular treasurer reports are exactly what demonstrates it.

Frequently asked questions

What does a treasurer do?

A treasurer tracks all money coming in and going out, reconciles bank accounts, prepares financial reports for the board, and makes sure required IRS and state filings happen on time. In small nonprofits and clubs, the treasurer usually does the bookkeeping personally rather than just overseeing someone else who does.

What is a treasurer?

A treasurer is an officer, elected or appointed under an organization's bylaws, responsible for its financial affairs: recordkeeping, reporting, and safeguarding funds. The exact duties are set by the organization's own bylaws, not by federal or state law, so treasurers should read their bylaws' officer section first.

What do treasurers do that other officers don't?

Treasurers uniquely handle money movement (deposits, payments, reconciliation) and financial reporting to the board. Other officers, like the president or secretary, handle governance and meeting records but generally don't touch bank accounts or file the organization's annual IRS return.

What is Form 990?

Form 990 is the annual information return most tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS, reporting revenue, expenses, assets, and governance details. It's a public document, not a tax bill, and comes in three sizes (990-N, 990-EZ, full 990) depending on the organization's gross receipts and total assets.

What does a treasurer do in a club, specifically?

A club treasurer (booster club, PTO, youth league) handles the same core duties as any nonprofit treasurer, plus extra hands-on work: counting concession cash, tracking raffle ticket sales, reconciling payment apps like Venmo, and often filing the 990-N without any accountant's help.

What is a 990 tax form used for?

The 990 tax form gives the IRS the financial and governance information required under Internal Revenue Code section 6033, and it doubles as a public disclosure document. Donors, grantmakers, and state regulators regularly use it to evaluate a nonprofit's financial health before funding or renewing registration.

What is the 990-N and who has to file it?

The 990-N, called the e-Postcard, is the simplest IRS annual filing, for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less. It's filed electronically through the IRS website and asks for basic identifying information rather than detailed financials.

What does a club treasurer do if the club's exempt status was already revoked?

If auto-revocation already happened (usually from missing three straight years of 990 filings), the treasurer generally needs to help the board file for reinstatement using Form 1023 or 1023-EZ. Confirm current fees and procedures with the IRS, since reinstatement isn't automatic and fee schedules change.

Does a nonprofit treasurer need to be bonded or insured?

There's no federal requirement, but some state nonprofit corporation statutes or bylaws require officer bonding, and many boards choose to carry a fidelity bond covering embezzlement regardless. Check your organization's bylaws and confirm any state-specific requirement with your state charity office.

How often should a treasurer reconcile the bank account?

Monthly, at minimum, and ideally within a week or two of the statement closing date. Waiting longer makes it much harder to catch errors, duplicate charges, or missing deposits before they compound into a bigger reconciliation problem at year end.

Can a treasurer also be the club president or another officer?

Most governance best practices, and many bylaws, discourage combining the treasurer role with another officer role, since it removes a check on financial decisions. Some very small clubs do combine roles out of necessity, but adding a second person to review statements helps offset the risk.

What records should a treasurer keep and for how long?

Bank statements, receipts, board-approved budgets, 990 filings, and reimbursement records are standard. Retention periods vary by document type and state, so confirm specifics with your state charity office; a common conservative practice is keeping financial records for at least seven years.

Sources

1. IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption for Nonfiling: Frequently Asked Questions: Three consecutive years of missed 990-series filings triggers automatic revocation under section 6033(j)
2. IRS, Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations (Form 990-N): Organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less file Form 990-N
3. IRS, About Form 990: Form 990 purpose and filing thresholds by organization size
4. Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Report to the Nations 2024 Global Study on Occupational Fraud and Abuse: Organizations with anti-fraud controls detect fraud faster and with smaller losses; small organizations are overrepresented among victims
5. IRS, Instructions for Form 1023-EZ: Reinstatement filing fees for Form 1023 and 1023-EZ
6. IRS, Tax Exempt Organization Search: Public tool to confirm an organization's current tax-exempt status