November 30, 2025
TO: Provincial Presidents and Secretaries
CC: National Officers (for information), National Life Member Liaison
FROM: Alice Noble, National Secretary-Treasurer
Please forward this message to treasurers.
Now is one of the most important times of the year for treasurers. Please ask your diocesan counterparts and parish treasurers with no diocesan council, to share this information with parish councils as several things are happening at once: the (1) Parish Annual Report Survey, (2) completion and submission of the Treasurer’s Annual Donations Report Form (3) preparation of the council’s Annual Financial Report, (4) review, examination or audit of the council’s books, (5) preparation of the council’s annual budget and (6) collection by parish treasurers of the annual membership fees and remittance of the diocesan, provincial and national per capita fees.
- Parish Annual Report Survey: Parish councils are encouraged to help shape the future! The survey opens December 1st and closes January 15th. It is each parish council’s opportunity to let the diocesan and provincial executives and the national executive/board understand councils and what support they may need. It also provides information for annual reports at all levels. Parish council treasurers are encouraged to ensure they provide their council’s vice-president with the answers to the treasurer’s section of the survey.
- Treasurer’s Annual Donations Report Form (#520): Help share the news of the League’s generosity! Record all the donations made to the national voluntary funds and other donations made under each pillar (faith, service and social justice). Each council’s treasurer must complete and retain a copy, submitting another to the next council level (parish to diocesan—or provincial if the council has no diocesan council, diocesan to provincial and provincial to national). The fillable form is available on the national website.
- Council Annual Financial Report: Tell your council’s financial story! This covers January 1st to December 31st. Prepare at year-end or early January of each year. It should include a summary of revenues, expenses, bank balance, investments and any other owned assets. It should also list the figures from the previous year to provide a comparison and context. This report provides members with a picture of the council’s financial position. Present the report for adoption to the executive within the first few months of the year. It should be made available to members upon request and presented at the annual meeting of members for information purposes only.
- Review, Examination or Audit of the Council’s Books and Annual Financial Report: Build trust through transparency! The type of annual review of a council’s financial status will depend on the amount of money involved. Arrange for the council’s books to be reviewed/examined/audited each year, preferably by a third party to ensure impartiality. If it is not possible to do this annually, as may be the case for parish councils, this activity must take place at least every two years, at the end of each executive’s term. Consult (#615) National Manual of Policy and Procedure (2025), Section 8, Financial Statements, Auditors and Audit of Accounts.
- Annual Budget: Plan for success! Prepare between October and December each year for adoption at the council’s last executive meeting of the year. Each month, the treasurer presents a comparative budget that lists, side-by-side, the actual, budgeted/projected and previous year’s actual figures. It allows an executive to ensure the council is meeting its budgetary requirements when making decisions involving the council’s finances, ensuring solvency and good stewardship through sound financial decisions.
- Annual Membership Fees: Keep your membership active! Annual membership fees include the yearly per capita fees for national, provincial, diocesan and parish councils. Treasurers at the parish level are responsible for collecting and submitting to national office by February 28th the diocesan, provincial and national annual per capita fees. Please do not wait until all members have paid their dues before submitting the per capita fees to national office. Consult the P&P, Section 8 and use the (#516) Parish Council Remittance Form for Per Capita Fees.
Useful resources available for treasurers on the national website include:
- (#604) Constitution & Bylaws (Part XII, Section 4)
- (#609) Guidelines for Treasurers
- (#615) National Manual of Policy and Procedure (2025)
(Section 5, Duties of Officers, Treasurer and Section 8)
Your sister in the League,
Alice Noble
National Secretary-Treasurer