Farmington Youth Hockey uses a monthly ice bill system for upper level teams (Squirts/Girls U10, Peewee/Girls U12, Bantam/Girls U15, and Junior Gold/Junior Gold 16).  We're using this system to encourage a number of efficiencies:

• Lower Registration Fees:  By only charging our administrative fee, it encourages earlier registration.
• Lower Transaction Fees:  Previously, we were charged 3% of our transaction fee for processing plus $1 per time you were billed.  This meant for Bantams, we'd lose nearly $76-100/player in raw fees for cash that we never saw.
• Lower Cost of Hockey:  Through changing this system we won't "Overbill" you at the beginning of the year and then refund money at the end (less fees we lost).  With this new approach you eventually settle to a zero-dollar balance.

At the same time, through this policy, we empower our teams to make decisions about how to spend their money.  If you are on an elite team that wants more ice, you can collect the money as a team, but the board then won't have to regulate it as by paying in, parents are accepting the decision to take on more ice.

How's it work?

First off, at registration, FYHA will collect a season registration fee from every upper level player.  This is our Administration fee that goes to pay for things that run our program such as:

• Equipment
• Insurance
• Facilities (Board meeting rental)
• Fees from MN/USA Hockey
• Marketing / Program Spend
• Website / Communications
• Controller / Tax preparation
• Non-profit compliance help
• Association events (Ice, food, printing, postage)
• Miscellaneous other expenses

This fee will be collected into the General fund of the FYHA for maintaining the association.

After registration there are a few key things to know:

• On the first day of practice, your FINANCIAL MANAGER will collect a payment, pre-determined and published annually, from each player.  You must pay this in order to take the ice.  This initial payment will enable a team to pay for Tournament fees and what we project for your ice bill for October.  
• At the start of every month, your FINANCIAL MANAGER will receive a bill from the association.  They will then add any additional costs they need on top of that in the case your team has elected to purchase things (ex:  apparel, pizza party the next month... etc).  
• Your FINANCIAL MANAGER will then email the team the bill and collect from every team member the fees.  As a parent you will have FIVE days from the time the bill is emailed to you to pay the bill.  -- Failure to do so will result in suspension of your player.  
• Your FINANCIAL MANAGER will then settle the bank account, approve the FYHA Treasurer to take the money from your team account and pay the ice bill.

We will be working hard with the financial managers to ensure this process is smooth but we're confident as we looked at other associations this will have a massive impact to keep your costs lower.