Governance
Booster Club Governance: Board Duties, Policies, and Oversight
Updated Oct 8, 20265 sources
Booster club governance is the set of rules, roles, and habits that decide who controls the club’s money and decisions, and how the membership checks that control. The board (the elected officers plus any other directors the bylaws name) owns governance, and the president is responsible for keeping it on schedule.
Governance matters because a booster club is a separate legal entity holding money given for students. When a club loses its tax exemption, misplaces funds, or collapses after one officer leaves, the cause is usually a missing control, a skipped review, or a board that stopped meeting.
Board vs Membership
Most booster clubs have two layers of authority. The membership (every person who meets the bylaws’ definition of a member) elects officers, approves the annual budget, and amends the bylaws. The board (sometimes called the executive board) manages the club between membership meetings, within the limits the bylaws and the membership set.
| Decision | Usually decided by | Where the rule lives |
|---|---|---|
| Electing officers | Membership | Bylaws |
| Approving the annual budget | Membership (some bylaws assign it to the board) | Bylaws |
| Spending within the approved budget | Board, or the officer the budget names | Budget, standing rules |
| Spending outside the budget | Board up to a set limit, membership above it | Bylaws, standing rules |
| Amending bylaws | Membership, often by two-thirds vote with notice | Bylaws |
| Adopting policies | Board | Board minutes |
| Signing contracts | Board | Board minutes |
| Dissolving or merging the club | Membership, after a board recommendation | Bylaws, articles, state law |
The bylaws control. If a club’s bylaws assign a decision differently than this table, the club follows its bylaws or amends them. Board Meetings vs General Membership Meetings explains how each meeting works.
Fiduciary Duty
Every officer and director is a fiduciary: a person trusted to manage property for the benefit of others and held to a legal standard while doing it. Regulators commonly describe three duties. The New York Attorney General’s Charities Bureau, for example, calls them the duties of care, loyalty, and obedience.
- Care. Attend meetings, read the treasurer’s report, ask questions, and act as a reasonably prudent person would in the same position.
- Loyalty. Put the club’s interest ahead of personal or family interest. Disclose conflicts and step out of decisions where a conflict exists.
- Obedience. Keep the club within its mission, its bylaws, and the law, including tax filings and state registrations.
Volunteer officers have some protection from personal liability under the federal Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 and under state law. That protection has exceptions, and it does not protect the club itself. Fiduciary Duties of Booster Club Officers covers the details.
What the IRS Asks About Governance
Federal tax law does not require a booster club to adopt particular governance policies, but the IRS asks about them. Part VI of Form 990 asks whether the organization has a written conflict of interest policy, a whistleblower policy, and a document retention and destruction policy, whether the board received the return before filing, and whether meetings were documented. The Form 990 instructions state that the IRS considers such policies to generally improve tax compliance.
Clubs that file Form 990-N (the Form 990-NThe e-Postcard: the annual electronic notice a tax-exempt club files with the IRS when its gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less. It is due the 15th day of the 5th month after the fiscal year ends.All terms, for gross receipts normally $50,000 or less) never see these questions. They should adopt the policies anyway, because the policies protect volunteers. See Policies Every Booster Club Should Adopt.
The Governance Year
| When | Governance task | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Before the new term starts | Handoff meeting, procedure books, bank signer paperwork | Outgoing and incoming officers |
| First board meeting | Adopt or reaffirm policies, sign conflict of interest statements, set the meeting calendar | President |
| Early in the school year | Membership meeting, budget approval, insurance certificate to the school | President, treasurer |
| Monthly | Treasurer’s report, bank statement review by a non-signer, minutes approved | Treasurer, secretary, board |
| Mid-year | Bylaws and policy review, nominating committee formed | President, secretary |
| Spring | Elections, financial review scheduled | Nominating committee, membership |
| After fiscal year end | Financial review, Form 990-series filing, records archived | Treasurer, review committee |
Form 990-NThe e-Postcard: the annual electronic notice a tax-exempt club files with the IRS when its gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less. It is due the 15th day of the 5th month after the fiscal year ends.All terms, 990-EZ, and 990 are due by the 15th day of the 5th month after the fiscal year ends: May 15 for a calendar-year club, November 15 for a club whose Fiscal yearThe club’s 12-month accounting year, set in the bylaws. Many booster clubs use July 1 through June 30 to match the school year, and the club’s filing deadlines count from the day it ends.All terms ends June 30. Booster Club Compliance Calendar lists every deadline.
Pages in this section
- Board positionsJob descriptions for booster club officers: president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and common committee chairs, with duties, limits, and hours.
- Fiduciary dutyWhat fiduciary duty means for booster club officers: the duties of care, loyalty, and obedience, when volunteers are personally liable, and how to stay safe.
- Conflict of interestA booster club conflict of interest policy: what counts as a conflict, the coach's spouse problem, annual disclosure, and a sample policy adapted from the IRS.
- Officer transitionHow to hand off a booster club to new officers: procedure books, the handoff meeting, changing bank signers, transferring logins, and the June to July timeline.
- Policies to adoptThe written policies a booster club should adopt: conflict of interest, whistleblower, records retention, expenses, gift acceptance, and social media.
- Records and retentionWhat booster club records to keep, how long to keep them, and where: the permanent file, a retention schedule based on IRS guidance, and safe disposal.
- Working with the schoolHow a booster club works with its principal, athletic director, coaches, and district: who owns which funds, the school name and logo, and gifts to the school.
- InsuranceWhat insurance a booster club needs: general liability, D&O, crime bond, accident, event, and auto coverage, what districts require, and what drives the cost.
- Risk managementA risk management plan for booster clubs: volunteer background checks, youth protection rules, waivers and permission forms, travel, and incident reports.
- CommitteesHow booster club committees work: standing vs special committees, which ones a club needs, what a committee charter says, and the limits on committee power.
- Dissolving or mergingHow to dissolve or merge a booster club: the vote, paying debts, giving leftover assets to a 501(c)(3) or the school, the final Form 990, and state filings.
- Succession planningHow booster clubs recruit and train the next board: term limits, an officer pipeline, shadowing, documentation, and avoiding a club that depends on one person.
Common Mistakes
- Treating the board as a formality. A board that approves whatever the president or treasurer brings has stopped exercising the duty of care, and each member shares responsibility for what follows.
- Letting one person hold the checkbook, the records, and the logins. It happens because one volunteer is willing. It ends in lost access, missed filings, or theft nobody notices.
- Skipping written policies because the club files Form 990-N. The policies protect volunteers no matter which return the club files.
- Skipping the annual financial review. Errors and theft then surface years later, often after the responsible officer has left.
Booster Club Governance: Board Duties, Policies, and Oversight
https://boosterclub.org/governance/
Checklist
- President
Related pages
- Booster Club Bylaws · BylawsThe document that sets the club’s governance rules
- Running Booster Club Meetings · MeetingsHow the board and membership make decisions
- Booster Club Finances · FinanceThe financial controls the board oversees
- Booster Club Taxes · TaxesThe filings the board is responsible for
- Booster Club Filing Requirements by State · StatesState rules that vary
Sources
- New York Attorney General (external site)ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/publications/sympguidance.pdf
- IRS (external site)irs.gov/instructions/i990
- IRS (external site)irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p4221pc.pdf
- IRS (external site)irs.gov/charities-non-profits/annual-electronic-filing-requirement-for-small-exempt-organizations-form-990-n-e-postcard
- IRS (external site)irs.gov/charities-non-profits/form-990-series-which-forms-do-exempt-organizations-file-filing-phase-in
Updated October 8, 2026
Disclaimer: 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.