The Legal Minimum Number of Money Counters

By Raul Rivera

As one of the first families to join the church, Michael and his wife have been involved in every program the church has ever attempted, and for the last three years Michael has faithfully counted the weekly tithes and offerings of the church.  Every Sunday when the offering was collected, it was placed into a bag and left in a locked room.  After the service ended, Michael counted all of the money, filled out the count sheet, and then left it in the locked room for the treasurer to deposit on Monday. 

Accused of embezzlement

It was the end of January when the church mailed out contribution statements to all of its givers.  Before sending them out, the treasurer made sure they were reconciled with the church's books.  About two weeks later, the treasurer received a phone call from a concerned member stating that her report was incorrect by $300.00.  She noted that her special missions offering given in December was missing from the report.  After checking the count sheets, the church treasurer assured her that the church never received such offering.  She was concerned because she gave it in cash.  Being very specific, she described how she placed it in the church envelope and marked it "missions".  No one knew what to do. 

A week later, the pastor got wind that a rumor was spreading throughout the church that there was a problem with the church's money.  While not a very strong rumor, it was nonetheless a rumor that needed to stop.  Another week passed and Michael found himself in the center of the rumor.  He had been accused of dipping his hand in the church's tithes and offerings.  Though he had never done such a thing, how could he prove he was innocent?  Michael was devastated.  Sunday morning worship was really difficult.  He felt like everyone looked at him strangely.  Could this problem have been prevented?  Michael was falsely accused yet he had no way to prove he was honest.

The legal minimum of counters

When it comes to counting the church's money, many churches do not think through the process of how it should be done.  To allow only one person to be the counter can create problems for the church and for the counter, as Michael discovered.  The two months that it took to resolve this dilemma caused him to consider leaving the only church he had ever known.  When it comes to the law, there is no minimum number of people required to count the church money.  There is no Federal or state law that governs how money counting occurs.  To get it right, we must rely on sound policy to guide us.  Below are six steps that will help you put a policy in writing for counting the money that comes in every Sunday.

1.     Select multiple money counters regardless of the size of the church.  Never allow this job to be done by only one person during any given worship service.  Always have more than one person in the counting room at all times and enough individuals should be selected so that more than one team of counters can exist and rotate.

2.     Select a safe room for the counters to do their job, and guard the entrance to this room by a person standing on the outside to ensure that no one person enters either accidentally or on purpose.  This also provides protection to the counters.

3.     Use a count sheet to record the tithes and offerings.  Every church should use a special sheet for counting money.  It should contain spaces for cash/credit cards, checks, and coins.  A copy of this sheet can be found in the conference manual. 

4.     All counting should be done on Sunday and not Monday!  The counters should meet at the same time, count together, sign the count sheet, and prepare a deposit slip.  A copy of the tithes and offerings count sheet needs to be given to the treasurer and the secretary. 

5.     Place the money in a secure location after money has been counted so that the treasurer/bookkeeper can deposit it.

6.     After the treasurer deposits the money, the deposit receipt needs to be given to the counters, which shows that the exact amount was actually deposited.

Michael's problem resolved

After three weeks of turmoil, the treasurer got an idea.  He decided he would take a second look at the church's envelopes and count sheet that Michael used.  He looked at each envelope and found the missing money.  It appears that the envelope containing the three hundred dollars was tucked under the seal flap of another envelope and Michael had simply overlooked it. 

Structure is important

When it comes to structure, nothing is more powerful than being consistent in following your policy.  Michael's church did not have a written and well-thought-out process.  They simply relied on Michael's good heartedness.  Though he served with faithfulness, it led to him being falsely accused.   One of the temptations when creating a counting policy is allowing exceptions.  When a church is small, that can be a struggle.  For example, there may be times when the required minimum number of counters does not show up to a service.  What does a church do?  Make an exception, or stick to the policy and wait until they have the right number of counters? 

How a church responds to this dilemma can make a difference as to whether they succeed or fail.  The response reveals deeper matters of the core that drive its leaders.  Exceptions reveal that they do not fully value the policy as something that moves the church's vision forward.  At our Ultimate Church Structure Conferences, I teach the connection between policy and vision and how policy is the grass roots level of vision fulfillment.