How Will My Money Be Spent?

CMS Consultants takes seriously its stewardship of your membership dues. This page explains the initial thinking of the interim Board of CMS Consultants on funding and priorities. A recent vote of the founding members set some initial priorities; these may change over time. Therefore, this page will be updated by interim Treasurer, Tony Byrne, as the organization evolves.

As a professional organization, our greatest resource has been and will continue to be members' time. Founding members have already volunteered untold hours and substantial in-kind resources to this effort, and we expect that in the future, the true extent of the organization's expenditures will be measured in hours and not money.

At the same time, to realize our program agenda, CMS Consultants will clearly need to cover some financial expenses. These expenses fall into 2 categories: program costs and administrative overhead.

Program Expenses

Program expenses represent essential financial outlays to accompany volunteer efforts, and are generally variable costs. Depending on the program agenda, such expenses could include:

• Support for member networking and meeting events
• Printing and distribution of best-practices statements where appropriate
• Program staff support (e.g. a part-time executive director)

Administrative Expenses

Administrative expenses cover the cost of running the organization itself. Some costs here are fixed; others will vary in proportion to the membership base. These expenses include:

• Website hosting and credit card processing fees
• Administrative and member support labor
• Bookkeeping fees
• Applicable taxes
• Mailing and post-office box fees

The organization has also incurred some one-time start-up expenses, such as our merchant application to accept credit cards. Some start-up costs, such as application for non-profit status, will be deferred pending suitable membership size.

All expenses greater than $250 must be approved by the Board. The Board will issue quarterly financial reports, describing income and outlays, to be published in the Members' area of this website.