Change date on "posted" contribution

[ebeck]

An error was made in entering this weeks contributions. Some of the contributions were entered as 6/6/10 and others 6/7/10. The error was not caught until after posting. While the totals are correct if we enter in a range of 6/6 - 6/7, I would prefer to have the totals attributed to Sunday 6/6 only. Is there a way to change individual contribution dates after posting without backing out every entry and re-entering? Thank you.

[JohnDMeyers]

In a word, "no".

(I apologize for trying to make this a humorous situation).

Once you post, you made the record permanent. If you really really want the date to change, you will have to back out the wrong entries and re-enter the correct ones.

In version 11, you can simplify the first part (reversing the original wrong entries) by going to View Posted Contributions and REVERSING the POST.

That will make it so that you only have to spend your time re-entering the correct dates.

[NeilZ]

John didn't mention this, but ...

if you already posted to Funds Accounting, then you do NOT want to post your changes to Funds Accounting, unless there were errors made when entering the Contribution Fund numbers, which would affect the Funds Accounting income accounts.

If that is not the case, then you only want to select the Only Update The Contributions Module in the 'pull down' selections on the Post Contributions dialog.

[ebeck]

Thank you for the reply. The ability to do this on future PC versions would be most appreciated, as would be any new features that help allow for easier corrections. Thanks again!

[NeilZ]

Thank you for the reply. The ability to do this on future PC versions would be most appreciated, as would be any new features that help allow for easier corrections. Thanks again!

I'm not sure that being able to easily change dates once Contributions are posted is a good thing. This is why you have to post Contributions, and when you do, you are asked to confirm the posting.

I would rather make it hard to fix such an issue, and train people how not to let it happen, then making it easy to do so, which can cause other problems.

[ebeck]

Thank you for the reply. The ability to do this on future PC versions would be most appreciated, as would be any new features that help allow for easier corrections. Thanks again!

I'm not sure that being able to easily change dates once Contributions are posted is a good thing. This is why you have to post Contributions, and when you do, you are asked to confirm the posting.

I would rather make it hard to fix such an issue, and train people how not to let it happen, then making it easy to do so, which can cause other problems.

I understand this thinking but unfortunatly no matter how much training one has, you cannot eliminate the possibility of human error, and when errors do occur you want a quick and easy fix. The ability to make date and other corrections after posting is standard on many programs like Quickbooks,etc, so you didn't convince me, I still want it!

[NeilZ]

I understand this thinking but unfortunatly no matter how much training one has, you cannot eliminate the possibility of human error, and when errors do occur you want a quick and easy fix. The ability to make date and other corrections after posting is standard on many programs like Quickbooks,etc, so you didn't convince me, I still want it!

But Quickbooks, in many cases, is a single user system. Powerchurch can be accessed by many, and thus can open itself to manipulation. Which is why, I always advise other users to only have two people authorized to post: the system admin, and the contributions secretary.

That said, reversing Contributions is much easier now, than in previous versions.

[JohnDMeyers]

PowerChurch is a double-entry accounting system.

Quickbooks is a single-entry accounting system.

By definition, the double-entry system provides some limits, by design, that a single-entry system does not, which allows it a level of integrity that a single-entry system cannot provide. This is why many larger organizations have to provide their stake holders a double-entry accounting system for their finances.

In English - there are some things that can't be changed or you don't have a double-entry system anymore.