Our bank doesn't enforce our two signature policy, but we don't advertise that to our members. Everyone assumes this is the rule and so no one tries to push the treasure to cut corners and rush the issuance of a check.
While our checks require 2 signitures and it is printed on the checks as well, this requirement is only for the PTO, not the bank. They stated they are not responsible for checks cashed with only one signature. Last year we had a theft problem with our treasurer, and they were not responsible.
Jenn, Go the site the JHB mentioned. You can apply for your EIN online and you can get your number right away. Took about 10 minutes. In 2-3 weeks you'll get your official paperwork in the mail from the IRS. When it asks what type of business check (other charitable group) and then there's a box where you can write in PTO/PTA, etc. It's not a big deal, you'll have your EIN right away and then you can go and open a new checking account under your group. We had to do the same thing last year as our account was under someones SSN. The problem with that is, the IRS can track that by SSN (if that person was audited) and require they pay taxes on that money. If your group is worried about misappropriation or anything like that, talk with the bank and require two signatures on all checks. We do that and it works out fine. The bank would reject and not pay any check that comes in and doesn't meet our signatures at the bank.
You may be out of luck no matter what bank you try, but it's worth a shot. I know when I opened an account for my daughter's soccer team a few months ago, the bank required the SSNs of all the signers, even though we had a separate EIN. They said it was a new requirement that they had put into place because of the Patriot's Act (an anti-terrorism law put into place in late 2001/early 2002). I did a little research at the time, and found that a lot of banks had put similar policies into place to help prevent fraud and other illegal activity.
Any organization should have its own ID number. It's called an Employee Identification Number (EIN) and you get it from the IRS. An EIN is what you should be using as your Tax ID number on the PTO's bank account (rather than an SSN).
You get an EIN by completing an SS4, which is a relatively simple 1-2 page form. There's no fee. You can apply via the internet, mail-in form, or by phone.
Note the form asks for an SSN, but you don't have to supply one. However, the internet version may not let you skip that field. I'd recommend downloading the form, collecting all the information, and then phoning in the application at 1-800-829-4933.
