end of year transactions

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neac
Posts: 68
Joined: Mon Jan 28, 2019 8:26 am

end of year transactions

Post by neac »

Hello,

I am still processing 2018 end of year transactions but now I'm stuck and don't really know how to proceed.

So, we have a financial secretary, who is not me and is also new to the position, that enters bill payments and requisitions, and prints the checks. We have a number of checks that were entered in the system and printed in January, but they are for 2018. These transactions have already been posted and reconciled with the bank account.
How do I adjust the date so that they are taken into account for 2018 and not 2019?

NeilZ
Posts: 10209
Joined: Wed Oct 08, 2003 1:20 am
Location: Dexter NM
Contact:

Re: end of year transactions

Post by NeilZ »

neac wrote:Hello,

I am still processing 2018 end of year transactions but now I'm stuck and don't really know how to proceed.

So, we have a financial secretary, who is not me and is also new to the position, that enters bill payments and requisitions, and prints the checks. We have a number of checks that were entered in the system and printed in January, but they are for 2018. These transactions have already been posted and reconciled with the bank account.
How do I adjust the date so that they are taken into account for 2018 and not 2019?
FWIW ... you can't easily do that. Since Powerchurch is a 'cash basis' accounting, money is withdrawn when it is written. You can't backdate it without reversing the original check, and then reissuing on Dec 31st. You can't mark it as 'year end' as it will then be left out of most reports unless you make sure the box is checked on the report filter screen.

My suggestion is to do what many churches do, just 'pay it forward'. You paid those bills in January, so they fall in the 2019 budget, but Dec 2019 will show up as being paid in 2020. It evens out to a point.

Usually such bills are utilities, but I've seen this when it comes to Payroll Taxes. Which is why I usually make sure that the checks are written prior to Dec 31st, and I then make the monthly or quarterly tax deposit in Dec. It usually doesn't get withdrawn from the bank until Jan 2nd, but the action was taken in December.

To clarify, what type of bills are they?
Neil Zampella

Using PC+ since 1999.

neac
Posts: 68
Joined: Mon Jan 28, 2019 8:26 am

Re: end of year transactions

Post by neac »

Some utilities bills, some are reimbursements. I suppose it doesn't really matter for those. Unfortunately, no one told either myself or the financial secretary to date year end transactions for December regardless of the fact we didn't process them until January.
The biggest concern is a DOB fee, which is a significant amount sent to our denomination. The cheque has already been cashed so reversing the transaction and reprinting the cheque doesn't make sense.
BTW, what does reversing a transaction actually do?

NeilZ
Posts: 10209
Joined: Wed Oct 08, 2003 1:20 am
Location: Dexter NM
Contact:

Re: end of year transactions

Post by NeilZ »

neac wrote:Some utilities bills, some are reimbursements. I suppose it doesn't really matter for those. Unfortunately, no one told either myself or the financial secretary to date year end transactions for December regardless of the fact we didn't process them until January.
The biggest concern is a DOB fee, which is a significant amount sent to our denomination. The cheque has already been cashed so reversing the transaction and reprinting the cheque doesn't make sense.
BTW, what does reversing a transaction actually do?
The reversal will 'revert' the transaction, putting money back in the checking and removing the entry against the expense. You would then reenter the check using the same check number, same debit and credit accounts, but using Dec 31 date in MANUAL checks, then posting to December.

What I would do in future, is setup for this December under Accounts Payable, a Repeating Item that you then date for December. I have many of these repeating items setup for each month (standard utilities, etc), quarterly and yearly. Then each month I'll pull up the Accounts Payable RELEASE Repeating Items and the monthly bills are listed I then release those I get a bill for, and leave the rest until a bill arrives. In your case you'd have this setup for YEARLY in December, and you'd then release it and send it in December.

Its a very good way to make sure you don't skip a monthly payment, but also to remind you of those payments that are not usual, such as quarterly insurance payments, or this annual payment to the denomination.
Neil Zampella

Using PC+ since 1999.

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