Revenue and Expenditure Categories
The contribution from the Ministry of Community and Social Services (MCSS) is one of the fixed revenue items in Halton’s financial statements. The ministry allocates a specific amount of money every year to support the agency. The variable revenue items include grants, income from investments, and donations/ fundraising proceeds. Grants and donations vary because they are contributed based on the donors’ ability to give. Investment income also varies because of the demand and supply forces that determine returns in the equity securities market.
The fixed expenses include salaries and benefits, as well as, depreciation and amortization charges. Salaries and benefits are fixed expenses because they have to be incurred irrespective of the changes in the agency’s activities. Moreover, depreciation and amortization expenses have to be incurred as long as the agency has capital assets such as buildings. The variable expenses include fundraising costs and operating expenses. Fundraising costs are variable expenses because they depend on the number of fundraising events held in a year. Similarly, operating expenses depend on the level of service provided by the agency.
Expenses and Mission
Lease expenses help Halton Women’s Place to achieve its mission by providing adequate shelter to abused women. Similarly, fundraising expenses enable the organization to achieve its mission by mobilizing adequate financial resources to provide education and information to abused women and their children.
Variability of Revenue and Expenses
The financial statements indicate that revenues have more variable categories than expenses. The significance of this finding is that the agency has several expenses that it must incur irrespective of its level of operations. In this respect, the agency is likely to experience a shortage of funds if its financiers fail to support it. Generally, depending on variable sources of funds will have a negative effect on the agency’s ability to plan for the future. For instance, the agency will not be able to implement its future expansion plans if it has inadequate funds.
Largest Revenue and Expenses
The agency’s largest expenses are operational costs and salaries/ benefits. Salaries and benefits accounted for at least 68.58% of the annual expenditures in the last three years. Operational expenses, on the other hand, accounted for nearly 21% of the total annual expenditures.
The largest annual revenue averaged $2,052,313 in the last three years. The revenue was obtained from MCSS. The second largest annual revenue averaged $540,831. The revenue was obtained through donations and fundraising events.
Main Sources of Income
The financial statements indicate that MCSS and donations/ fundraising events are the agency’s main sources of funds. Regular disbursements from MCSS account for approximately 66.8% of the agency’s annual revenue. Donations and fundraising, on the other hand, account for nearly 17% of the total revenue received by the agency annually. Knowing the major sources of income is important because it facilitates prudent management of funds. For instance, the agency is likely to adopt stringent expenditure policies if much of its revenue comes from variable sources and vice versa.
Sustainability
The sustainability of Halton Women’s Place is under threat because of high operating costs. The agency allocates less than 40% of its funds to provision of services to women since salaries alone account for over 65% of its total expenditure. Thus, the agency might have to reduce its workforce in order to cut its wage bill. However, this might have a negative effect on service delivery.
Current vs. Previous Year’s Revenue
The revenues obtained from MCSS regular contributions and donations have remained relatively the same in the last three years. Specifically, the revenue obtained from MCSS (regular) has reduced by only 1.03%. The slight decrease can be attributed to the financial constraints that limit the amount of money that the government can allocate to the agency. The revenues obtained from donations and fundraising increased by only 0.82%. This increase can be attributed to the agency’s ability to manage funds prudently, which in turn motivated donors to increase their contributions. Increased donations will help the organization to provide more services.
The funds obtained from grants and investments (interest) have changed significantly. Grants increased by 221.1%, whereas interest income increased by 180.56%. Grants are likely to have increased because of the agency’s commitment to collaborate with more financiers. The increase in interest income can be attributed to increased investment in financial instruments. Generally, increased access to funds will improve the sustainability of the agency in terms of its ability to pay for its expenses.
Current vs. Previous Year’s Expenses
In the last three years, operating expenses increased by 7.99%. In addition, expenditure on salaries and benefits increased by 1.98%. These increases can be attributed to inflation and expansion of the agency’s operations. Increased expenditure is likely to create financial constraints if the agency’s revenue fails to increase.
Expenditure on depreciation and amortization decreased by 3.02%, whereas fundraising expenses reduced by 3.2%. Depreciation expenses often reduce as the value of assets decline. The reduction in fundraising expenses can be explained by the agency’s internal efficiencies that led to cost savings. Undoubtedly, reduced expenditure on depreciation and fundraising events will enable the organization to use more funds for service delivery.
Trends in Revenue and Expenses
The agency reported a net revenue deficit in the last three years. However, the deficit has reduced from $115,174 in 2012 to $86,676 in 2014. This suggests that the agency is putting in place measures to reduce its expenditure or increase its revenue. However, the existing deficit is still a cause of concern because it prevents the agency from delivering adequate services to its clients.