How can I allocate a checking account to multiple categories?

Sandy

For some reason, I'm hung up on this.

I'm treasurer for a church. We have a checking account with $XX dollars in it. Each committee has been allocated an amount from that checking account to spend as needed throughout the year, and to be rolled over into the next year if it is unused (like an envelope system). There are some excess funds that aren't allocated to any committee.

I know for future expenses and income I can use categories to show money spent and income. But I can't figure out how to set up the beginning balance. How can I show the current initial funds available so each committee can see their funds spent and remaining funds available?

UKR

How many committees do you have?
If it's a small number, I'd try to set up Offline (manual) Checking accounts, one for each committee.
Set each of the accounts' Opening Balance to 12/31/22 and whatever money is allocated to each of them.
When money is spent, pay from the Checking account and categorize as transfer from the [Committee name], the account name in [square brackets].
The Balance in each Committee account register will tell you how much money they have.

Alternatively, you can create and use Categories for each Committee.
Begin the Checking account with a startup deposit transaction, as of 12/31/22, to prime each Committee category with the money they have available to spend. This should, of course, equal the actual balance of the checking account at the start of the year.
When money is spent, pay it from the Checking account and categorize it as an expense to the Committee.
The Annual Budget view, after customizing it to enable Rollover of balances in each of these categories, will tell you at a glance how much money is left in each category.