LCF Event Director Financial Policy and Planning Guidelines

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These guidelines have been prepared to help Event Directors (leaders who have accepted the

responsibility for planning and carrying out events for the La Canada Service Unit (SU)). If you have any

questions about these guidelines, please contact the SU Event Coordinator, a Service Unit Manager

(SUM), or the SU Treasurer. 

You must complete the MANDATORY online training for Event Directors,

available on the council website at www.girlscoutsla.org.

Upon acceptance of the responsibility to run an event, check our LCF Girl Scouts Events website at

https://sites.google.com/site/lcfgirlscoutsevents/ to find information on the event you have chosen to

run. This website contains project plans, budgets, tips, and other information from prior years to assist

you in planning your event.  If you don’t find any information about your event on the website,

contact the SU Event Coordinator for information, and to have them upload the information for future event directors. 

• Read the information about your event on the Events website or in the binder at least three months before your event. This will save you time and help you avoid surprises (like not having reserved a location, or booking a bus, etc.) when it comes time to run the event.
• Contact the previous Event Director for any tips, suggestions, or questions about the event.
• Keep the SU Treasurer in the loop! They will will help you set up the CheddarUp collection account for your event.  You'll need the link for this collection for your event flier. 

• Fill out the Special Events and Money-Earning Application online at https://www.gsglavolunteerapps.org/specialevent-2/ 
• You must attach a flier or advertisement and financial statement (if MEA). 
• Certificate of Insurance requests must be indicated on application. Facility Use Agreements/Reservation Contracts for sites must be completed and signed by requestor and uploaded with e-form application. 
• If the special event that your troop/group is planning includes one of the High-Risk activities (as defined in the Safety Activity Checkpoints), a High Risk/Extended Travel event application also needs to be completed. After the High-Risk activity application has been approved please send the approval and application number to seme@girlscoutsla.org as soon as it is approved so it can be added to your SEME application (the number comes as an ET-00000).

• When planning the date of your event, keep in mind that, if you need to reserve a school location, weekdays are generally more cost effective as the LCUSD will charge a fee for Saturday or Sunday events to cover their janitorial costs. No fee is charged for weekdays.
• Plan to promote your event at the Girl Scout Leader meeting two months in advance of the event date.
• Set your event date as early as possible, as Leaders like to plan their activities in advance. Once you’ve received approval from Council, send a pdf file of your flyer to the SUMs to be posted on the LCF Girl Scouts website. Distribute flyers at the Leader meeting. You must adhere to the guidelines provided by Council (see the Special Event Flyer Checklist” link).  Be sure to include the CheddarUp link for money collection on your flyer, too. 
• Upon completion of your event, request an event evaluation from participating troops.
• After the event, submit receipts and financial report to the SU Treasurer for reimbursement
• Within 30 days after the event, send all documentation that may help the next director of your event to the Event Coordinator. You can send it by email, or on a flash drive that will be returned to you. (If you received an event binder, return it to the Event Coordinator within 30 days after the event.)Include all completed financial forms, maps for set ups, pictures, and any other information that may help the Event Director for the following year.

• All monies collected must go through the Service Unit. Troop Check Payable to: La Canada Service Unit.  Money may not be run through the Hosting Troop’s checking account. If this happens, the event may not be eligible as a fundraiser for the troop, meaning that the troop may have to give up any surpluses.
• Utilize the SU CheddarUp account for all event sign-ups and money collections to make things easy!  The SUMs or SU Treasurer can help you set this up. 
• If you host a “No Fee Event”, these events are fully funded by the Service Unit and do not charge a fee.
• If you host a “Break-Even Event” (listed above) and have money left over after the event, your troop may keep up to $75. We realize that it is difficult to budget an event to break exactly even.
• SU Association Fee: All events that collect fees must add $1.50 to the cost for each girl attending, and that money goes to the SU. The SU Association Fee is used to cover SU expenses for events and items that do not generate income (for example, photocopying expenses for Leader meeting materials, cost of LCF website, e-news, awards, etc.).
• SU Pre-Approved Expenses: If an expense is for items used by the girls attending the event, it is covered by the fee paid by them to attend the event. If an expense is for items that only the host troop will use at the event (for example, t-shirts, hats, jewelry), that specific expense is covered by the host troop’s treasury; NOT by the fee charged to the attendees.
• Attendance Fees: Collect payment for attendance fees before the event date. Checks are to be made payable to LCFGS. The Event Director must track and deposit all checks within 30 days after the event.    -OR- Utilize the SU CheddarUp account instead of collecting cash or checks.
• Deposit Form: This form must be submitted to the SU Treasurer within 30 days after the event.
• Reimbursement/Check Request Form: Submit this form along with all original receipts (no receipt, no reimbursement!) at the same time the final SU Event Financial Report is submitted. The final SU Event Financial Report must be submitted before the Treasurer is allowed to reimburse expenses. 
• Donation Receipt Request: If you have a donor requesting a receipt for the items they have donated, a letter of acknowledgement needs to come from Council. The SU Treasurer can direct you where to call to get this done.
• SU Event Financial Report: Use this report to list the checks received and the expenses incurred for the event. Complete and submit this form to the SU Treasurer within 30 days after the event.
• The actual cost or estimated value of any donated item is to be recorded in the “Donation” section of the SU Event Financial Report worksheet. This allows for the most accurate recap of expenses for each event. If these donations are not included in the final cost of the event, the Event Director may not accurately estimate the budget the next year to cover those items.
• Refunds: In general, most events will not issue individual or troop refunds due to unforeseen weather or natural disasters. Individual girl refunds are up to each Event Director. Most events have already spent the money collected from the attendees well before the event on supplies for the event and are not in a financial position to make individual refunds. All event flyers should include a “no refunds” line. From time to time, a participating troop may request a refund due to their inability to participate. It is the SU’s policy that refunds will be given only when the event has been sold out and that space has been resold.
• Losses: If the Hosting Troop experiences a loss due to an expense overrun or poor planning of projected expenses, the Hosting Troop is responsible for covering the additional expenses, not the Service Unit. For example, you are hosting a Santa's workshop and you charge $15/girl. You forget to budget for the gift wrap and you go over budget by $3/girl. Even though this is an approved expense, your troop will be responsible for the overage.

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