Funds are derived from vending machines, fundraisers in which students & staff both participate. (At the secondary level, fund raisers where ONLY STUDENTS participate should be accounted for in Student Activity Funds.) The school principal or designate is personally responsible for the fund raising plans, proper collection, disbursement, monitoring the cash balance and control of all activity funds at the school.

Campus Activity funds are used to:

• Promote the general welfare of the school

• Promote educational development

• Promote high morale of all students & staff

• Benefit the entire campus and/or student body

• All purchases become property of the district

Cash Receipts & Deposits:

Cash collected should be stored in a locked secure area and deposits made daily. Funds should never be kept in a teacher’s or bookkeeper’s desk and/or classroom or desk. Money must be supported by a pre-numbered receipt books or deposits.

In the event funds are turned in at the end of the school day and cannot be deposited until the next business day then funds must be placed in a safe or vault for security. Money collected from fund raisers should not remain in the building over the weekend or holiday. Cash received is not to be used for cashing checks for any reason. Postdated checks are not to be accepted. Checks are not to be held.

Activity Payments:

TEA requires a budget be created for Campus Activity Funds. The budget is for monitoring purposes, therefore, allowing Finance to review cash balances in an effort to prevent over spending. Budgets should be in accordance of previous years deposits. Purchases are to comply with bid law, local and TEA guidelines. (TEA code, Section 43.031). Purchases should be submitted to an approved vendor with a purchase order and activity funds should NOT be overspent.

Budget managers (school principal OR designate) must approve all purchases and is responsible of safekeeping and controlling of all activity funds at the school.

NOTE: Budget Managers and/or district personnel are NOT responsible for funds controlled by parents, patrons or alumni organizations (i.e. PTA, Booster Clubs, Dad’s Club etc.) and should not be accounted for in activity funds. These organizations represent the school district however are not part of the school district. These organizations may not use the district’s tax exempt number, they must apply for their own.

Items purchased for the school’s own use and is related to the educational process is tax exempt. An item purchased for personal benefit (i.e. t-shirts) are not tax free.

Gifts of any kind may NOT be purchased with district funds including campus activity funds.

Examples of allowable expenses are field trips, perfect attendance incentives for students, classroom and office supplies. Examples of prohibited expenditures are individual memberships, gifts or gift

cards. The attorney general ruled that independent school districts are NOT qualified to hold charitable raffles.

Purchases should never be made with cash hand from a fund raiser. Purchases are with a district approved purchase order.

Employees will not be reimbursed for taxes.

Tax Free & Taxable Sales:

Taxes are not required on the following at any time for public school or school related organizations:

• Fees & Admission tickets if the event is for educational purposes

• Student Club Memberships

• Sales of food and soft drinks that are sold during the regular school day, sold or served by a parent or teacher during a fund raiser, sold by a person under the age of 19 and is a member of an school organization with purpose of fund raising.

Purchases connected with a school district, however, for own use as in a uniform (cheerleaders) are not tax exempt.

Taxes should be collected on the following: (This list is not comprehensive; other taxable sales may be made by a school district.)

• School purchased supplies sold directly to students including athletic equipment and physical education uniforms

• Fees for materials when the end product becomes a possession of the student

• School rings

• Books sold at book fairs to students

Tax-Free Sales (state sales tax is not required on sales of that day)

Each school district, each school and each student group of each school is allowed to have two (2), one-day-tax-free sales each year. The school or student group may sell without charging tax. There is no limit on the number of clubs (student clubs must meet student activity fund criteria) at a school. Fund raising activities are not confined to regular school hours. Pre-orders such as a yearbook may be tax exempt because the books are not delivered at the time. The day the books are delivered can be tax free but purchases on subsequent dates after delivery day owe tax for the purchase.

The state may take action against either the purchaser or the seller for unpaid sales tax. Sellers are responsible for collecting and remitting tax to the state.

State Comptroller’s Office is 800-252-5555 for any tax question.