Still need answer on donor restrictions

[Sandra Michalscheck]

When setting up a Temporary Donor Restricted account using the "Maintain List of Donor Restrictions" in Fund Accounting, it only supplies a spot to attach one expense account to an income/release transaction.

Is it possible to use, say, four different expense accounts from one temporary donor restricted funds account?

In other words, if I had a temporary donor restricted account called Youth Fundraiser-- can I pay from different expense lines: let's say, Youth Curriculum, Youth Supplies, Youth Session, and Youth Special Event? Or can only one expense line apply to one donor restricted account setup?

[Jeff]

Sandra,

It is not what expense accounts you use that tell the program that donor restricted money has been used, it is the release transaction tells the system to release the money from the restriction. In other words when donor restricted money is to be used you enter the transaction like you would normally using whatever accounts needed. Then either in the same transaction or a separate transaction you add the release transaction.

We added the option of adding an expense account to the assistant because you possibly might need to add a new expense account, but it is not necessary to add any additional expense accounts at all.

It is very possible that when you use donor restricted money you might not be effecting an expense account at all. For instance, money restricted to buy a new building. When the building is bought you would credit the bank account and debit the buidling asset account and then add the release transaction to release the money from its restriction. Another example would be people giving money to make additional principle payments on the mortgage. In this case when you make the entry you would credit the bank, debit the mortgage principle account, and include the release transaction. Neither of these entries effected an expense account, but we still used the release transaction to tell the system that donor restricted money has been used.

[Sandra Michalscheck]

Thanks Jeff,

There's always a problem between a technical person's lingo and a non-technical one's. So "if I'm understanding you correctly" as you sometimes say, the answer to my question is "Yes." It appears as though you've said I can use as many different expense accounts as I want to spend the money in a donor restricted account; that the only thing that matters is the entry to the release account in order to keep the program functioning properly.

The part that had me confused on it was the setup assistant. Since it asks for a specific account to attach at the time, and since it tags that account with a "can use donor restricted money" tag on it at that point, I didn't know if the programming that rolls everything at closing still functions at the close of the month if I am using some other expense account besides the one originally tagged in the setup assistant.

Hope that makes sense. Thank you for your help. I always appreciate what you have to say.

Sandra