Cash Management Module 2: Intermediate

March 8, 2013

Cash Management Training

Module 2: Intermediate Level

Intro:

Intranet resources:
Procedures summary with links to forms
Link to forms from District homepage
Theft
Who collects cash?
Building bookkeepers
Building staff
Where does the money go?
District account (send to Accounting Department)
School activity account at a bank
PTAs and booster clubs manage their own accounts

Documenting the transfer of cash

Maintain records for 5 years
Issue receipts
Stress importance of giving a receipt
Bookkeepers issue receipts from the KEV system
Secondary staff:
issue receipts from a District Student Receipt Book
or record payments with Money Collection Form
send copies to bookkeeper with Activity Fund General Remittance Form

Handling cash safely

Change Orders and use of cash boxes
Safety tips

Conclusion

Cash Management Training – Intermediate Level

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Handling funds in the public schools is a serious matter governed by State law, Board policy, and administrative procedures. This training package is designed to assist Cedar Rapids district staff in managing cash appropriately within those guidelines.

A complete copy of the District’s Cash Management procedures is located on the district website. From the homepage, select “Services”

and then select “Accounting” under the “Business Services” heading.

Click on “Cash Management Procedures” to find the document outlining all of the District’s policies and procedures for managing cash.

Within that document, you can click on special links to open copies of the forms being described.

You can also find the forms from the homepage by selecting “District Resources” at the bottom of the screen.

Select “Forms” from the list of Resources on the left.

and then look for specific forms in the “Accounting” section. Most of the accounting forms mentioned in this presentation are located in the list that appears here, and they should always be readily available for your use.

If you feel someone who works for or with the District is engaged in financial mismanagement, you may contact your supervisor, principal, or the Accounting Manager. If you feel more comfortable addressing your concerns anonymously, you can use the Financial Integrity Hotline. In either case, your information will be treated confidentially.

District Employees who handle cash and the managers or administrators who oversee them are required by Board Policy to receive cash management training on an annual basis. Based on your job description or your cash handling duties, you have been assigned to view one or more specific training modules.

This is Module 2. It provides a more detailed visual overview of the District’s procedures for receiving cash and issuing receipts. The target audience includes staff and administrators with increased exposure to cash handling. This increase is generally due to additional fees collected for activities, clubs, and other functions which occur more frequently at the secondary level. Please verify that you are viewing the correct module.
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Who collects the money?

In elementary schools, money is collected primarily to cover instructional materials fees.

The funds are collected by the designated building bookkeeper, who in most cases is the office secretary.

Payments are sent directly to Accounting, credited to the District’s General Fund, and deposited in the District bank account.

In middle and high schools, collections are much more complicated. Money is collected for many more reasons,

and although it may go directly to the designated bookkeeper,

many more people are usually involved in the collection process. All funds collected by building staff are eventually

delivered to the bookkeeper, who compiles the records and forwards the money to its next destination.

Where does the money go?

Some funds—for example, fees collected for instructional materials—belong to the District and need to be credited to the District’s General Fund. Some other funds—such as those collected for school fund raisers or activities—

belong to the school and are deposited in a special activity account managed by the school.

Any money given to a District employee is considered District funds and must be credited to one of these two bank accounts.

Funds collected by PTAs or booster clubs are not District funds and should not be kept in District offices or in District bank accounts. Those organizations must have their own accounts and their own taxpayer IDs.

This training package provides an overview of the procedures used to handle cash as it is received in the District’s secondary schools.

We will describe the receipts that are used to itemize payment details

and illustrate forms used to show how and when the money passes from one person to another. Correctly using the forms and procedures outlined in this cash handling process will help to safeguard the District from theft or mismanagement. It should also increase the personal safety of all individuals who handle cash.

Documenting the transfer of cash

Board Regulation 704.5 states that all documentation related to cash handling must be kept on file at each building or department site for a minimum of 5 years.

The person who is ultimately charged with collecting and maintaining these records is the building bookkeeper. But each person who receives cash is responsible for knowing and following the proper procedures used to collect and forward that money to the Bookkeeper.

At the secondary level, the bookkeeper uses a computer program called the KEV system to document cash payments from students and to facilitate bookkeeping tasks.

The term “CASH” includes monetary items such as currency and coins, checks, money orders, and credit card transactions.

Whenever a payer gives cash to the District, he or she should receive a receipt that accurately reflects that payment. This step is critical for maintaining fiscal accountability.

If money is collected by the bookkeeper—say for a consumable materials fee—the payment is recorded in the “KEV system,” which generates the receipt.

One copy of the receipt goes to the payer to show “proof of payment.”

The other copy is filed in the building as part of the supporting documentation.

If a payment is made by credit card, one copy of the charge slip goes to the payer, and the other copy is attached to the building copy of the KEV receipt.

Some collection times are way too hectic for bookkeepers to be able to issue receipts immediately. When this is the case, they collect the cash, enter the information in the KEV system and print the receipts when time allows, and then mail a copy of the receipt to each student’s home.

As mentioned earlier, many people around the building may assist with collecting cash. For example, if you are a secretary in the activities office, you may collect money for activity tickets.

However, only the bookkeeper has access to the KEV program and the receipts that it generates.

In this case you will issue a pre-numbered receipt from an official District Student Receipt Book.

Each receipt provides details about the transaction: who paid, how much cash was collected, why it was collected, and who received the money. Additional details may be added to the receipt as needed to clarify a payment.

The white copies are given to the payers.

The pink copies will be sent to the bookkeeper to be stored in the building file, and the yellow copies will stay in your receipt book to provide a permanent chronological record of the transaction.

Cash Management Module 2: Intermediate

March 8, 2013

Sometimes members of the staff need to collect a number of relatively small amounts from a group of people—for example, collecting towel fees from members of the athletic team. In such cases, it’s not necessary for you to fill out individual receipts, but you still need to keep a record of each student’s payment.

The Money Collection Form lists up to 35 payments on a single page. This form speeds up the collection process.

If you use this form to collect cash, fill in the “Activity” line at the top of the form showing why the money was collected. (Avoid collecting for different activities on the same form; that may complicate the process of crediting the proper account later….)

In the middle of the form, fill in the name of each person making a payment, noting whether the payment was made by check or in cash. Please print or write names legibly! Although the amounts may seem trivial, this is a formal document that will be kept in building files for the next 5 years.

When the collection is complete, or when the form is full, tally the amount collected by check and the amount collected in cash. Enter those amounts and the grand total received at the bottom of the form. That amount should match the amount of money you have on hand.

Enter your name and signature at the top of the form, along with the final date of collection.

If you are not sure when you can use the multiple receipt form and when to use individual receipts, please contact your bookkeeper or the Manager of Accounting for clarification.

Regardless of which form of documentation you use when you collect cash, all of the money and copies of the receipts should be passed along to the bookkeeper as soon as possible.

Whenever cash is passed from one person to another, you need to document that exchange.

The proper way to do that is to fill out an Activity Fund General Remittance Form. This 2-part form summarizes the collection details and itemizes the denominations of money collected.

The total remittance should match the amount of cash you have collected,

and it should agree with the tally from the pink copies of the receipts,…

or the total on the money collection form.

Give the original copy of the remittance form to the bookkeeper, along with the cash and the appropriate receipts.

Keep the yellow copy of the remittance form as your receipt. In some cases, your bookkeeper may keep that second copy until the amount of money has been verified and then initial the receipt to show that it’s accurate and return it to you for your records.

Handling Cash Safely

This may be a good time to mention cash boxes and tips for handling cash safely.

Buildings are encouraged to minimize the amount of cash kept in departments or offices. General purpose “petty cash” is not allowed. Cash boxes are allowed only for limited, very specific purposes.

For example, sometimes schools need to have change on hand for district sanctioned and managed activities such as sporting events, fine arts performances, and fund raisers.

You can submit a Change Order Form to “borrow” up to $250 from your building bookkeeper to use for this purpose. (The form is available on the Internet with the other accounting forms.)

Fill in the name of the person requesting the cash and information about the event.

Specify what denominations of currency and coins you will need.

Have an authorized administrator or staff person sign the form, and forward it to your bookkeeper. You will be notified when the cash box is ready to pick up.

The use of authorized cash boxes should be very closely monitored by the bookkeeper.

When you handle cash, for additional security, two people should count the money you receive, cross-checking each other for accuracy.

Always count and store cash in a private area out of sight of students, parents, and other staff,

and don’t leave cash where someone can reach it if you are distracted.

All cash should be stored in a locked filing cabinet or safe.

Finally, return the cash box and the appropriate documentation to your building bookkeeper immediately following the event. Cash collected from students for any other reason should be turned in to the building bookkeeper on a daily basis.

For most staff, that’s the entire collection process. For the bookkeepers, the work is just beginning!

After receiving the money, the bookkeepers will verify that the total on the Activity Fund General Remittance form matches the amount of cash turned in.

They will enter a record of the amounts collected in the KEV system, making sure the proper people and accounts are credited with the payments.

They will prepare the forms needed to forward the money to Accounting or to deposit the money in the school bank account.

At the end of each month, they will use the receipts and deposit slips to reconcile the bank statement, and they will file copies of all the forms in the building archives. As you can imagine, the bookkeepers have a huge job with enormous responsibilities. Part 3 of this training will detail more of those tasks.

If you have any questions about the forms or procedures outlined in this presentation, please contact the Manager of Accounting or call the District’s Business Services office for further information.

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