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FUNDS HANDLING AND DEPOSIT PROCEDURES
[State and Local Funds] [Cash
Handling] [Deposits] [Cash
Over/Short Situations]
[Recording and Reconciliation] [Checks
and Money Orders] [Lost or Stolen Funds]
State and Local Funds
It is Longwood University policy to minimize the number of departments collecting
cash items (currency, coins and checks). Any cash collection location must
be approved by the Director of Cashiering and Student Accounts. It is
these departments and personnel to which these procedures are directed.
Using this document as a guideline, written procedures should be
established by each designated cash collection department.
These procedures should be followed in all circumstances, unless the
department has requested and been granted permission in writing from the
Director of Cashiering and Student Accounts to change or modify
them.
All cash operations are subject to review by Longwood University’s internal and
external auditors. Therefore, ensure that all receipts can be related to a
transmittal and that all transmittals can be directly traced to an entry
on Longwood University’s monthly accounting statements. All Longwood University banking
arrangements, including acceptance of credit cards, are established by the
Office of Cashiering and Office of Financial Accounting and Reporting.
Bank accounts may not be established at the department level in the
school's name, ie. Longwood University, or any derivative thereof. Accounts cannot
use Longwood University’s Federal ID Number and cannot have faculty or staff on the
authorized signature list. Existing accounts must be closed and funds
deposited in Longwood University’s bank account.
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Cash Handling
Daily cash and check transactions received by the department must be
recorded by using a cash register or duplicate pre-numbered manual
receipts. The original manual receipt or register receipt must be given to
the payer. Receipt copies of the cash register journal tape is retained by
the department.
The department will obtain receipts from the Office of Cashiering,
which will be standardized and sequentially numbered. The completed
receipts must include: department name, a dollar amount, a description of
the service or product, the date and receipt number, and the name of the
person paying for the transaction.
Register receipts must provide, but are not limited to, the following
information: the date, a dollar amount, a receipt / transaction number, a
cashier identification number, and the name of the area in which the
service is provided.
Cash, checks, and receipts must be kept in secure locations. To protect
the funds, they should be kept in a lockable container, such as a cash
box, and stored in an area that is not visible to unauthorized personnel.
The container should not be left unattended during the working day. All
funds must be kept in a secured (locked) storage area, such as a file
cabinet or safe, at night. Upon review, the Director of Cashiering and
Student Accounts will recommend appropriate type of storage.
Departments collecting cash should bring their receipt bags to the
Cashiering office in non-descript packages at varied times so to not
draw attention to the receipts being delivered. An example would be a
manila envelope. It is also recommended that two employees from the cash
collecting department go together to deliver the receipts to the
Cashiering office.
Departments receiving funds by mail must maintain a mail log
(sheet 1). The mail log should provide the following
information for each check: the date received, a dollar amount, the name
of the person or company paying for the transaction, a description of the
service or product, the account to be credited, and the date remitted to
the Office of Cashiering.
Longwood University communications, both verbal and written should request checks
to be made payable to “Longwood University”. Checks must be endorsed immediately
upon receipt with the following: “FOR DEPOSIT ONLY, (DEPARTMENT NAME),
LONGWOOD UNIVERSITY”. The endorsement must be on the reverse side of the check. As
the payee, the endorsement will be limited to only 1½ inches at the top
of the back of the check.
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Deposits
Funds must be deposited within 24 hours once the total receipts exceed
$100, or at least once a week regardless of the amount. Daily receipts
exceeding $100 should be deposited by 2:00 p.m. each day.
The department should assign cash handling responsibilities to at least
two employees to guarantee a separation of duties and control of cash
receipts.
a. One employee, the cash handler, should receive payments and issue a
receipt (original) to the customer at the point of sale. The duplicate
copy of the receipts are proved to the funds received. The receipt numbers
and total funds collected are recorded on a cashier
log (sheet 2).
The cashier log should include the following information: date of
collection, receipt number(s), total amount of funds collected, name of
the cash handler, name of the depositor, and the date funds were remitted
to the Office of Cashiering.
If a correction is made on a receipt or if a receipt is voided, the
receipt number must be recorded on the cashier log and clearly state: the
correction or void, the date, signature of the person making the change,
reason for the change, and the signature of an approving manager of
supervisor. (The approval should be from a different person than the one
initiating the correction.) All copies of voided receipts (except the
transmittal copy) should be kept together and filed for audit.
b. A second employee, the depositor, should prove the funds and
receipts, verify the amount to the cashier log, and prepare a Transmittal.
The depositor should also record the date remitted and sign the cashier
log.
The depositor will complete a Transmittal for each deposit
with the following information: the date, department name, telephone
number, name of the person preparing the deposit, a description,
account number(s) and subcode(s), the dollar amount, and receipt numbers
issued. The transmittal ticket should be typed or printed in ink for
clarity.
The completed transmittal (a copy should be maintained at the department),
copies of receipts or register tape, and funds are taken to the Office of
Cashiering. Checks are batched together with an adding machine tape
listing each check amount. Receipts should be batched together in
numerical order with an adding machine tape attached. The receipt obtained
from the Office of Cashiering should be verified to the cashier log by the
cash handler and retained with the cashiers log. Supporting documentation
and / or receipts should be kept and filed by each department.
Transmittals should be made in person. Campus mail must not be used to
deliver funds to the Office of Cashiering. The person making the deposit
will be asked to remain in the Office of Cashiering until verification of
the funds has been made. If at all possible, we request that transmittals
be brought during the morning hours.
Departments collecting any form of payment must reconcile support
documentation to Banner. Each day the cash
collecting department should be able to reconcile what is on their daily
cash sheet to related support documents. The following day a
reconciliation should be completed of what was posted in Banner by
cashiering to the amount shown on the cash sheet. These reconciliations
should be documented by a supervisor’s signature and will be reviewed by
the Financial Reporting Department on a periodic basis.
Yearly training on the cash collection and reconciliation procedures
will be conducted by the Cashiering department. This will provide the
payment collecting department with updates on any changes to the cash
handling procedures. In addition petty cash will be collected and then
reissued by the Cashiering department at that time.
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Cash Over/Short Situations
All deposits are made intact, inclusive of any over/short amount.
These amounts increase (overage) or decrease (shortage) revenues for
the accounts listed on the transmittal. Departments must remember that any
over or short amounts are not charged to a separate account.
In addition, a cash over/short log
(sheet 3) should be kept for each
cash collection area. This record is to be used for any unexplained
differences between the total of funds and receipts. The supervisor should
investigate and document overages or shortages that have a minimum value
of $5.00 or that are recurring. The supervisor should sign off on this log
as part of the daily routine.
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Recording and Reconciliation
The transaction will be entered into the cash register/computer upon
receipt by the Office of Cashiering. A copy of the cash register/computer
receipt will be given to the person delivering the deposit to the Office
of Cashiering.
Transmittals should be reconciled to monthly Banner reports from the
Office of Financial Accounting and Reporting or on line access to Banner.
Reconciliations should be performed by someone other than the person
receiving funds or making the deposits. Reconciliations should be dated
and signed by the preparer, and reviewed, dated, and signed by a manager
or supervisor on a monthly basis. This applies to departments in which
revenues are recorded to a specific department revenue account.
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Checks and Money Orders
All checks and U.S. Money Orders must be made payable to Longwood University and
be payable through a U.S. bank.
Lost or Stolen Funds
In the case of a loss of funds or if a supervisor suspects
irregularities in the handling of funds, the Office of Longwood University Campus
Security must be contacted immediately.
Within 5 working days from the time of occurrence, the department must
file a report with the Director of Cashiering and Student Accounts, giving
a brief description of the loss. A copy of this memorandum should be sent
to the Office of Internal Audit, Attention: Internal Auditor.
Additionally, the department must include changes in the departmental
funds handling procedures, if possible, that will prevent the situation
from reoccurring.
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Any questions concerning the funds handling procedures can be directed to
the Director of Cashiering and Student Accounts (jenkinsbt@longwood.edu
or ext. 2270).
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