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Purpose of the Policy and Guidelines

Changes to the Policy

Review of the Policy

Approval for and Expenditure of Parish Funds

Fund-Raising Projects

Improvements to the Physical Plant of Sacred Heart Parish (includes the school and cemetery)

Sacred Heart Parish Transportation Policies and Procedures

Use Of And Safekeeping Of Sacred Heart Parish Portable Assets

Use of Sacred Heart Parish Facilities

Coordination of Parish Ministries/Committees

ATTACHMENT 1

ATTACHMENT 2

ATTACHMENT 3

The purpose of these policies and guidelines is to provide standardized procedures for:

• Accessing and utilizing parish assets.
• Coordinating parish activities.
• Synchronizing the various parish ministries through a Council of Ministries.

Any parishoner may request changes to Sacred Heart Parish Policy and Guidelines by submitting the request to the Pastoral Council. The Pastoral Council will then submit any changes/additions to the Pastor with a recommendation of approval or disapproval. The Pastor will approve, disapprove or direct changes required for approval. Once the changes are approved, the policy and guidelines will be updated accordingly and the parish informed in writing via the Bulletin. Any major change (as determined by the Pastoral Council) will also be communicated verbally. The current version will be made available on the parish Web site.

The Pastoral Council will review the Policy and Guidelines each December and evaluate their effectiveness. If they can be improved, the Pastoral Council will submit the revisions to the Pastor for approval.

All budgeted entities must remain within budget. Any request for funds beyond the budgeted amount must be submitted according to the procedure described below. Any funding request for a non-budgeted item must follow this same procedure. Special procedures apply to emergency situations and expenditures involving contracts.

Every expenditure requires a purchase order (PO) from the parish Business Office. Different procedures apply to expenditures less than $800.00 and expenditures greater than $800.00.

Expenditures Less than $800.00. For a budgeted expenditure of less than ___, obtain a PO from the parish Business Manager.

Expenditures Greater than or Equal to $800.00. To obtain a PO for a budgeted expenditure greater than or equal to $800.00:

1. Submit a request justifying the expenditure to the Finance Committee. Include the purpose of the purchase, what the purchase will be used for, and the time frame in which the funds will be spent. If the funds involve a contract, include bid comparisons. Solicitations for bids will be published in a publically accessible medium. For any expenditures in which a signed contract is involved, the Facilities Manager will prepare the contract and present it to the Pastor for approval, as described in "Expenditures Involving Contracts," below.
2. The Finance Committee will take into account the amount, need, and current budget in the approval process.
3. The Finance Committee will provide the individual responsible for the purchase with a statement of approval or disapproval in writing (see approval form at Attachment 1) signed by the acting chairperson and one other member of the Finance Committee. The statement of approval will include any restrictions or conditions. If disapproved, a statement of disapproval will be issued, explaining the reason(s) for disapproval. Insufficient funds is a sufficient reason for disapproval.
4. The Pastor's approval is required before granting a purchase order and will be annotated on the same page showing Finance Committee approval (see Attachment 1).
5. Before the purchase, a purchase order will be obtained from the parish Business Office.
6. The parish Business Office must review the statement of approval before granting a purchase order.

Non-budgeted expenditures are:

• Expenditures by ministries that are not designated with funds in the Sacred Heart Parish Budget, or
• Ministry expenditures in excess of allocated budget.

Non-budgeted expenditures may be approved in exceptional cases. To obtain such approval, follow the procedures described in the subsection entitled "Expenditures Greater than or Equal to $800.00," in "Budgeted Expenditures," above.

An emergency situation is one in which the purchase request cannot be coordinated with the above procedures. These situations must be kept to a minimum. Different procedures apply to amounts under and over $100.

Under $100.00. Approval of committee chairperson or another member of the committee in the absence of the chairperson must be obtained in writing (see Attachment 1). All receipts will be provided to the parish Business Office as soon as possible with a memo stating the purpose of the purchase and the approving committee person’s name.

Greater than or equal to $100.00. After consultation with the Pastor, the Finance Committee chairperson may approve the expenditure. NO contracts will be approved using this procedure.

For any expenditure involving a signed contract, the Facilities Manager will prepare and approve the contract. If the contract is a standardized form contract, the Facilities Manager must review and approve the contract. The Pastor's signature is required on ALL contracts regardless of type.

All fund-raising projects must meet certain mandatory requirements. In addition, fund-raising projects for Sacred Heart School and for the parish as a whole have their own requirements.

1. All fund-raising projects using any parish facility must be approved by the Pastor.
2. All fund-raising projects must satisfy all diocesan directives and policies. See the parish Business Office for those directives and policies.
3. No bank accounts may be opened. The parish Business Office will hold all funds.

Sacred Heart School Fund Raising

The approval of the Pastor must be obtained for any Sacred Heart School fund-raising project. For a list of currently approved activities, see Attachment 3.

Parish Fund Raising

1. No fund-raising project shall be conducted in the name of Sacred Heart Parish without the approval of the Finance Committee, the Pastoral Council, and the Pastor.
2. All funds raised will become a part of Sacred Heart Parish.
3. If a fund-raising project is to be used for a specific purpose, the purpose should be approved at the same time the fund-raising project is approved.

Before any improvements (other than standard maintenance and preventive maintenance) are made to the physical plant of Sacred Heart Parish (school and cemetery inclusive) the following are required:

1. The Pastoral Council will review all improvement projects developed by the parish Building and Maintenance Committee in accordance with the parish’s short and long range plans. Prior to this review, the Building and Maintenance Committee, the Facilities Manager, and Parish Office of Development and Planned Giving will:

a. Review project and determine consistency with or affect on the applicable short and long range parish plans.

b. Determine best method and material for construction.

c. Determine funding options.

d. Determine construction schedule.

e. Identify any possible problems that could have impact on quality, schedules, and cost.

2. The complete proposal, including the input of the Facilities Manager, will be submitted to the Pastoral Council by the Building & Maintenance Committee. Once submitted to and reviewed by the Pastoral Council, the council will work interdependently with the Finance Committee in preparing project proposal for final approval by the Pastor. The Finance Committee will:

a. Review all of the information concerning the project as to how it relates to the current and long-range financial condition of the parish.

b. Review proposed funding options to determine, on the basis of the overall finances of the parish, which method to use.

c. Assess the impact of the additional insurance costs associated with the improvement project (consider property and liability) and costs, including capital reserves, associated with increases in parish operations and maintenance.

3. Once approved by the Pastor, the Pastoral Council will authorize the parish Building and Maintenance Committee to provide oversight of the Facilities Manager to begin preparations for:

a. Request of Proposal/Quotation

b. Bid Process

c. Contract Negotiation

d. Construction Schedule

e. Payment Schedule

f. Contingency Plan

4. All projects with an actual cost from $1-$9,999 require no diocesan notification or involvement. All projects above $10,000 require diocesan notification and involvement.
5. All written contracts will utilize diocesan contractual materials. Facilities Manger will review all contracts for completion and accuracy prior to signature by the Pastor.
6. Contract on projects of $10,000 and above will require signature of Pastor, Pastoral Council chairperson, Finance Committee chairperson, and Bishop or diocesan representative. Any school projects must also have the principal's signature.

The policies and procedures concerning transportation are quite extensive and detailed, due to liability issues, and must be strictly complied with. Before planning any parish-related transportation of passengers, visit the Parish Business Office to review these policies and procedures.

NOTE: The only portable assets allowed off parish property are parish picnic tables.

Before using a portable asset owned by the parish, obtain the permission of the head of the parish organization responsible for the asset. If the organization or its head is not known, obtain this information from the Facilities Manager. Follow all cautions and instructions for use and return of the item.

When planning any event or gathering, contact the parish Business Office several weeks in advance if possible. Wedding contracts should be obtained one (1) year in advance. The Business Office will in turn check parish schedules and provide guidelines and contracts that may need to be reviewed before the day of the activity. A sample contract for facilities use is provided in the following pages.

Exhibit A
Policy On Use Of Alcohol

Exhibit B
Rules For Use of Sacred Heart Community Center

All questions pertaining to Sacred Heart Parish facilities can be answered by contacting the following personnel at 940-759-2511:

• Business Manager, ext. 17
• Secretary, ext. 18
• Facilities Manager, ext. 20

Diocesan and parish guidelines change, so make sure you call the parish Business Office for updates.

The policy and procedures for the coordination of parish ministries and committees are as follows:

1. The Pastor has final approval authority for all activities associated with the Parish.
2. The Pastoral Council, in accordance with its policy and guidelines, is responsible for advising the Pastor on the strategic (physical and spiritual) direction of the parish.
3. The Pastoral Council will meet with the Finance Committee once per quarter.
4. The Pastoral Council will meet with a Council of Ministries once per quarter, and with individual committee chairpersons as needed. The Council of Ministries will be composed of the chairperson, or a committee member designated by the chairperson, of each of the following ministries:
• Stewardship
• Unity and Fellowship
• Evangelization and Outreach
• Youth
• Vocations
• Liturgy and Worship
• Spiritual Growth and Education
• Religious Education
• Sacred Heart School
5. At the Pastoral Council's quarterly meeting with the Council of Ministries, the Council of Ministries will review plans and activities of each of the ministry categories. The Pastoral Council, during or after the meeting, will assess the review’s consistency with the parish’s strategic direction. Any proposed deviation from the parish's strategic direction will be evaluated. If the Pastoral Council reaches a consensus that the direction should change, it will so advise the Pastor. The Pastor and Pastoral Council will determine the new direction and communicate that direction to the parish, the Council of Ministries, and the Finance Committee. Those functional areas will adjust their programs accordingly.
6. The Council of Ministries will compile a budget for submission to the Finance Committee, as follows:

a. Each ministry chairperson is responsible for submitting the ministry’s budgetary requirements to the Council of Ministries.

b. The budget will consist of inputs from all of the parish ministries.

c. The Council of Ministries budget will be submitted to the Finance Committee and Pastoral Council by a date coordinated with the Finance Committee

7. At the Pastoral Council's quarterly meeting with the Finance Committee, the two councils will:

a. Review the annual parish budget and ministry programs for consistency with the parish plan.

b. Identify potential conflicts or deficiencies and develop an action plan to resolve them.

Business Office: 940-759-2511

Pastoral Council: Business Office will provide point of contact

Acacemic Team

Bake sale

Basketball gate

Bumper sticker sale

Cookie dough sale

Eighth grade graduation fundraiser

Football game boards

Football gate

Golf invitational

Magazine drive

Mission collections and bake sale

Ned's Yo-Yo sale

New Year's dance

Pizza sale

Program/Ads

Robotics

St. Jude's Marathon

Santa Shop

Science fair project

Spring musical

T-Shirt sale

Track invitational

Yearbook/Ads