17-A-014 Statewide Encumbrance Policy - Supplement (June 2, 2017)

Informational Circular (IC) 17-A-004 was issued on October 11, 2016 to introduce the new statewide accounting policy for encumbering agency obligations effective January 1, 2017.  

The encumbrance policy resides in Policy Manual (PM) Filing 10,300 – Statewide Encumbrance Policy, and can be found here.

PM Filing 10,300 identifies obligations that are required to be encumbered as well as obligations that are not required to be encumbered but are optional for agency budget management.  In addition, best practices are found in the attached document.

As stated in the policy, the three methods for encumbering in the Statewide Management, Accounting & Reporting Tool (SMART) are purchase orders, travel authorizations and general ledger (GL) encumbrance journals.

Agencies are reminded that the Agency Audit Services Team of the Office of the Chief Financial Officer will begin auditing for compliance with the statewide encumbrance policy effective July 1, 2017.

IC 17-A-014 is issued to provide supplemental information on payments exempt from the encumbrance policy. 

Supplemental information to the encumbrance policy:

Additional obligations that are generally not required to be encumbered but are optional for agency budget management include:

• Out-of-state travel where the supplier is not known until five business days prior to the travel occurring.
• Recording of expenditures of a local fund (petty cash and imprest funds).
• Inmate wages paid through agency imprest funds.

However, the above obligations are required to be encumbered at fiscal year-end, or if specifically required by the Office of Procurement and Contracts (OPC).

Canteen funds, work therapy funds, benefit funds, trust funds and employee use funds are examples of funds that have private funding which is not held in the state treasury, thus they are exempt from the encumbrance policy.

Please note:  The following payments remain under review pending a determination of any encumbrance requirement:

• Payroll expenditures and remittance of payroll taxes, deductions and garnishments
• Single Pay voucher payments

The provisions of PM Filing 10,300 should be followed in conjunction with all requisition and purchase order requirements issued through OPC. 

SMART vouchers without a purchase order will be pushed back to the agency for compliance.  To assist agencies as they work to educate staff for compliance with the encumbrance policy, the following dates will be used in reviewing AP vouchers:

• Effective July 1, 2017, purchase orders with a budget date subsequent to the invoice date will result in an audit finding.  
• Effective July 1, 2018, purchase orders with a budget date subsequent to the date of service or order/purchase will result in an audit finding.

Effective July 1, 2017, SMART expense reports with no existing travel authorization or GL encumbrance noted will be identified as an audit finding (unless exempt per PM 10,300). 

For guidance on fiscal year closing and determination for all obligations, please see PM Filing 14,002 – Fiscal Year Closing Including Fiscal Year Determination.

Attachment:

Best Practices – Statewide Encumbrance Policy

Printable version of 17-A-014 

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