Hi!
I am Renata Stasaityte or Renata3 on wiki. I am a contributor to English Wikipedia since July 2005 and WMF Audit Committee member since July 2009.
I have bachelor's degree in accounting and master's degree in taxation. I am also a certified public accountant (CPA), so these accountability and transparency topics are part of my daily bread and butter. I work as a tax accountant (though for for-profit entities) in a mid-size New York accounting firm.
Below are the basic beliefs that I have on the topic of accountability within the "Wikipedia Movement" (for lack of a better term):
1) It is supremely important. Each year thousands of people give you $10 or $20 of their hard-earned money trusting *you *to spend the money wisely and effectively. It is our sacred duty to honor that trust. At the end of each year we should be able to account for every penny and say with clear conscience say "we spent every penny in the most effective way".
2) If Wikipedia is to stay here for the long haul, we need to make sure it is build on solid foundations. It means avoiding any financial scandals, it means building trust and goodwill with the readers and government authorities, it means being responsible and accountable for our actions -- including expenditures.
3) Most volunteers did not sign up to write financial reports. You want to do fun, exciting things. You want to change the world, and not count debits and credits. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, I would be shocked if anyone said otherwise. So the reporting procedures should be simple, not burdensome, understandable to someone with little or no finance/accounting background, but at the same time accomplish the goals of accountability and transparency.
4) The Wikipedia Movement is still growing, still evolving. Things are still changing at a dizzying speed, and I suspect they will continue to change. So the reporting and transparency also needs to change and adapt to the new circumstances. So don't expect that what you are doing today is going to be sufficient tomorrow.
5) We are in this together, we are part of a global initiative. Things affecting one chapter will affect everyone else. We can't just say "oh, it's not my problem" if one chapter is struggling with its obligations. It is our problem. As Jimmy said, one chapter involved in shenanigans could bring down the whole movement down.
Renata