Statement of Activities: Reading a Nonprofit Income Statement
This temporal context is crucial for informed decision-making, effective resource allocation, and demonstrating accountability to stakeholders. A comprehensive understanding of expense categorization within the statement of activities is crucial for demonstrating financial transparency and responsible resource allocation. Expenses are categorized to reflect the diverse activities undertaken by a nonprofit.
Action Items for Nonprofit Boards
- Consequently, the increase in net assets of $22,500 is derived after deducting both revenues and expenses.
- Budget vs. Actual is an internal report, not part of your audited financial statements.
- Revenue recognition in nonprofit accounting is a nuanced process that requires careful consideration of various factors to ensure accuracy and compliance with accounting standards.
- Engage, build bonds, showcase impact, and elevate conversations effortlessly.
- Expenses might include salaries, office supplies, utilities, and other costs for each program.
- The statement of financial activities is a document that lists a nonprofit organization’s income and expenses for a given reporting period.
Long-term liabilities are car loans and mortgages, whereas current liabilities cover accounts payable debt like salaries and immediate payments. Return to the Internal Reports Introduction page for links to greater detail on how to read various reports as well as recommended formatting. Tom is a multi-disciplined leader with over a decade of experience in nonprofit operations, technology leadership in government, and over two decades of servant leadership.
Financial Ratios
The operating activities section of the SCF reports the changes in cash other than those reported in the investing and financing sections. The FASB requires every nonprofit to present expenses by function and nature in one place (statement or notes). A listing of the titles of the general ledger accounts is known as the chart of accounts. Nonprofit organizations may apply to the Internal Revenue Service in order to be exempt from federal income taxes. This practice should highlight variations in income and expenditures, prompting investigation and action when necessary. It automates and facilitates these comparisons, allowing for more efficient monitoring https://nerdbot.com/2025/06/10/the-key-benefits-of-accounting-services-for-nonprofit-organizations/ and decision-making.
Simplify Report Generation
This report identifies funds received without donor restrictions and funds with donor restrictions. Additionally, this report will identify how much money the organization spent on operating expenses and how much money was raised from donations. Using an example from a company, let’s say ABC Corporation wants to plan its upcoming year. After examining their statement of activities, they can determine which fund they need to allocate more money too in order to achieve their goals for the year. The statement of activities is one of the main financial statements issued by a nonprofit organization. It is prepared instead of the income statement issued by a for-profit business.
Key Financial Ratios for Nonprofits
This complexity necessitates a thorough understanding of the principles governing revenue recognition to maintain financial integrity and transparency. The statement of functional expenses gives donors more details on how the organization spends funds. The IRS also requires nonprofits to include this statement when filing Form 990. At times, supporters will give donations stipulating that they can only be used on a specific project or program. The net assets on your statement of financial position are where your organization must list these restrictions.
It also helps determine whether a company can obtain enough funding to support its operations and identify what has to change (rising income, falling costs, or both) to fund critical projects. It helps identify certain programs that cost more and have a low success rate. Conversely, if a project does well, the organization can invest more in it and apply the insights to other projects. While your statement of activities shows the sustainability of your nonprofit, your statement of cash flows shows how money moves in and out of your organization. FASB Statement 117 allows most nonprofits to present their functional expenses in the notes of their financial statements, but these expenses may also be presented on the face of the statement.
- For instructional purposes we highlighted the column headings to indicate the expenses by function.
- You can use unrestricted funds for any mission-oriented purpose, including paying general operating expenses and salaries.
- While for-profits focus on making as much income as possible to make more money for themselves, nonprofit organizations focus instead on how they can raise additional revenue to further their missions.
- Revenues should be reported on a gross basis, but investments can be reported on a net basis.
- Accrual basis accounting means that you record revenues and expenses when they are incurred or earned.
- This classification helps stakeholders see the direct impact of their contributions on the organization’s core activities.







