wiki.occupyboston.org - User contributions [en]

Financial Accountability

2011-11-12T19:14:35Z

Lisa151:

This page is the homepage for the Financial Accountability Working Group (FAWG). Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

[Note: can we delete the old page? please migrate all relevant info from [[Finance Specialists]]. thank you, --[[User:OneKarma|OneKarma]] 15:20, 9 November 2011 (EST)] YES - you can delete the old page. The minutes have been saved and will be reposted to this page at some point. -Lisa

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Email list: [mailto:ob-finance@lists.mayfirst.org ob-finance@lists.mayfirst.org] Join the list and view message archives at [https://lists.mayfirst.org/mailman/listinfo/ob-finance https://lists.mayfirst.org/mailman/listinfo/ob-finance]

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'''VOLUNTEER BOOKKEEPER(S) NEEDED''' - PLEASE EMAIL [mailto:ob-finance@lists.mayfirst.org ob-finance@lists.mayfirst.org]
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'''FAWG Meeting  Schedule'''Sunday:  TBAMonday:  6:00 - 8:00 PM, South Station MezzanineWednesday: 6:00 to 8:00 PM, South Station MezzanineThursday: 3:00 to 5:00 PM, 470 Atlantic Avenue (rear public meeting room)
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'''Current Financial Accountability Working Group Members'''

Shane Aspinall (Facilitation)

B (Food)

Theresa Earle (Media)

Bruce Ehrlich

Lisa Goldstein (Media) occupylisa AT gmail.com

Linda Jenkins, occupylinda @ gmail.com

Matthew Krawitz (IT), OB-FAWG AT theherbalcurrent.com                      (Credit Union Account Signer)

K. Eric Martin (Logistics), 857-236-2734, occupyeric@gmail.com

Jacob McDermott (Media), occupymmedia@gmail.com

Gregory Murphy (Facilitation) 617-413-6472, gsjmurphy @ gmail.com    (Credit Union Account Signer - temporary)

Rene Perez (Logistics), occupyrene@gmail.com

Rita Sebastian (Info)

Stephanie Skier (Logistics)

 '''Current Financial Accountability Working Group Consultants'''

Daniel Paradis, tax lawyer - occupybostongc@gmail.com, 617.470.5049

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'''OccupyBoston Internal Revenue Service and Banking Structure'''

For Occupy Boston to open a credit union account to track donations to the general fund, and any resulting OB expenses, OB needed an Employer Identification Number, provided by the IRS. Gregory Murphy obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston. The IRS mailing address is OccupyBoston P. O. Box 51162, Boston, MA 02205 .

For the same reason and per credit union requirements, Gregory Murphy obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Gregory Murphy dba (doing business as) Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group. This is a temporary measure, simply to get an account open. OB's Financial Accountability Working Group is researching different organizational structures, and, at some point, will make a recommendation to the GA, in the form of a proposal.

On 10/25/11, members of FAWG opened an account at Liberty Bay Credit Union, in the name of Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group, with a total deposit of $15,819.44, which included $5 LBCU gave OB for opening the account. FAWG will make a decision, soon, on whether to move the money in the existing WePay accounts into this credit union account, or possibly into a trust, for an interim period of time.

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[[General Fund Activity|General Fund Activity (checking account)]]
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Monthly Credit Union Statements[[10/31/11|10/31/11]]
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[[FAWG Proposals (Consented)]]
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'''Procedures for Workgroups and Individuals to Obtain Funds''' Each Working Group (WG) may request up to $100 a week (defined as Monday through Sunday) from the Finance Accountability Work Group (FAWG) for purchases of items not available through in-kind donations without going through the General Assembly.  For amounts over $100, an Individual or a Working Group must make a proposal directly to GA. Working Groups need to first register with FAWG in order to receive funds.  The WG fills out a form identifying two or three point people who are selected by that workgroup to make requests for funds on the workgroups' behalf. To request funds from FAWG, the requesting WG obtains the request for funds form at the Logistics tent.  This form requires details on the items requested, planned place of purchase, and cost of each item.  (This advance research of the items to be purchased helps ensure that the $100 limit is not exceeded.)  FAWG is open to disburse funds, onsite, daily, from 12:00 to 3:00 PM. The WG first submits a request form is to Logistics WG, which will try to provide the items requested from its existing stock. If not immediately available, Logistics WG will endeavor to get the same items or reasonable substitutes donated in the next day or two.   If Logistics WG has signed off on items they cannot get donated and must be purchased, the WG brings the form to a FAWG representative during disbursement hours.  Initially disbursement will take place each day from noon to 3:00, currently at the Logistics tent Receipts and change must be returned to the disbursement representative the next day or that workgroup representative loses their ability to receive disbursements.

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[[FAWG Background Check Procedures]]

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GA/Contacts

2011-11-12T18:57:17Z

Lisa151:

NOTICES:

1. IF YOU HAVE NOT GOTTEN AN INTERNAL EMAIL FOR YOUR GROUP, PLEASE WRITE
TO TECH AND GET ONE!

2. I'LL BE CHECKING THE UNCONFIRMED. PLEASE ANSWER IF YOU GET A "TEST" MESSAGE

If yours is marked "no answer" and it actually works, please let me know.
So that the next round can avoid spreading gmail addresses around again. sorry if I missed
yours this round, please try again.

TECH: note that there are still a few without occupyboston.org addresses...unless
directed otherwise, I'll work w/Theresa on this.

See two lists: EMAILS and GROUP/LISTS

Key:
CONFIRMED = the email works, someone actually answered, no ALT EMAIL necessary
ALT EMAIL = an alternate email for those functions where no one answered.

EMAILS:

Direct Action: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET occupybostonDA@gmail.com moving to an internal email. ted says he can't keep up...someone help?

facilitation: facilitation@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL:

occupybostonfacilitation@gmail.com

finance: occupybostonfinance@gmail.com (We do not have a "new style" email account yet - Lisa)

food tent: food@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: lindsey left, per daniel.kontoff@yahoo.com

free school: fsu@occupyboston.org still not clear if it works, eden answered w/her personal email: Eden@akashic.com

Ideas: use: ideas@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

info tent: InfoTent@OccupyBoston.org CONFIRMED

InterOccupation/Connections: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET,

IT: obit@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

Library: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: bostonradref@gmail.com

Legal: oblegal@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

logistics: logistics@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

Medical: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: occupybosmedic@gmail.com

Mediation: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL:

occupybostonmediation@gmail.com

mutli-media: mmedia@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: not available

media/press: ob-media@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL:

occupybostonmedia@gmail.com

music: this is still a private email address...NEED AN OFFICIAL EMAIL ADDRESS

Non-Violence and Civil Disobedience ALT EMAIL:

OccupyBostonNonviolence@gmail.com what's the diff betw this/DA/mediation?

OB Globe: submit@occupybostonglobe.com CONFIRMED

Outreach: oboutreach@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

Safety/Wellness: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: logistics

Signs: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: occupybostonsigns@gmail.com

Speakers: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: occupybostonspeakers@gmail.com

Street Theater: no clue, Scampbell changed the wiki, who is it?

Spirtuality: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET ALT EMAIL:
occupybostonspirituality@gmail.com

Volunteers: volunteer@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: volunteeroccupybos@gmail.com

Winterization: winter@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: ? logistics?

Womens Caucus: obwomen@gmail.com working on occupyboston email

[if you know that any of the following ones are working, but don't say
"confirmed" next to them, please let me know,so I don't have to join the groups to figure it out]
[sorry if you told me already, please tell me again...]

GROUP/LISTS:

energy@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
facilitation@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
food@lists.occupyboston.org
fsu@lists.occupyboston.org
ideas@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
interoccupy@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
legal@lists.occupyboston.org
live@lists.occupyboston.org
ob-media@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
occupybostonoutreach@lists.occupyboston.org
winter@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
womenscaucus@lists.occupyboston.org CONDIRMED, moderator approval req'd
ob-finance@lists.mayfirst.org (The list for FAWG)
obit@lists.mayfirst.org CONFIRMED
transparency@lists.mayfirst.org

IMPORTANT LINKS for public:
http://www.occupyboston.org/get-involved/
Working Groups:http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Working+Groups
Logistics Needs:
http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Committees+Logistics?responseToken=e3bdcb47c8a0a54d77cc05711af2eb2d

commboston@gmail.com
printing: Katherine Harris -617-878-7434 -kharris@seiu615.com
Liaisons:occupybostonliasons@googlegroups.com

GA/Contacts

2011-11-12T18:55:02Z

Lisa151:

NOTICES:

1. IF YOU HAVE NOT GOTTEN AN INTERNAL EMAIL FOR YOUR GROUP, PLEASE WRITE
TO TECH AND GET ONE!

2. I'LL BE CHECKING THE UNCONFIRMED. PLEASE ANSWER IF YOU GET A "TEST" MESSAGE

If yours is marked "no answer" and it actually works, please let me know.
So that the next round can avoid spreading gmail addresses around again. sorry if I missed
yours this round, please try again.

TECH: note that there are still a few without occupyboston.org addresses...unless
directed otherwise, I'll work w/Theresa on this.

See two lists: EMAILS and GROUP/LISTS

Key:
CONFIRMED = the email works, someone actually answered, no ALT EMAIL necessary
ALT EMAIL = an alternate email for those functions where no one answered.

EMAILS:

Direct Action: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET occupybostonDA@gmail.com moving to an internal email. ted says he can't keep up...someone help?

facilitation: facilitation@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL:

occupybostonfacilitation@gmail.com

finance: occupybostonfinance@gmail.com (We do not have a "new style" email account yet - Lisa)

food tent: food@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: lindsey left, per daniel.kontoff@yahoo.com

free school: fsu@occupyboston.org still not clear if it works, eden answered w/her personal email: Eden@akashic.com

Ideas: use: ideas@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

info tent: InfoTent@OccupyBoston.org CONFIRMED

InterOccupation/Connections: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET,

IT: obit@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

Library: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: bostonradref@gmail.com

Legal: oblegal@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

logistics: logistics@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

Medical: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: occupybosmedic@gmail.com

Mediation: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL:

occupybostonmediation@gmail.com

mutli-media: mmedia@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: not available

media/press: ob-media@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL:

occupybostonmedia@gmail.com

music: this is still a private email address...NEED AN OFFICIAL EMAIL ADDRESS

Non-Violence and Civil Disobedience ALT EMAIL:

OccupyBostonNonviolence@gmail.com what's the diff betw this/DA/mediation?

OB Globe: submit@occupybostonglobe.com CONFIRMED

Outreach: oboutreach@occupyboston.org CONFIRMED

Safety/Wellness: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: logistics

Signs: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: occupybostonsigns@gmail.com

Speakers: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET? ALT EMAIL: occupybostonspeakers@gmail.com

Street Theater: no clue, Scampbell changed the wiki, who is it?

Spirtuality: NO INTERNAL EMAIL YET ALT EMAIL:
occupybostonspirituality@gmail.com

Volunteers: volunteer@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: volunteeroccupybos@gmail.com

Winterization: winter@occupyboston.org no answer, ALT EMAIL: ? logistics?

Womens Caucus: obwomen@gmail.com working on occupyboston email

[if you know that any of the following ones are working, but don't say
"confirmed" next to them, please let me know,so I don't have to join the groups to figure it out]
[sorry if you told me already, please tell me again...]

GROUP/LISTS:

energy@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
facilitation@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
fawg-record@lists.occupyboston.org
food@lists.occupyboston.org
fsu@lists.occupyboston.org
ideas@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
interoccupy@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
legal@lists.occupyboston.org
live@lists.occupyboston.org
ob-media@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
occupybostonoutreach@lists.occupyboston.org
winter@lists.occupyboston.org CONFIRMED
womenscaucus@lists.occupyboston.org CONDIRMED, moderator approval req'd
ob-finance@lists.mayfirst.org
obit@lists.mayfirst.org CONFIRMED
transparency@lists.mayfirst.org

IMPORTANT LINKS for public:
http://www.occupyboston.org/get-involved/
Working Groups:http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Working+Groups
Logistics Needs:
http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Committees+Logistics?responseToken=e3bdcb47c8a0a54d77cc05711af2eb2d

commboston@gmail.com
printing: Katherine Harris -617-878-7434 -kharris@seiu615.com
Liaisons:occupybostonliasons@googlegroups.com

Financial Accountability

2011-10-28T20:03:32Z

Lisa151:

This page is the homepage for the Financial Accountability Working Group (FAWG). Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

----

'''Current Financial Accountability Working Group Members'''

Shane Aspinall (Facilitation)

B (Food)

Theresa Earle (Media)

Bruce Ehrlich

Lisa Goldstein (Media) occupylisa AT gmail.com

Linda Jenkins, occupylinda @ gmail.com

Matthew Krawitz (IT), OB-FAWG AT theherbalcurrent.com                      (Credit Union Account Signer)

K. Eric Martin (Logistics), 857-236-2734, occupyeric@gmail.com

Jacob McDermott (Media), occupymmedia@gmail.com

Gregory Murphy (Facilitation) 617-413-6472, gsjmurphy @ gmail.com    (Credit Union Account Signer - temporary)

Ariel Oshinsky (Logistics)

Rene Perez (Logistics), occupyrene@gmail.com

Rita Sebastian (Info)

Stephanie Skier (Logistics)

 '''Current Financial Accountability Working Group Consultants'''

Daniel Paradis, tax lawyer - occupygc@gmail.com, 617.470.5049

----

'''OccupyBoston Internal Revenue Service and Banking Structure'''

• To open a credit union account, OB needed an Employer Identification Number, provided by the IRS. Gregory Murphy obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston. Currently his mailing address is the IRS address. As soon as an OccupyBoston P.O. Box is secured, FAWG will notify the IRS of this change of address.

   Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston and has not shared that paperwork or information with FAWG.

• Gregory Murphy obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Gregory Murphy dba (doing business as) Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group

   Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Paul Carnes (we think) dba Occupy Boston. Mr. Carnes has not shared that paperwork with FAWG.

• On 10/25/11, members of FAWG opened an account at Liberty Bay Credit Union, in the name of Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group, with a total deposit of $15,819.44, which included $5 LBCU gave us for opening the account. FAWG will make a decision, soon, on whether to move the money in the WePay accounts into this credit union account, or possibly into a trust, for an interim period of time.

   Note: It is FAWG's understanding that Mr. Carnes opened an account at the same credit union, on 10/20/11. He has not shared any paperwork with FAWG and maintains that this account is for his fundraising purposes, on behalf of OccupyBoston.

----

'''Below is FAWG Proposal #1, consented to by the General Assembly, on 10/15'''/'''11.''' The Finance Working Group will oversee the accounting of all monetary donations and monetary disbursements. Specific targeted funds, such as the Legal/Bail fund, are already allocated and do not require any further approval by the General Assembly.

For the general Occupy Boston funds, Working Groups and individual requests for cash disbursements in amounts more than $100 per week must be proposed directly to and approved by the General Assembly.  The Finance  Working Group has the authority to approve and disburse up to $100 per week to each Working Group. Each Working Group will determine at least two (2) pointpersons for monetary disbursements and register those names and contact information with the Finance Acountability Working Group, in order to ensure accountability and transparency in monetary disbursements. Working groups will fill out cash disbursement request forms and submit them to the Finance Working Group. Part of that process will be to detail the items requested and to check first with Logistics Working Group to make sure that the requested items are not readily available as in-kind donations. Working Groups must submit receipts for purchased items and any change back to the Finance Working Group. If a Working Group pointperson does not provide receipts or absconds with the funds, that pointperson will not be allowed to receive further cash disbursements. 

Monetary donations made to the Food Working Group stay autonomous with transparency through biweekly reports of money taken in and going out and copies of receipts to the Finance Working Group.

Members of the Finance Working Group will be on site at a specified time each day to accept disbursement forms and to make disbursements.

Minutes of the Finance Working Group will be posted publicly. The Finance Working Group will make financial records publicly available.

----

'''Procedures for Workgroups and Individuals to Obtain Funds'''

Each Working Group (WG) may request up to $100 a week (defined as Monday through Sunday) from the Finance Accountability Work Group (FAWG) for purchases of items not available through in-kind donations without going through the General Assembly.  For amounts over $100, an Individual or a Working Group must make a proposal directly to GA. Working Groups need to first register with FAWG in order to receive funds.  The WG fills out a form identifying two or three point people who are selected by that workgroup to make requests for funds on the workgroups' behalf. To request funds from FAWG, the requesting WG obtains the request for funds form at the Logistics tent.  This form requires details on the items requested, planned place of purchase, and cost of each item.  (This advance research of the items to be purchased helps ensure that the $100 limit is not exceeded.) The WG first submits a request form is to Logistics WG, which will try to provide the items requested from its existing stock. If not immediately available, Logistics WG will endeavor to get the same items or reasonable substitutes donated in the next day or two.   If Logistics WG has signed off on items they cannot get donated and must be purchased, the WG brings the form to a FAWG representative during disbursement hours.  Initially disbursement will take place each day from noon to 3:00, currently at the Logistics tent Receipts and change must be returned to the disbursement representative the next day or that workgroup representative loses their ability to receive disbursements.

Financial Accountability

2011-10-27T00:52:15Z

Lisa151:

This page is the homepage for the Financial Accuntability Working Group (FAWG). Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Members'''

Shane Aspinall (Facilitation), shaneaspi01[at]gmail.com

Theresa Earle (Media), theresaoccupyboston[at]gmail.com

Lisa Goldstein (Media), occupylisa[at]gmail.com

Matthew Krawitz (IT), matthewk[at]theherbalcurrent.com   (Credit Union Account Signer)

K. Eric Martin (Logistics), 857-236-2734, occupyeric[at]gmail.com

Gregory Murphy (Facilitation) 617-413-6472, gsjmurphy[at]gmail.com    (Credit Union Account Signer - temporary)

Rene Perez (Logistics), occupyrene[at]gmail.com

Rita Sebastian (Info), rita[at]brandeis.edu

Stephanie Skier (Logistics), skier[at]gmail.com

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Consultants'''

Daniel Paradis - tax lawyer

'''OccupyBoston Internal Revenue Service and Banking Structure'''

To open a credit union account, OB needed an Employer Identification Number, provided by the IRS. Gregory Murphy obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston. Currently his mailing address is the IRS address. As soon as an OccupyBoston P.O. Box is secured, FAWG will notify the IRS of this change of address.

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston and has not shared that paperwork or information with FAWG.

Gregory Murphy obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Gregory Murphy dba (doing business as) Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Paul Carnes (we think) dba Occupy Boston. Mr. Carnes has not shared that paperwork with FAWG.

On 10/25/11, five members of FAWG assembled at Liberty Bay Credit Union (131 Oliver Street, Boston) to open an account and deposit funds gathered from daily swweps of the monies donated at the camp site. That acount is in the name of Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group. That intital deposit total was $15,819.44. FAWG opened a Savings Account with $10,000 in it and deposited $5819.44 in a Checking Account. Libery Bay donated $5 to the checking account, a standard business practice for them.

Note:  On 10/19/11 (we think) Mr. Carnes also opened an account at Liberty Bay. He has provided FAWG with no documentation, nor the amount of his opening deposit. Our assumption is that he used monies donated at the camp to open this account.

= Working Group Meeting Minutes =

== ([[Instructions for Uploading Minutes|Instructions for Uploading Minutes]]) ==

Minutes for Monday October 24, 2011 3:15pm to 5:15 pm

(Note - this meeting had many people from other workgroups attending. Total attendance was about 20 people. I did not get a list of names for my notes.)

1. Discussion of Paul Carnes' actions in opening CU account, EIN and DBA but refusing to give any information on these items or control of them back to the workgroup.

Last week Paul obtained a dba (doing business as) and EIN (a group tax id number) for Occupy Boston and opened a bank account as requested by the group. However, both he and Sydney have repeatedly refused to give any copies of these forms or information about them to the workgroup. No other person has been given any access to this bank account - Paul and Sydney are the only signers. There were also other issues of Paul repeatedly not following procedures for cash disbursement and other financial procedures. Paul and Sydney left the meeting at 4:00. After further discussion, the following resolution was proposed and passed unanimously:

"Be it resolved that any actions taken by Paul Carnes are not sanctioned by the Finance Accountability Work Group, including any credit union accounts remaining open, monies spent by him, or any fundraising efforts."

Additionally, both Paul Carnes and Sydney Sherrel were voted out of the Financial Accountability Work Group by unanimous vote.

2. Lawyer Dan Paradis spoke with the group about a number of issues and answered questions people had. Topics included how to establish a DBA now that Paul has already done so but refused to give use of it back to the workgroup. There was also general discussion of some pros and cons of different forms of legal entities.

Without a formal legal structure and organizational liability insurance, people of a responsible character are reluctant to become check signers on a OB bank account. We spoke with Dan about using a trust account at his law firm to store the main part of our funds and have a credit union account with limited cash in it. This will be discussed further on our Wednesday meeting from 3-5.

3. Next steps:

*Rita Sebastian will get a larger PO Box with a new number.
*Greg will add this PO Box address to the formal EIN number registration he obtained on Monday (as requested at the last meeting.)
*This new PO Box will be used as the offical mailing address for any future bank account, dba, or other formal paperwork. This prevents important paperwork being sent to one person's home.
*FAWG members will attend Tuesday's GA to inform the GA of what has transpired. Current consensus is we will ask the GA to censure Paul if he is not willing to sign a City of Boston form rescinding his DBA for Occupy Boston and close the credit union account he opened.

Next meeting is Wednesday from 3:00 - 5:00. We will have two lawyers attending to help us work through the pros and cons of different possible forms of legal structure.

[[File:FAWG minutes Oct 19 2011 PM.txt|RTENOTITLE]]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

= Working Group Forms =

'''Cash Disbursement Request''' - [[File:OB Cash Disbursement Form.pdf|RTENOTITLE]]

= Finance Support Logistics =

[[Camp - Assets|Assets]]

== Operation Expenses ==

=== On-Going Expenses ===

*Item - $xx.xx per (hour|day|month|year|mb|gallon|lb|etc)

== GA approved proposals ==

Below is the text of the proposal that was passed at the GA on 10/15.

The Finance Working Group will oversee the accounting of all monetary donations and monetary disbursements.Specific targeted funds, such as the Legal/Bail fund, are already allocated and do not require any further approval by the General Assembly.

For the general Occupy Boston funds, Working Groups and individual requests for cash disbursements in amounts more than $100 per week must be proposed directly to and approved by the General Assembly. The Finance Working Group has the authority to approve and disburse up to $100 per week to each Working Group.

Each Working Group will determine at least two (2) pointpersons for monetary disbursements and register those names and contact information with the Finance Working Group, in order to ensure accountability and transparency in monetary disbursements. Working groups will fill out cash disbursement request forms and submit them to the Finance Working Group. Part of that process will be to detail the items requested and to check first with Logistics Working Group to make sure that the requested items are not readily available as in-kind donations.

Working Groups must submit receipts for purchased items and any change back to the Finance Working Group.

If a Working Group pointperson does not provide receipts or absconds with the funds, that pointperson will not be allowed to receive further cash disbursements.

Monetary donations made to the Food Working Group stay autonomous with transparency through biweekly reports of money taken in and going out and copies of receipts to the Finance Working Group.

Members of the Finance Working Group will be on site at a specified time each day to accept disbursement forms and to make disbursements. Minutes of the finance Working Group will be posted publicly. The Finance Working Group will make financial records publicly available.

== Proposals ==

= Finance and Social Policy =

[This page is for Occupy Boston finance and accounting procedures. For discussions on general finance reform, etc, please look on the Issues link to the left and then look at the specific reforms/issues being discussed. Please keep this page to "internal finance".]

----

''Based on: [http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Finance+Working+Group Finance Working Group at wikispaces]''

Financial Accountability

2011-10-27T00:51:37Z

Lisa151:

This page is the homepage for the Financial Accuntability Working Group (FAWG). Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Members'''

Shane Aspinall (Facilitation), shaneaspi01[at]gmail.com

Theresa Earle (Media), theresaoccupyboston[at]gmail.com

Lisa Goldstein (Media), occupylisa[at]gmail.com

Matthew Krawitz (IT), matthewk@theherbalcurrent.com   (Credit Union Account Signer)

K. Eric Martin (Logistics), 857-236-2734, occupyeric[at]gmail.com

Gregory Murphy (Facilitation) 617-413-6472, gsjmurphy[at]gmail.com    (Credit Union Account Signer - temporary)

Rene Perez (Logistics), occupyrene[at]gmail.com

Rita Sebastian (Info), rita[at]brandeis.edu

Stephanie Skier (Logistics), skier[at]gmail.com

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Consultants'''

Daniel Paradis - tax lawyer

'''OccupyBoston Internal Revenue Service and Banking Structure'''

To open a credit union account, OB needed an Employer Identification Number, provided by the IRS. Gregory Murphy obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston. Currently his mailing address is the IRS address. As soon as an OccupyBoston P.O. Box is secured, FAWG will notify the IRS of this change of address.

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston and has not shared that paperwork or information with FAWG.

Gregory Murphy obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Gregory Murphy dba (doing business as) Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Paul Carnes (we think) dba Occupy Boston. Mr. Carnes has not shared that paperwork with FAWG.

On 10/25/11, five members of FAWG assembled at Liberty Bay Credit Union (131 Oliver Street, Boston) to open an account and deposit funds gathered from daily swweps of the monies donated at the camp site. That acount is in the name of Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group. That intital deposit total was $15,819.44. FAWG opened a Savings Account with $10,000 in it and deposited $5819.44 in a Checking Account. Libery Bay donated $5 to the checking account, a standard business practice for them.

Note:  On 10/19/11 (we think) Mr. Carnes also opened an account at Liberty Bay. He has provided FAWG with no documentation, nor the amount of his opening deposit. Our assumption is that he used monies donated at the camp to open this account.

= Working Group Meeting Minutes =

== ([[Instructions for Uploading Minutes|Instructions for Uploading Minutes]]) ==

Minutes for Monday October 24, 2011 3:15pm to 5:15 pm

(Note - this meeting had many people from other workgroups attending. Total attendance was about 20 people. I did not get a list of names for my notes.)

1. Discussion of Paul Carnes' actions in opening CU account, EIN and DBA but refusing to give any information on these items or control of them back to the workgroup.

Last week Paul obtained a dba (doing business as) and EIN (a group tax id number) for Occupy Boston and opened a bank account as requested by the group. However, both he and Sydney have repeatedly refused to give any copies of these forms or information about them to the workgroup. No other person has been given any access to this bank account - Paul and Sydney are the only signers. There were also other issues of Paul repeatedly not following procedures for cash disbursement and other financial procedures. Paul and Sydney left the meeting at 4:00. After further discussion, the following resolution was proposed and passed unanimously:

"Be it resolved that any actions taken by Paul Carnes are not sanctioned by the Finance Accountability Work Group, including any credit union accounts remaining open, monies spent by him, or any fundraising efforts."

Additionally, both Paul Carnes and Sydney Sherrel were voted out of the Financial Accountability Work Group by unanimous vote.

2. Lawyer Dan Paradis spoke with the group about a number of issues and answered questions people had. Topics included how to establish a DBA now that Paul has already done so but refused to give use of it back to the workgroup. There was also general discussion of some pros and cons of different forms of legal entities.

Without a formal legal structure and organizational liability insurance, people of a responsible character are reluctant to become check signers on a OB bank account. We spoke with Dan about using a trust account at his law firm to store the main part of our funds and have a credit union account with limited cash in it. This will be discussed further on our Wednesday meeting from 3-5.

3. Next steps:

*Rita Sebastian will get a larger PO Box with a new number.
*Greg will add this PO Box address to the formal EIN number registration he obtained on Monday (as requested at the last meeting.)
*This new PO Box will be used as the offical mailing address for any future bank account, dba, or other formal paperwork. This prevents important paperwork being sent to one person's home.
*FAWG members will attend Tuesday's GA to inform the GA of what has transpired. Current consensus is we will ask the GA to censure Paul if he is not willing to sign a City of Boston form rescinding his DBA for Occupy Boston and close the credit union account he opened.

Next meeting is Wednesday from 3:00 - 5:00. We will have two lawyers attending to help us work through the pros and cons of different possible forms of legal structure.

[[File:FAWG minutes Oct 19 2011 PM.txt|RTENOTITLE]]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

= Working Group Forms =

'''Cash Disbursement Request''' - [[File:OB Cash Disbursement Form.pdf|RTENOTITLE]]

= Finance Support Logistics =

[[Camp - Assets|Assets]]

== Operation Expenses ==

=== On-Going Expenses ===

*Item - $xx.xx per (hour|day|month|year|mb|gallon|lb|etc)

== GA approved proposals ==

Below is the text of the proposal that was passed at the GA on 10/15.

The Finance Working Group will oversee the accounting of all monetary donations and monetary disbursements.Specific targeted funds, such as the Legal/Bail fund, are already allocated and do not require any further approval by the General Assembly.

For the general Occupy Boston funds, Working Groups and individual requests for cash disbursements in amounts more than $100 per week must be proposed directly to and approved by the General Assembly. The Finance Working Group has the authority to approve and disburse up to $100 per week to each Working Group.

Each Working Group will determine at least two (2) pointpersons for monetary disbursements and register those names and contact information with the Finance Working Group, in order to ensure accountability and transparency in monetary disbursements. Working groups will fill out cash disbursement request forms and submit them to the Finance Working Group. Part of that process will be to detail the items requested and to check first with Logistics Working Group to make sure that the requested items are not readily available as in-kind donations.

Working Groups must submit receipts for purchased items and any change back to the Finance Working Group.

If a Working Group pointperson does not provide receipts or absconds with the funds, that pointperson will not be allowed to receive further cash disbursements.

Monetary donations made to the Food Working Group stay autonomous with transparency through biweekly reports of money taken in and going out and copies of receipts to the Finance Working Group.

Members of the Finance Working Group will be on site at a specified time each day to accept disbursement forms and to make disbursements. Minutes of the finance Working Group will be posted publicly. The Finance Working Group will make financial records publicly available.

== Proposals ==

= Finance and Social Policy =

[This page is for Occupy Boston finance and accounting procedures. For discussions on general finance reform, etc, please look on the Issues link to the left and then look at the specific reforms/issues being discussed. Please keep this page to "internal finance".]

----

''Based on: [http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Finance+Working+Group Finance Working Group at wikispaces]''

Financial Accountability

2011-10-27T00:39:37Z

Lisa151: /* Proposals */

This page is the homepage for the Financial Accuntability Working Group (FAWG). Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Members'''

Shane Aspinall (Facilitation), shaneaspi01[at]gmail.com

Theresa Earle (Media), theresaoccupyboston[at]gmail.com

Lisa Goldstein (Media), occupylisa[at]gmail.com

Matthew Krawitz (IT), matthewk@theherbalcurrent.com   (Credit Union Account Signer)

K. Eric Martin (Logistics), occupyeric[at]gmail.com

Gregory Murphy (Facilitation) 617-413-6472, gsjmurphy[at]gmail.com    (Credit Union Account Signer - temporary)

Rene Perez (Logistics), occupyrene[at]gmail.com

Rita Sebastian (Info), rita[at]brandeis.edu

Stephanie Skier (Logistics), skier[at]gmail.com

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Consultants'''

Daniel Paradis - tax lawyer

'''OccupyBoston Internal Revenue Service and Banking Structure'''

To open a credit union account, OB needed an Employer Identification Number, provided by the IRS. Gregory Murphy obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston. Currently his mailing address is the IRS address. As soon as an OccupyBoston P.O. Box is secured, FAWG will notify the IRS of this change of address.

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston and has not shared that paperwork or information with FAWG.

Gregory Murphy obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Gregory Murphy dba (doing business as) Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Paul Carnes (we think) dba Occupy Boston. Mr. Carnes has not shared that paperwork with FAWG.

On 10/25/11, five members of FAWG assembled at Liberty Bay Credit Union (131 Oliver Street, Boston) to open an account and deposit funds gathered from daily swweps of the monies donated at the camp site. That acount is in the name of Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group. That intital deposit total was $15,819.44. FAWG opened a Savings Account with $10,000 in it and deposited $5819.44 in a Checking Account. Libery Bay donated $5 to the checking account, a standard business practice for them.

Note:  On 10/19/11 (we think) Mr. Carnes also opened an account at Liberty Bay. He has provided FAWG with no documentation, nor the amount of his opening deposit. Our assumption is that he used monies donated at the camp to open this account.

= Working Group Meeting Minutes =

== ([[Instructions for Uploading Minutes|Instructions for Uploading Minutes]]) ==

Minutes for Monday October 24, 2011 3:15pm to 5:15 pm

(Note - this meeting had many people from other workgroups attending. Total attendance was about 20 people. I did not get a list of names for my notes.)

1. Discussion of Paul Carnes' actions in opening CU account, EIN and DBA but refusing to give any information on these items or control of them back to the workgroup.

Last week Paul obtained a dba (doing business as) and EIN (a group tax id number) for Occupy Boston and opened a bank account as requested by the group. However, both he and Sydney have repeatedly refused to give any copies of these forms or information about them to the workgroup. No other person has been given any access to this bank account - Paul and Sydney are the only signers. There were also other issues of Paul repeatedly not following procedures for cash disbursement and other financial procedures. Paul and Sydney left the meeting at 4:00. After further discussion, the following resolution was proposed and passed unanimously:

"Be it resolved that any actions taken by Paul Carnes are not sanctioned by the Finance Accountability Work Group, including any credit union accounts remaining open, monies spent by him, or any fundraising efforts."

Additionally, both Paul Carnes and Sydney Sherrel were voted out of the Financial Accountability Work Group by unanimous vote.

2. Lawyer Dan Paradis spoke with the group about a number of issues and answered questions people had. Topics included how to establish a DBA now that Paul has already done so but refused to give use of it back to the workgroup. There was also general discussion of some pros and cons of different forms of legal entities.

Without a formal legal structure and organizational liability insurance, people of a responsible character are reluctant to become check signers on a OB bank account. We spoke with Dan about using a trust account at his law firm to store the main part of our funds and have a credit union account with limited cash in it. This will be discussed further on our Wednesday meeting from 3-5.

3. Next steps:

*Rita Sebastian will get a larger PO Box with a new number.
*Greg will add this PO Box address to the formal EIN number registration he obtained on Monday (as requested at the last meeting.)
*This new PO Box will be used as the offical mailing address for any future bank account, dba, or other formal paperwork. This prevents important paperwork being sent to one person's home.
*FAWG members will attend Tuesday's GA to inform the GA of what has transpired. Current consensus is we will ask the GA to censure Paul if he is not willing to sign a City of Boston form rescinding his DBA for Occupy Boston and close the credit union account he opened.

Next meeting is Wednesday from 3:00 - 5:00. We will have two lawyers attending to help us work through the pros and cons of different possible forms of legal structure.

[[File:FAWG minutes Oct 19 2011 PM.txt|RTENOTITLE]]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

= Working Group Forms =

'''Cash Disbursement Request''' - [[File:OB Cash Disbursement Form.pdf|RTENOTITLE]]

= Finance Support Logistics =

[[Camp - Assets|Assets]]

== Operation Expenses ==

=== On-Going Expenses ===

*Item - $xx.xx per (hour|day|month|year|mb|gallon|lb|etc)

== GA approved proposals ==

Below is the text of the proposal that was passed at the GA on 10/15.

The Finance Working Group will oversee the accounting of all monetary donations and monetary disbursements.Specific targeted funds, such as the Legal/Bail fund, are already allocated and do not require any further approval by the General Assembly.

For the general Occupy Boston funds, Working Groups and individual requests for cash disbursements in amounts more than $100 per week must be proposed directly to and approved by the General Assembly. The Finance Working Group has the authority to approve and disburse up to $100 per week to each Working Group.

Each Working Group will determine at least two (2) pointpersons for monetary disbursements and register those names and contact information with the Finance Working Group, in order to ensure accountability and transparency in monetary disbursements. Working groups will fill out cash disbursement request forms and submit them to the Finance Working Group. Part of that process will be to detail the items requested and to check first with Logistics Working Group to make sure that the requested items are not readily available as in-kind donations.

Working Groups must submit receipts for purchased items and any change back to the Finance Working Group.

If a Working Group pointperson does not provide receipts or absconds with the funds, that pointperson will not be allowed to receive further cash disbursements.

Monetary donations made to the Food Working Group stay autonomous with transparency through biweekly reports of money taken in and going out and copies of receipts to the Finance Working Group.

Members of the Finance Working Group will be on site at a specified time each day to accept disbursement forms and to make disbursements. Minutes of the finance Working Group will be posted publicly. The Finance Working Group will make financial records publicly available.

== Proposals ==

= Finance and Social Policy =

[This page is for Occupy Boston finance and accounting procedures. For discussions on general finance reform, etc, please look on the Issues link to the left and then look at the specific reforms/issues being discussed. Please keep this page to "internal finance".]

----

''Based on: [http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Finance+Working+Group Finance Working Group at wikispaces]''

Financial Accountability

2011-10-27T00:37:55Z

Lisa151:

This page is the homepage for the Financial Accuntability Working Group (FAWG). Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Members'''

Shane Aspinall (Facilitation), shaneaspi01[at]gmail.com

Theresa Earle (Media), theresaoccupyboston[at]gmail.com

Lisa Goldstein (Media), occupylisa[at]gmail.com

Matthew Krawitz (IT), matthewk@theherbalcurrent.com   (Credit Union Account Signer)

K. Eric Martin (Logistics), occupyeric[at]gmail.com

Gregory Murphy (Facilitation) 617-413-6472, gsjmurphy[at]gmail.com    (Credit Union Account Signer - temporary)

Rene Perez (Logistics), occupyrene[at]gmail.com

Rita Sebastian (Info), rita[at]brandeis.edu

Stephanie Skier (Logistics), skier[at]gmail.com

'''Current Financial Accuntability Working Group Consultants'''

Daniel Paradis - tax lawyer

'''OccupyBoston Internal Revenue Service and Banking Structure'''

To open a credit union account, OB needed an Employer Identification Number, provided by the IRS. Gregory Murphy obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston. Currently his mailing address is the IRS address. As soon as an OccupyBoston P.O. Box is secured, FAWG will notify the IRS of this change of address.

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained an EIN in the name of OccupyBoston and has not shared that paperwork or information with FAWG.

Gregory Murphy obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Gregory Murphy dba (doing business as) Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group

Note:  Paul Carnes also obtained a Certificate of Business from the City of Boston. That certificate lists Paul Carnes (we think) dba Occupy Boston. Mr. Carnes has not shared that paperwork with FAWG.

On 10/25/11, five members of FAWG assembled at Liberty Bay Credit Union (131 Oliver Street, Boston) to open an account and deposit funds gathered from daily swweps of the monies donated at the camp site. That acount is in the name of Occupy Boston Financial Accountability Working Group. That intital deposit total was $15,819.44. FAWG opened a Savings Account with $10,000 in it and deposited $5819.44 in a Checking Account. Libery Bay donated $5 to the checking account, a standard business practice for them.

Note:  On 10/19/11 (we think) Mr. Carnes also opened an account at Liberty Bay. He has provided FAWG with no documentation, nor the amount of his opening deposit. Our assumption is that he used monies donated at the camp to open this account.

= Working Group Meeting Minutes =

== ([[Instructions for Uploading Minutes|Instructions for Uploading Minutes]]) ==

Minutes for Monday October 24, 2011 3:15pm to 5:15 pm

(Note - this meeting had many people from other workgroups attending. Total attendance was about 20 people. I did not get a list of names for my notes.)

1. Discussion of Paul Carnes' actions in opening CU account, EIN and DBA but refusing to give any information on these items or control of them back to the workgroup.

Last week Paul obtained a dba (doing business as) and EIN (a group tax id number) for Occupy Boston and opened a bank account as requested by the group. However, both he and Sydney have repeatedly refused to give any copies of these forms or information about them to the workgroup. No other person has been given any access to this bank account - Paul and Sydney are the only signers. There were also other issues of Paul repeatedly not following procedures for cash disbursement and other financial procedures. Paul and Sydney left the meeting at 4:00. After further discussion, the following resolution was proposed and passed unanimously:

"Be it resolved that any actions taken by Paul Carnes are not sanctioned by the Finance Accountability Work Group, including any credit union accounts remaining open, monies spent by him, or any fundraising efforts."

Additionally, both Paul Carnes and Sydney Sherrel were voted out of the Financial Accountability Work Group by unanimous vote.

2. Lawyer Dan Paradis spoke with the group about a number of issues and answered questions people had. Topics included how to establish a DBA now that Paul has already done so but refused to give use of it back to the workgroup. There was also general discussion of some pros and cons of different forms of legal entities.

Without a formal legal structure and organizational liability insurance, people of a responsible character are reluctant to become check signers on a OB bank account. We spoke with Dan about using a trust account at his law firm to store the main part of our funds and have a credit union account with limited cash in it. This will be discussed further on our Wednesday meeting from 3-5.

3. Next steps:

*Rita Sebastian will get a larger PO Box with a new number.
*Greg will add this PO Box address to the formal EIN number registration he obtained on Monday (as requested at the last meeting.)
*This new PO Box will be used as the offical mailing address for any future bank account, dba, or other formal paperwork. This prevents important paperwork being sent to one person's home.
*FAWG members will attend Tuesday's GA to inform the GA of what has transpired. Current consensus is we will ask the GA to censure Paul if he is not willing to sign a City of Boston form rescinding his DBA for Occupy Boston and close the credit union account he opened.

Next meeting is Wednesday from 3:00 - 5:00. We will have two lawyers attending to help us work through the pros and cons of different possible forms of legal structure.

[[File:FAWG minutes Oct 19 2011 PM.txt|RTENOTITLE]]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

= Working Group Forms =

'''Cash Disbursement Request''' - [[File:OB Cash Disbursement Form.pdf|RTENOTITLE]]

= Finance Support Logistics =

[[Camp - Assets|Assets]]

== Operation Expenses ==

=== On-Going Expenses ===

*Item - $xx.xx per (hour|day|month|year|mb|gallon|lb|etc)

== GA approved proposals ==

Below is the text of the proposal that was passed at the GA on 10/15.

The Finance Working Group will oversee the accounting of all monetary donations and monetary disbursements.Specific targeted funds, such as the Legal/Bail fund, are already allocated and do not require any further approval by the General Assembly.

For the general Occupy Boston funds, Working Groups and individual requests for cash disbursements in amounts more than $100 per week must be proposed directly to and approved by the General Assembly. The Finance Working Group has the authority to approve and disburse up to $100 per week to each Working Group.

Each Working Group will determine at least two (2) pointpersons for monetary disbursements and register those names and contact information with the Finance Working Group, in order to ensure accountability and transparency in monetary disbursements. Working groups will fill out cash disbursement request forms and submit them to the Finance Working Group. Part of that process will be to detail the items requested and to check first with Logistics Working Group to make sure that the requested items are not readily available as in-kind donations.

Working Groups must submit receipts for purchased items and any change back to the Finance Working Group.

If a Working Group pointperson does not provide receipts or absconds with the funds, that pointperson will not be allowed to receive further cash disbursements.

Monetary donations made to the Food Working Group stay autonomous with transparency through biweekly reports of money taken in and going out and copies of receipts to the Finance Working Group.

Members of the Finance Working Group will be on site at a specified time each day to accept disbursement forms and to make disbursements. Minutes of the finance Working Group will be posted publicly. The Finance Working Group will make financial records publicly available.

== Proposals ==

==='''Tech'''=== [[Video Streaming Proposal|Video Streaming Proposal]] - $3050 + ~$460 monthly

Total of Proposed Asset purchases needed : $3050 Total of Proposed Estimated monthly costs: $460

= Finance and Social Policy =

[This page is for Occupy Boston finance and accounting procedures. For discussions on general finance reform, etc, please look on the Issues link to the left and then look at the specific reforms/issues being discussed. Please keep this page to "internal finance".]

----

''Based on: [http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Finance+Working+Group Finance Working Group at wikispaces]''

Financial Accountability

2011-10-25T03:33:37Z

Lisa151: /* (Instructions for Uploading Minutes) */

This page is the homepage for the Finance Working Group. Please fill this in with pertinent information and resources for newcomers. Use the Discussion tab above to start discussions.

=Working Group Meeting Minutes=
==([[Instructions for Uploading Minutes|Instructions for Uploading Minutes]])==

Minutes for Monday October 24, 2011 3:15pm to 5:15 pm

(Note - this meeting had many people from other workgroups attending. Total attendance was about 20 people. I did not get a list of names for my notes.)

1. Discussion of Paul Carnes' actions in opening CU account, EIN and DBA but refusing to give any information on these items or control of them back to the workgroup.

Last week Paul obtained a dba (doing business as) and EIN (a group tax id number) for Occupy Boston and opened a bank account as requested by the group. However, both he and Sydney have repeatedly refused to give any copies of these forms or information about them to the workgroup. No other person has been given any access to this bank account - Paul and Sydney are the only signers. There were also other issues of Paul repeatedly not following procedures for cash disbursement and other financial procedures. Paul and Sydney left the meeting at 4:00. After further discussion, the following resolution was proposed and passed unanimously:

"Be it resolved that any actions taken by Paul Carnes are not sanctioned by the Finance Accountability Work Group, including any credit union
accounts remaining open, monies spent by him, or any fundraising efforts."

Additionally, both Paul Carnes and Sydney Sherrel were voted out of the Financial Accountability Work Group by unanimous vote.

2. Lawyer Dan Paradis spoke with the group about a number of issues and answered questions people had. Topics included how to establish a DBA now that Paul has already done so but refused to give use of it back to the workgroup. There was also general discussion of some pros and cons of different forms of legal entities.

Without a formal legal structure and organizational liability insurance, people of a responsible character are reluctant to become check signers on a OB bank account. We spoke with Dan about using a trust account at his law firm to store the main part of our funds and have a credit union account with limited cash in it. This will be discussed further on our Wednesday meeting from 3-5.

3. Next steps:

* Rita Sebastian will get a larger PO Box with a new number.
* Greg will add this PO Box address to the formal EIN number registration he obtained on Monday (as requested at the last meeting.)
* This new PO Box will be used as the offical mailing address for any future bank account, dba, or other formal paperwork. This prevents important paperwork being sent to one person's home.
* FAWG members will attend Tuesday's GA to inform the GA of what has transpired. Current consensus is we will ask the GA to censure Paul if he is not willing to sign a City of Boston form rescinding his DBA for Occupy Boston and close the credit union account he opened.

Next meeting is Wednesday from 3:00 - 5:00.
We will have two lawyers attending to help us work through the pros and cons of different possible forms of legal structure.

[[File:FAWG_minutes_Oct_19_2011_PM.txt]]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_14_2011_PM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

[http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/file/view/FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt FAWG_minutes_Oct_15_2011_AM.txt] - [task: download and transfer mins from wikispaces and upload here]

=Working Group Forms=
'''Cash Disbursement Request''' - [[File:OB_Cash_Disbursement_Form.pdf]]

=Finance Support Logistics=
[[Camp - Assets|Assets]]
==Operation Expenses==
===On-Going Expenses===

* Item - $xx.xx per (hour|day|month|year|mb|gallon|lb|etc)

==GA approved proposals==

Below is the text of the proposal that was passed at the GA on 10/15.

The Finance Working Group will oversee the accounting of all monetary
donations and monetary disbursements.Specific targeted funds, such as
the Legal/Bail fund, are already allocated and do not require any
further approval by the General Assembly.

For the general Occupy Boston funds, Working Groups and individual
requests for cash disbursements in amounts more than $100 per week
must be proposed directly to and approved by the General Assembly.
The Finance Working Group has the authority to approve and disburse up
to $100 per week to each Working Group.

Each Working Group will determine at least two (2) pointpersons for
monetary disbursements and register those names and contact
information with the Finance Working Group, in order to ensure
accountability and transparency in monetary disbursements.
Working groups will fill out cash disbursement request forms and
submit them to the Finance Working Group. Part of that process will be
to detail the items requested and to check first with Logistics
Working Group to make sure that the requested items are not readily
available as in-kind donations.

Working Groups must submit receipts for purchased items and any change
back to the Finance Working Group.

If a Working Group pointperson does not provide receipts or absconds
with the funds, that pointperson will not be allowed to receive
further cash disbursements.

Monetary donations made to the Food Working Group stay autonomous with
transparency through biweekly reports of money taken in and going out
and copies of receipts to the Finance Working Group.

Members of the Finance Working Group will be on site at a specified
time each day to accept disbursement forms and to make disbursements.
Minutes of the finance Working Group will be posted publicly. The
Finance Working Group will make financial records publicly available.

==Proposals==

==='''Tech'''=== 
[[Video Streaming Proposal|Video Streaming Proposal]] - $3050 + ~$460 monthly

Total of Proposed Asset purchases needed : $3050 
Total of Proposed Estimated monthly costs: $460

=Finance and Social Policy=
[This page is for Occupy Boston finance and accounting procedures. For discussions on general finance reform, etc, please look on the Issues link to the left and then look at the specific reforms/issues being discussed. Please keep this page to "internal finance".]

-------
''Based on: [http://occupyboston.wikispaces.com/Finance+Working+Group Finance Working Group at wikispaces]''

Financial Accountability

2011-10-24T02:21:13Z

Lisa151: /* Proposals */

Financial Accountability

2011-10-24T02:16:23Z

Lisa151: /* Finance and Social Policy */

Financial Accountability

2011-10-24T02:15:32Z

Lisa151: /* Finance and Social Policy */

Financial Accountability

2011-10-24T02:09:30Z

Lisa151: /* (Instructions for Uploading Minutes) */

File:FAWG minutes Oct 19 2011 PM.txt

2011-10-24T02:06:57Z

Lisa151: