We have had our debit card for two years and it is very helpful. We follow pretty much the same policy as Serendipity's group. The President holds the card and makes all purchases. All receipts must be turned in with a Debit Card Purchase form that is filled out with the amount and what program is to be charged for the expense. We require that the purchases be for budgeted items. The treasurer sees all purchases on the bank statement and can reconcile them with the receipts.
We have had a debit card for 3 years now. We have not had a single problem and it is one of the best things we have ever done as it makes our ability to purchase things so much easier.
The way we do it is that the President holds the card. Because the card is attached to the account the treasurer can see all debit card expenses each month which is your system of checks and balances. All receipts from debit card purchases also need to be turned over to the treasurer as well.
As for chairpeople...let's say for example a chairperson wants to order stuff from Oriental Trading. They give what they want to order to the president and the president places the order and pays for it with the card.
We have also even let chairpeople just take the card if they need to purchase items at a store. We need to know ahead of time what they are buying. They make the purchase and then come right back and turn over the card and the receipt.
The fact that all purchases will show up on your monthly bank statment really makes it hard for anyone to misuse the card. Every purchase made needs to be accounted for. The treasurer is also informed before hand when anyone is using the card.
Our PTO has decided to get a debit card to w/d funds from the checking account. This will be used to purchase things we need online. It will also be used by officers authorized to spend money for the PTO, i.e., afterschool program supplies, event supplies, etc. The membership voted to get the card provided that a policy is developed for its use PRIOR to the card being activated. Wondering if anyone out there has a policy or ideas for creating one. Thanks!
