2007-2008 Annual Dues...Are Due!!

Please maintain your membership with the nfpFMA by paying the $40 annual dues. Your dues payment will cover the cost of food and rent for meetings from September, 2007 through June, 2008. Please print out the dues invoice we sent in the October meeting email notice and mail your dues to our Treasurer, Steve Kassing, or give your payment to Steve at the next meeting.

403(b) Plans and You - Topic for October 23, 2007

Dan McGee, of Tax Deferred Services, will be the guest speaker at the next nfpFMA meeting, Tuesday, October 23, 2007. Get ready to hear valuable information about changes to 403(b) regulations and how we as not-for-profit financial managers can cope. See you there!

Latest Audit Developments - Risk Assessment Standards

Rick Aselage also pointed out that not-for-profits will want to note the new risk assessment standards that SAS 112 implements. Risk is assessed on entity level internal controls and business process level internal controls.

Entity level controls include financial reporting, IT environment, and management override practices as well as intangibles such as the "tone at the top." Business process level controls include activities such as bank reconcilations and purchase order approvals.

The key point to the new risk assessment is that "inquiry alone is not sufficient to evaluate internal control design...transaction or system walkthroughs need to be documented as evidence of internal control existence and design." Rick advises that we evaluate internal controls and address any concerns before our next audits.

Latest Audit Developments - SAS 112

On Tuesday, September 25, 2007, Rick Aselage, Partner in RubinBrown's Assurance Services Department, spoke to nfpFMA members about the ways SAS 112 will affect our forthcoming audits.

SAS 112, "Communicating Internal Control Related Matters Identified in an Audit," focuses on the potential for, not the existence of, an actual misstatement. It breaks internal control deficiences down into three categories: Control deficiency, Significant deficiency, and Material weakness.

The impact of SAS 112 on our audits will be twofold:
1. We can expect that auditors will identify and report more internal control deficiencies.
2. We can expect more questions from auditors regarding internal controls and we will be responsible for addressing "how a control deficiency is not a significant deficiency or material weakness."