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Accounting and Business Support |
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This table contains no data. It is for layout purposes only. |
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This table contains no data. It is for layout purposes only. |
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Q&AABS often receives questions from departmental staff on a variety of topics. Usually, the only person who benefits from the answer is the person who asked the question. ABS will report these questions and their answers in its newsletter and these will be added to the Q&A section on the ABS website. Our goal is to ensure all departments are provided the same answers, and also to document those answers for future reference.
To search the material within the Q&A webpage, use the EDIT feature found in Internet Explorer and follow the steps described below:
Q&A Alphabetical List of Topics
Q&A Topics Listed Alphabetically
Consider, for example, a reimbursement to an employee who needs to make business-related telephone calls while in travel status. If you separate this expense and designate it with the standard Telecomm Services Account chartfield value (482602), you flag this reimbursement as tax reportable. For the transaction to be reported, the vendor (payee) needs to be marked as a 1099 vendor. Since an employee should not be made a 1099 vendor for this reason, the payment remains on hold. The payment cannot be made. On the other hand, if you simply include the telephone costs as part of the employee’s general trip costs (e.g., out-of-state travel, 700200), then you treat this expense as part of the cost of doing business from somewhere other than the normal work site. If you prefer to separate the cost of these phone calls from the rest of the trip costs, you could instead use the Toll Charges Account value (482607), which is not 1099 applicable. In either case, the transaction is not marked as reportable and the vendor information is correct as is. The payment can be made. As you classify your transactions with Account chartfield values, consider: When should you use a 1099-applicable Account? When you buy a service directly from the service provider. (Not when you reimburse an individual/employee who personally incurred an expense that the University ultimately wishes to cover. Note: as a general rule, we do not reimburse individuals or employees who personally paid for services.) How do you know it is a 1099-applicable Account? Look in the Finance System, under General Ledger, ChartFields, Account. Select the 2nd tab (GL Account CU). The 1099 Applicable box will be checked, if appropriate. Where do you go for help to determine the best Account chartfield value to use for a transaction? Questions on how to record expenditures and other financial transactions should be directed to your campus controller or finance office staff. Frequently Used 1099 Accounts. Go to the PSC web site, www.cu.edu/psc, and click on Payable Services, Accounts Payable. In the upper right corner of the Accounts Payable page, you’ll find a link to Frequently Used 1099 Accounts.
1099 – What to do if your department receives a 1099 Q – Our department received a 1099 form. What should I do? (04/07 update)
A –Forward the 1099 to the University’s Tax Manager, in Payroll and Benefit Services at 575 SYS.
ACARD Purchases from State Contracts Q – Are ACARD cardholders required to make ACARD purchases from vendors under state contract, or can they buy that commodity from any vendor, say personal computers for example? (02/04)
A – Cardholders are expected to make purchases from vendors that have State Price Agreements. The following excerpt is from the Procurement Card Handbook (page 22): NON-MANDATORY PRICE AGREEMENT VENDOR. Cardholders are not to use the Procurement Card to purchase items that are otherwise covered by a mandatory price agreement. For a listing of goods and services covered by such agreements, go to https://www.cu.edu/psc/purchasing/downloads/WhoBuysWhat.xls Any violation of using State Price Agreements must be reported to the PSC Purchasing Agent responsible for the commodity in question.
Q – What is the monthly cutoff for posting ACARD allocations or reallocations to PeopleSoft? (03/02)
A – ACARD to PEOPLESOFT - Timing 7/30/01 Relevant Dates: Transaction Date - the date the vendor assigns the transaction. This date shows on all reallocation screens in ACARD. Post Date - the date the transaction was posted at our issuing bank, Bank One. This date shows on #2 -#4 reallocation screens in ACARD. Transmit Date - the date the transaction was downloaded to our ACARD system. This date does not show on ACARD screens but is usually the next working day after the post date. No transactions feed to Peoplesoft between the first day of the month through the 3rd working day of the month. Un-reallocated transactions automatically feed to Peoplesoft under the cardholder's default speedtype and 553200 account code when the transmit date is 10 days old. Remember, transactions automatically fed to Peoplesoft must still be reallocated in the ACARD system. Un-reallocated transactions that have a post date to the bank prior to the 25th of the month automatically feed to Peoplesoft under the cardholder's default speedtype and 553200 account code on the last working day of month. Remember, transactions automatically fed to Peoplesoft must still be reallocated in the ACARD system. Re-allocated transactions and re-edits (changes to reallocations) feed to Peoplesoft on the following schedule: when the reallocation or re-edit is done between the first day of the month through the 3rd working day of the month the reallocated or re-edited transaction feeds to Peoplesoft on the 4th working day of the month. when the reallocation or re-edit is done between the 4th working day of the month and the 24th of the month, the reallocation or re-edit feeds to Peoplesoft that night. when the reallocation or re-edit is done during the 25th of the month through the last working day of the month and the transaction has a post date prior to the 25th of that month, the reallocated or re-edited transaction feeds to Peoplesoft on the evening the reallocation or re-edit was entered. When the reallocation or re-edit is done during the 25th of the month through the last working day of the month AND the transaction has a post date between the 25th of that month and the last day of that month - the reallocated or re-edited transaction feeds to Peoplesoft on the 4th working day of the next month. If one or more transactions cause the batch feeding from ACARD to Peoplesoft to go into error status, the entire batch of transactions does not show up in Peoplesoft until the day after the batch is corrected by the Procurement Card Program Administration office.
If the vendor uses an Employer Identification Number (EIN) then you can use the procurement card. An EIN is a nine-digit number that IRS assigns in the following format: XX-XXXXXXX. It is used to identify the tax accounts of employers and certain others who have no employees. Because EINs can be used by all types of business entities from sole proprietors to corporations, you should confirm with the vendor if they use an EIN.
Q – An old Q&A stated that purchases from eBay are not allowed. Still true? (updated 06/08)
A – No longer true. The terms and conditions that eBay purchasers using PayPal had to agree to was considered signing contracts on behalf of the University—definitely not allowed. However, the May 1 revision of the Procurement Card Handbook changed this and added: “For internet purchases, such as PayPal or Amazon.com, Cardholders may “click-through” or otherwise indicate agreement with online terms and conditions in order to complete small dollar purchases, providing they are not required to sign documents to complete the transaction. (As a matter of good business practice, cardholders should read the terms and conditions that apply to any transaction.)” As always, the purchase must satisfy all the other requirements in the Handbook and applicable PPSs such as Tests of Propriety and Sensitive Expenses.
Q – Can we use the ACARD to purchase postage? (03/02)
A – Yes. You can use the ACARD to purchase postage. However, in allocating the postage cost to your FOPPS, you cannot allocate postage to a sponsored project FOPPS (fund 30/31) unless that project is approved by Sponsored Projects Accounting to pay for postage costs. If your sponsored project FOPPS is not authorized to pay postage costs using the campus Mailing Services, then you cannot charge ACARD purchased postage to the project either. To do so would be a violation of Office of Management and Budget Circular A-21 and the Federal Cost Accounting Standards
Q – After reviewing my monthly
statement, I discovered that a Procurement Card charge was reallocated
to the wrong account. Can I fix it with a journal entry (JE)?
A – A mis-reallocated transaction is
a transaction that has already been reallocated but now needs to be
changed, either because it was originally reallocated to an incorrect
Speedtype or Account chartfield or because the Speedtype or Account used
has subsequently become invalid.
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Q – What is the AP System-Maintained Default account 699999? How is this used and what do I need to do if transactions hit this account? (11/01)
A
Accounts Not Listed on the Quick Reference Card Q – Why aren’t the following accounts included on the Quick Reference Card? (11/02)
482603 – Telecommunication Equipment Rental 482604 – Telecommunication Equipment Maintenance 482607 – Telecommunication Toll Charges
A – The Controllers consider these User Option accounts and user option accounts are not included on the Quick Reference Card (QRC). The QRC includes only those accounts that departmental administrators are required to use at a minimum to classify assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses and cash transfers in coding departmental business transactions. The QRC does not include accounts that are:
Accounts Receivable Write-Offs Q – When I turn an account receivable over to State Collections, should I write off the account receivable? (11/01)
A
– No, do not write off the account receivable.
Submitting an account receivable to a collection agency does not mean
that we no longer consider this an account receivable.
We are merely using the collection agency to assist us in the collection
of this receivable. The State of
Colorado has set the criteria we must follow in writing off accounts receivable.
This requires following a specific process and getting the approval of
the State Controller and State Treasurer.
Please
refer to the Accounts Receivable policy and procedure on the ABS Web site for
complete information, http://abs.colorado.edu/.
Accounts Receivable Write-Off Approval Q – What approvals are required before submitting a request to write-off accounts receivable to Central Collection Services? (08/02)
A – You should obtain the approval of the head of your unit – Dean, Director, Department Chair, etc. Upon obtaining this approval, send the write-off request to the campus Controller. The Controller will review the request and follow up with any questions. If the the request is approved, the Controller will sign it and forward it to Central Collection Services for processing. The Controller has requested that Central Collection Services return to the requesting department any account receivable write-off requests that do not include his approval.
Accounts Receivable – Credit Card Chargebacks Q – Do credit card chargebacks have to be submitted to Central Collection Services for collection? (12/02)
A – No. The campus merchant will receive a "copy request" for documentation about a transaction. The campus merchant has 12 calendar days from the receipt of the request to provide the requested documentation. If the campus merchant fails to do so, regardless of the reason, the disputed purchase is "charged back" against the campus merchant's account. The campus merchant is thereafter forever precluded from attempting to collect that payment—period. Thus, we cannot send these items to Central Collection Services. If the campus merchant missed the deadline, they must write off the chargeback as a reduction of revenues. Therefore, campus merchants must use good business practices to ensure they can comply with this requirement and avoid writing off chargebacks.
Advertising vs. Sponsorships at University Events
Q – How does an ATF occur? A – Individuals in the organizational unit order or obtain a good or service that a purchasing agent should have ordered for them.
Q – What do you do about an ATF? A – You must follow the procedures described in the ATF policy (http://www.cusys.edu/psc/policies/ PSC Procedural Statements). Note that the policy includes a list of campus contacts. Please confer with your campus contact prior to taking any action. The designated individual or office will help you work through the process.
Q – What happens then? A – The required documentation must be reviewed by the campus Chief Financial Officer and depending on dollar amount and circumstance, the State of Colorado Controller. They evaluate the situation that led to the ATF and decide whether to approve payment by the University.
Q – Why is an ATF bad? A – ATFs result in delayed payments to vendors who have, in good faith, provided goods or services to the University. Furthermore, the individual who initiated the improper transaction may be held personally liable for payment (Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-30-202(3)).
Q – How do you prevent ATFs from happening? A – Be sure that everyone understands the ATF policy and that only the designated individuals initiate purchases on behalf of the organizational unit.
Q – What if you have questions? A – Contact the appropriate purchasing agent. For a list of purchasing agents and the commodities in which they specialize, go to www.cu.edu/psc - click on Purchasing Services, I need to buy something, now what, then select What is being purchased.
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The importance of knowing if a FOPPS is defined as an "auxiliary enterprise" is so that you know what revenue accounts to use for that FOPPS. Auxiliary Operating Revenue is one of the revenue lines reported in our financial statements. The NACUBO definition of "auxiliary enterprise revenue" is all revenue generated through operations of an auxiliary enterprise. Therefore, if a FOPPS is defined as an "auxiliary enterprise" (expense purpose code 2000), then the only revenue accounts that can be used for that FOPPS are 280000 - 289999, Auxiliary Enterprise Revenue. A word of caution: all of our 2x funds include the word "auxiliary" in their title.
That does not mean that all 2x fund FOPPS are auxiliary enterprises. Only those programs with expense purpose code 2000 are auxiliary enterprises. You can see in the Finance System the expense purpose code of the program in your FOPPS by navigating to: General Ledger > Chartfields > Program. Enter the program number and press the Search button. Select the Program CU Attributes tab and then locate the Exp Purpose Code.
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Cash TransfersQ – What are the rules for transferring cash between funds? (05/02)
A – Cash Transfer Table for CU-Boulder is a link to an Excel file containing a chart showing the allowable fund combinations for transferring cash. This was approved by the Senior Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer and the Director of Budget and Finance on April 18, 2002, and updated December 2003. How to use this chart:
Contact your area accountant if you feel you have a valid reason to make a cash transfer that the table indicates is not allowed.
Q –
What
is the significance of the ‘Manager’ attribute on organization, program or
project chartfields? (08/01; updated
04/07)
A
– The Fiscal Roles and Responsibilities APS describes the various fiscal
roles used in the Finance System. It is available on the
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Q – We received a check today for $2,500 from a company and it is for a scholarship for a designated student. The check is made payable to the student and the University of Colorado. Should we endorse this check over to the student? If not, how do we handle this? (03/02; updated 08/06)
A – No. Do not endorse the check over to the student. Work with the Office of
Financial Aid and
Checks: ID Information that can be Recorded on Checks
CIW (Central Information Warehouse)
Q
To get access to the CIW, please complete the Central Information Warehouse Access Request Form on the UIS web. If you already have CIW access but forgotten your password, call 303-492-9457 and select option 1 to get your password reset or if you have questions about your CIW account.
Clothing Supplied to Employees by Department
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This does not apply to uniforms where State Fiscal Rule 2-8.07 allows for uniforms at no charge, at a reduced charge, or through a uniform allowance. However, the type of clothing discussed in this Q&A does not qualify as a uniform. A uniform is not an article of clothing commonly worn as street clothes. For example, our police officers would not wear their uniforms to be out in public in general. If an article of clothing is such that the logo would be acceptable to wear the clothing in general—to the store, PTA, Bronco game, etc.—then it is not a uniform. Also, uniforms are usually required to be worn. These articles of clothing frequently are not required, meaning if you show up to work without it you won't be sent home to put it on.
Collection
Costs
Q – What is the proper account to use to record collection costs? (02/03)
A – There are two accounts and it depends on who is providing the collection service. 553400–Administration & Collection Costs is used when paying an outside collection firm. This usually occurs only through the Bursar’s Office and with loan funds.
553412–Administration & Collection Costs–State is used when paying the State Central Collection Services.
Q – What is the correct accounting for the vendor fee we have to pay for accepting credit cards from our customers? (11/02; updated 04/07)
A – There are two answers to this question and it depends on how the credit card fee is administered. If you receive payment for the credit card charges net of the credit card fee then you record your day’s receipts in total (gross) and the bank card fee as a debit to revenue. If you receive payment for the credit card charges for the full amount of the sales and you are subsequently billed for the credit card fee then you record the day’s receipts in total (gross) and you record the credit card fee as an expense in either account 552602–Other Operating Services or account 552607–Credit Card Fees when it is paid. This treatment is prescribed by the State Controller in the March 2007 Fiscal Procedures Manual, chapter 3, section 3.8 Credit Cards.
Q – Is it allowable for us to donate funds to an external entity that then uses these funds to provide awards to CU faculty for outstanding service? (07/02; updated 04/07)
A – No. Essentially, we are taking CU funds and providing additional remuneration to selected faculty for outstanding service. This should not be accomplished by routing the funds through an external entity. It is permissible for the external entity to select the outstanding faculty to receive the award. But the award should be paid through our payroll system following the proper procedures provided by the Recognition and Training PPS available at https://www.cu.edu/psc/policies/.
Donations: Food Drives or Coat Drives
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University employees, associates, affiliates, or students may not use university funds for the sole purpose of making contributions or charitable gifts to any organization. This prohibition on using university funds to make a contribution includes cash and non-cash contributions as well as contributions to the University of Colorado Foundation, Inc. Examples of non-cash contributions include the use of labor, supplies, telephones, photocopy machines, computers, email, or other equipment.
This means that even though the university isn’t spending its cash on a charity, it is likely contributing non-cash through the collection effort. However, the same APS includes several waivers, one of them being: Non-cash support of university-wide campaigns may be authorized by the appropriate Vice President or Vice Chancellor when the campaign is deemed to be in the best interest of the University or campus. The Colorado Combined Campaign is an example of a permissible campaign. The University’s donation can be in the form of the use of labor, supplies, telephones, photocopy machines, computers (including email), or other equipment used to directly administer the campaign.
You must get the appropriate Vice Chancellor’s OK before you organize this sort of thing. The VC will need to know the benefiting organization and the level of departmental resources required (staff time, material needs, etc.).
Electronic Imaging of Documents
“Accurately reflects” implies that the electronic image is readable, so before you toss the paper, be sure you can read the electronic version. “Accessible” means that you can locate the electronic files for later retrieval to use as needed and to dispose of when the retention period is met. You may want to keep these files on a networked drive and limit the access. It is also a good idea to keep electronic back up copies on a different drive. One crash can make for a very bad day.
These electronic files are still university records and therefore, should be stored on a medium owned or controlled by the university. Work with your IT staff on how to best manage these records for archival purposes.
Q – What are the tax reporting issues for employee awards such as Employee of the Year or retirement? (09/02; updated 04/07)
A – Cash or cash-like (e.g. gift cards) awards to employees are taxable, no matter what the amount. All cash awards must be paid via the payroll system so that taxes are appropriately withheld and reported.
Non-cash awards depend on the type and value. Engraved plaques, trophies, or medals made of non-precious metal are not subject to tax reporting. Other types of non-cash awards, rewards, or prizes valued at $100 or more (individually or in the aggregate) during the calendar year are tax reportable. If less than $100, they are not.
T
Q – The department did not have the funds to purchase a personal computer for an employee. The employee purchased his/her own computer and uses it partially at work. May the department reimburse the employee for a share of the cost of the personal computer and the computer remain the personal property of the employee? (09/02)
A – No. Any goods purchased by an employee and reimbursed by the University become the property of the University. Other than the reimbursement for the use of a private vehicle and uniform allowances, the University does not reimburse employees for the use of their personal possessions for University work.
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