# Booster Club Banking: Accounts, Signers, and Online Access

> How a booster club should set up banking: accounts in the club's name, unrelated signers, no debit cards, view-only access for reviewers, and payment app rules.

- URL: https://boosterclub.org/finance/banking/
- Section: Finance
- Updated: 2026-10-08

A booster club keeps every dollar in accounts opened in the club's legal name and Employer Identification Number (EIN, the nine-digit federal tax ID), with two or more unrelated officers as authorized signers and an independent officer who can see every statement. The treasurer manages the accounts day to day; the president and board decide who has access.

Banking setup decides how hard it is to steal from the club. Most booster club thefts trace back to an account one person controlled: the only signer, the only login, the only person who saw the statement. Getting the structure right once makes every later control easier.

## Account Basics

- **Name and tax ID.** Every account is titled in the club's exact legal name and uses the club's EIN, never an officer's Social Security number.
- **Never a personal account.** Club money is never deposited in anyone's personal account, even temporarily. Mixing club and personal funds (commingling) makes the volunteer look guilty even when nothing is missing.
- **Never the school's account.** Booster money and school money stay separate. Depositing booster funds with the school can make them school funds subject to district rules. See [Working With the School and District](https://boosterclub.org/governance/working-with-the-school/).
- **A permanent address.** Use the club's permanent mailing address (often the school, or a post office box the club controls) rather than an officer's home, so the account does not follow a volunteer out the door.
- **Deposit insurance.** The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insures deposits up to $250,000 per corporation, partnership, or unincorporated association at each insured bank. A club holding more than that at one bank should split funds between banks.

## What the Bank Will Ask For

Requirements vary by bank. Expect to bring:

1. The letter from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) confirming the club's EIN
2. Articles of incorporation, if the club is incorporated
3. The bylaws
4. Minutes or a signed resolution showing the vote that authorized the account and named the signers
5. Government-issued identification for each signer
6. The 501(c)(3) determination letter (the IRS letter recognizing the club's federal tax exemption), if the bank offers nonprofit account terms

See [Opening a Booster Club Bank Account](https://boosterclub.org/start/bank-account/) for a new club.

## How Many Accounts

Most clubs need one checking account for operations. A second savings account can hold reserves and restricted funds, with the same signers and the same review. Avoid separate accounts for every team or event; each extra account is another statement to reconcile and another place for money to go unnoticed. Track sub-funds in the books instead.

## Choosing Signers

A booster club limits signers to elected officers designated in the bylaws, requires two signatures on every check and electronic transaction, and keeps the secretary and the financial reviewer off the signature card so they can review independently.

| Rule | Reason |
|---|---|
| Two or three signers, all elected officers | Enough to get two signatures when someone travels; few enough to control |
| Signers not related and not in the same household | The second signature must be independent |
| The reviewer is never a signer | Someone must see the account without the power to move money |
| Signers removed the day they leave office | Former officers keep authority until the bank is told otherwise |
| No school employees as signers | Keeps booster and school authority separate |

## Cards and Checks

- **Debit and automated teller machine (ATM) cards.** The safest policy is none. A debit or ATM card lets one person withdraw cash or buy with no second approval. A club that keeps cards should issue them only to officers designated as check signers, set low limits, block cash withdrawals, and match every charge to a receipt monthly. See [Internal Controls](https://boosterclub.org/finance/internal-controls/).
- **Store cards and store credit accounts.** Do not open them. If the club holds any card, it should be bank-issued.
- **Checks.** Order checks printed with "Two signatures required" and "Void if not cashed within 90 days." Keep the checkbook with the treasurer and blank checks locked.
- **Petty cash.** Do not keep a petty cash fund. Small purchases go through reimbursement.

## Online Banking Access

Every person who needs online access gets an individual login. Shared logins make it impossible to know who did what.

| Role | Access level |
|---|---|
| Treasurer | View, initiate payments and transfers |
| Second signer (president or vice president) | View, approve payments |
| Reviewer (secretary or other non-signer) | View only, including statements and check images |
| Financial review committee | View only, temporary, during the review |
| Everyone else | None |

Set up dual approval for ACH (automated clearing house) transfers, wires, and bill payments if the bank offers it. Use club-owned email addresses for logins and alerts, not personal ones. Turn on alerts for large withdrawals, new payees, and changes to the statement address, and send those alerts to the president and the reviewer as well as the treasurer.

## Bank Statements

The statement is the one document the treasurer does not produce, which is why someone else must see it. The reviewer receives it directly (by mail or view-only access), compares it to the treasurer's reconciliation, and signs both. A change to the statement mailing address or delivery method that nobody authorized is a red flag. See [Preventing Embezzlement](https://boosterclub.org/finance/embezzlement/).

## Payment Apps and Processor Accounts

Online payment accounts are bank accounts for control purposes. Any account that receives deposits or makes payments, including a digital payment account, needs a monthly reconciliation and its own line in the treasurer's report.

1. Open payment apps and processor accounts as business accounts in the club's name and EIN, never as personal profiles.
2. Link payouts only to the club's operating account.
3. Give at least two officers administrator access; the reviewer gets view access if available.
4. Transfer balances to the bank at least weekly; do not hold money in the app.
5. Reconcile each app account monthly like any bank account.

The risk is real. In a 2026 Tennessee case, the Comptroller's Office reported that $44,821.92 had been transferred from a band booster club's payment app account to the treasurer's personal bank account or to a family member. See [Accepting Online Payments as a Booster Club](https://boosterclub.org/finance/payment-processing/).

## Changing Signers at Transition

1. The members elect officers; the secretary prepares minutes or a resolution naming the new signers.
2. The outgoing and incoming treasurer and president go to the bank together, with identification and the minutes.
3. The bank adds new signers and removes every departing signer at the same visit.
4. The new treasurer changes all online passwords, removes departed users, and updates alert contacts.
5. The same day, update payment apps, processors, and any card accounts.
6. The secretary files the new signature card or bank confirmation in the permanent records.

Update the signature card as soon as new officers take office, and remove previous signers whenever an officer resigns or a new term begins.

## Common Mistakes

- **Opening an account under an officer's Social Security number.** The account legally belongs to that person, and any tax forms issued go to them.
- **One shared online login.** Nobody can tell who made a transfer, and a departing officer keeps the password.
- **Statements mailed to the treasurer's home.** The only person who sees the bank's record is the person being checked.
- **Leaving last year's signers on the account.** The bank will honor their signatures until it is told otherwise.
- **Money parked in a payment app.** Balances that never reach the bank escape the monthly reconciliation.

## Checklist

- [ ] Confirm every account is in the club's legal name and EIN (treasurer)
- [ ] Name two or three unrelated elected officers as signers in the minutes (board)
- [ ] Add new signers and remove departing signers at the bank in one visit (treasurer and president)
- [ ] Order checks printed with the two-signature and 90-day void language (treasurer)
- [ ] Cancel debit and ATM cards, or set limits and block cash withdrawals (treasurer)
- [ ] Create individual online logins with the correct access level for each role
- [ ] Give the reviewer view-only access or direct statement delivery
- [ ] Turn on dual approval and alerts for transfers and address changes
- [ ] Convert all payment apps to business accounts linked to the club's bank account
- [ ] File the bank's signer confirmation in the permanent records (secretary)

## Related Pages

- [Opening a Booster Club Bank Account](https://boosterclub.org/start/bank-account/) for a new club's first account
- [Internal Controls for Booster Clubs](https://boosterclub.org/finance/internal-controls/) for the rules the banking setup supports
- [Accepting Online Payments as a Booster Club](https://boosterclub.org/finance/payment-processing/) for processor and app accounts
- [Booster Club Officer Transition](https://boosterclub.org/governance/officer-transition/) for the full handoff checklist
- [Booster Club Treasurer Duties](https://boosterclub.org/finance/treasurer/) for the treasurer's role

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*This page is general information for volunteer-run booster clubs. It is not legal,
tax, or accounting advice, and BoosterClub.org is not a law firm, accounting firm, or
government agency. Rules change and vary by state and district. Confirm current
requirements with the IRS, the relevant state agency, the school district, and a
qualified professional before acting. If a fact on this page is out of date, we want
to know.*

## Sources

1. Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury: https://comptroller.tn.gov/news/2026/8/10/former-dekalb-county-band-boosters-treasurer-indicted--after-misappropriating-more-than--48-000.html