[GNC] Using GnuCash with charity restricted and unrestricted funds, advice wanted

[Michael or Penny Novack]

On 5/27/2024 9:12 AM, Edward Bainton wrote:
> How about this:
>
>> You have to know that first, then ask, "How do I accomplish this using
> GnuCash?"
>
> Think of funds accounting as different colours of money. Every account and
> every category can include any colour of money.
>
> I need the gross figure for each account and category, the figure for each
> account and category broken out into the colours of money that it’s
> comprised of, and I need to report on the overall financial position and
> movements in any given period of each colour of money, detailing which
> accounts and categories it’s comprised of.
>
> How do I accomplish this using GnuCash?

By not thinking about colors of money?

It is fair to ask us "How can I use gnucash to store the financial 
transactions so that the data can be extracted to produce the reports 
that I will need?"

OK to ask us "Can I produce these reports directly out of gnucash?" as 
long as you accept the possibility of "No, but you will be able to 
produce reports that when exported, will allow you you to 
combine/extract to produce the final reports"

NOT FAIR to ask "can I do it it THIS WAY using concepts outside of 
standard double entry bookkeeping.

For example, if I understand what you are asking for:

       There is an expense (call it X) for which restricted funds may be 
used OR non-restricted funds may be used (let's say the restricted funds 
for X have run out). You want to have a SINGLE account "expense X"  in 
which the transactions using restricted funds are "colored A" and those 
paid by non-restricted funds "colored B". And then on a report being 
able to show the total "colored A". Yes? << I'm a retired senior 
business analyst; that's how we work, asking the client questions >>

      Well gnucash doesn't do "colors", just debits and credits.

      You could have an expense account "expense X paid both ways" and 
under that child accounts "expense X paid by restricted funds" and 
"expense X paid by non-restricted funds" << those names just to make 
clear what we are talking about >>  And gnucash will certainly allow you 
to use account selection/exclusion so that in a report of where you only 
wanted that part of expense X that was paid using restricted funds you 
could do that.

       Again, wearing my old analyst hat, what are the reports you will 
need to be able to produce?  What has to be on them?

Michael D Novack