Relocation of several financial operations within the Office of the Controller during May 2006 topThe Graduate School of Arts and Sciences administration will be relocating from Byerly Hall to the third floor of Holyoke Center in September, 2006. As a result, several financial operations within the Office of the Controller will be moving 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor (Cambridge, MA 02138) effective Tuesday, May 30. Affected departments are listed here: University Procurement and Disbursement Services 3rd floor of Holyoke Center to 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor:
University Financial Services 5th floor of Holyoke Center to 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor:
Offices closing at noon:
Offices closing at 3 p.m.:
On Tuesday, May 30 following the Memorial Day holiday weekend, the Accounts Payable, Payroll, Travel, and Strategic Procurement offices will reopen for business at 9 a.m., while the Central Accounts Receivable, University Financial Aid Liaison, and Student Loans offices will reopen at noon.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Please note this year's closing dates:
|
In the paragraphs that follow, you will find closing deadlines and submission information for the following financial transactions (click on a transaction to jump to that section of the e-News):
The deadlines provided are the last allowable dates to submit transactions.
These are the Office of the Controller deadlines. Since some departments have internal deadlines that differ from these, you should check with your department's financial office to obtain any departmentally defined deadlines.
Reporting tips are also included in this e-News. We expect exceptional reporting demands during the year-end closings. Following our suggestions on reporting will reduce the time required to run your reports.
Please note: Designated offices within the Office of the Controller will be relocating to 1033 Massachusetts Avenue on Tuesday, May 30 (see above for details). Pay particular attention to the drop-off locations for these offices noted in the sections below.
Accounts Payable will be moving to the second floor of 1033 Massachusetts Avenue on May 30. As of that date, a mail drop-off box will be located in Room 744 in Holyoke Center. Any items received at 1033 Mass. Ave. or deposited into the drop-off box by the deadlines listed below will be processed for FY2006. All invoices received by the Accounts Payable office either at 1033 Mass. Ave. or at the drop-off box in Room 744 in Holyoke Center by 5 p.m. on Friday, June 30 will be processed in FY2006, assuming they have already been entered and approved in the Web Voucher system. A significant exception relates to foreign currency drafts and wires and US wire transfers (see below for these earlier deadlines). Invoices received between Saturday, July 1 and Friday, July 14 at 5 p.m. will be processed as part of FY2006 if PROCESS FOR JUNE 2006 is written on each invoice to be processed or there is a cover sheet clearly marked JUNE 2006 INVOICES on any batch of invoices. Any invoices received between July 1 and July 14 that are not clearly marked with PROCESS FOR JUNE 2006 or that do not have a cover sheet indicating JUNE 2006 INVOICES will be processed as July 2006 (that is, FY2007) invoices. Please note that if you are submitting an invoice between Saturday, July 1 and Saturday, July 14 for goods or services received in FY2006, you should request that the invoice be processed in JUNE 2006, and not in July, consistent with generally accepted accounting principles. If you purchase items late in the fiscal year that you want charged in FY2006, be sure to request immediate billing from vendors so that you can meet these deadlines. |
|
If you maintain a departmental petty cash fund, you must submit your petty cash log for reimbursement to Accounts Payable either at 1033 Mass. Ave. or at the drop-off box in Room 744 in Holyoke Center by 5 p.m. on Friday, June 30 if you want the charges to be included in FY2006. |
|
For new vendors that need to be set up or for changes to current vendors, the approved vendor setup form must be received in Vendor Setup either at 1033 Mass. Ave. or at the drop-off box in Room 744 in Holyoke Center by Wednesday, June 28 at 5 p.m. |
|
| Credit vouchers (cash receipts) | The Cash Receipts Office, Holyoke 953, will accept credit vouchers accompanied by cash or checks until 5 p.m. on Thursday, June 29. |
| Credit vouchers (validated deposit slips) | The Cash Receipts Office, Holyoke 953, will accept credit vouchers accompanied by a validated deposit slip until 5 p.m. on Friday, June 30. |
All Massachusetts Taxable Sales forms with a validated bank deposit ticket for deposits made in May through June 23 must be delivered to Cash Receipts, Holyoke 953, by 5 p.m. Monday, June 26. In order to allow for sufficient processing time in FY2006, the paperwork for all deposits made from June 24 through June 29 must be delivered on a daily basis to Cash Receipts. Deposit forms and validated bank deposit tickets for deposits made on June 30 must be delivered to Cash Receipts by 12 p.m. on July 3 in order to recognize the income in FY2006. |
|
Credit vouchers accompanied by foreign checks that need to be sent to the bank for collection should be submitted to the Cash Receipts Office, Holyoke 953, by 5 p.m. Friday, June 2. Because each bank and country's collection times and processes are different, we cannot guarantee that we will receive credit from the bank for these checks before June 30. The University has an agreement with Bank of America to receive provisional credit on most common foreign currencies, and the June 2 deadline may be your best opportunity to collect these funds and recognize the income in FY2006. Cash Receipts will continue to deposit all foreign currency checks throughout the month as they are received but cannot guarantee collection for this fiscal year. It is extremely important that you deposit these checks with Cash Receipts immediately upon receiving them. |
|
All checks that need to be voided and re-deposited must be received by Cash Management, Holyoke 451, by 5 p.m. Monday, June 26 in order for the credit to be included in FY2006. |
|
All checks that need to be stopped and re-deposited must be received by Cash Management, Holyoke 451, by 5 p.m. Monday, June 26 in order for the credit to be included in FY2006. |
|
Foreign currency drafts and wires
|
Cash Management will process one last batch of foreign currency drafts and wires on Wednesday, June 28. The majority of these items should be value dated for June 30. These expenses will be included in FY2006. Web Voucher payments to be made in a foreign currency must be entered and approved online and the related invoices received by Cash Management, Holyoke 451, no later than Tuesday, June 27 at 5 p.m. Note: These invoices must have a bank draft authorization form or a wire transfer authorization form attached to the front of the invoice. |
|
|
Web voucher payments to be wire transferred must be entered and approved online in the Web Voucher system with related invoices received by Cash Management, Holyoke 451, no later than Friday, June 30 at 10 a.m. Note: These invoices must have a wire transfer authorization form attached to the front of the invoice. |
| Purchasing Card sweeps | In order to ensure that as many current PCard transactions as possible are swept in this fiscal year, the PCard sweeps originally scheduled for June 29, July 6, and July 13 will all be moved.
|
WV-TAFs must be approved and ticketed by 5 p.m. on Friday, June 30 to be included in FY2006. |
|
Web Voucher Reimbursement reports that require a tax review must reach the Travel and Reimbursement Office at 1033 Massachusetts Avenue or the drop-off box at Room 744 in Holyoke Center by 5 p.m. on Friday, July 7. Note: If you are submitting a reimbursement report that requires a tax review between Monday, July 3 and Friday, July 7 that should be included in FY2006, clearly mark the report PROCESS FOR FY2006. Web Voucher Reimbursement reports that do not require tax pre-audit will be accepted either at 1033 Mass. Ave. or at the drop-off box in Room 744 in Holyoke Center until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12. Note that if you are submitting a report between Monday, July 3 and Wednesday, July 12 for reimbursements to be included in FY2006, you should clearly mark the report PROCESS FOR JUNE 2006. If there is no indication on the voucher as to which month the report should be processed in (June or July), the report will be processed in July. |
|
Web Voucher Reimbursement reports with advance settlements, when accompanied by unused funds (checks), will be accepted by the Travel and Reimbursement Office at 1033 Mass. Ave. or the drop-off box in Room 744 Holyoke Center until 5 p.m. on Tueday, June 27. Advance settlements for zero balance or amounts due to the traveler will be accepted at either location until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12. |
|
Central Accounts Receivable will close FY2006 on Wednesday, July 12 at 5 p.m. AR feeds to be included in FY2006 need to be entered into the Oracle AR system by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12. Invoices and credit memos processed by the tubs can be entered into the AR system until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12. From July 1 to July 12, the GL date in Oracle AR will automatically default to the July date. In order for transactions to be included in FY2006 during this time, users will have to enter the date of June 30, 2006 to override the default date. This process applies to invoices and credit memos entered both manually and via feeds. Please note that receivables for goods or services provided in FY2006 should be entered in the period of JUNE 2006, and not July, consistent with generally accepted accounting principles. Central AR will accept invoice and credit memo templates that AR enters on behalf of local units until 5 p.m. on Friday, July 7. As a reminder, the AR department will process invoices and credit memos for those units that process fewer than 10 invoices per month. Areas that process more than this number per month are responsible for entering the invoices and credit memos themselves. |
|
Closing |
Journal Data Entry Deadline |
GL Feed Deadline |
|
First |
Friday, July 7, 9 a.m. |
Thursday, July 6, 4 p.m. |
|
Second |
Friday, July 14, 9 a.m. |
Thursday, July 13, 4 p.m. |
|
Third |
Friday, July 21, 9 a.m. |
Thursday, July 20, 4 p.m. |
|
Daily input deadline: Monday - Thursday, 6:30 p.m. |
||
Please keep in mind the following:
|
Closing |
Submission Deadline to OSP |
|
First |
Wednesday, July 5, 10 a.m. |
|
Second |
Tuesday, July 11, 10 a.m. |
|
Third |
Tuesday, July 18, 10 a.m. |
Disable Requests:
June 7 (MAY-06 close) is the last date that values will be disabled in FY2006. Any CSMA requests not successfully disabled on June 7 will be held until the JUL-06 close on Wednesday, August 9.
Requests to disable CoA values that require approval should be submitted through CSMA before 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 24. Disable requests that do not require approval should be submitted through CSMA before 10 a.m. on Wednesday, June 7.
Add / Modify / Re-enable Requests:
Requests to add, modify, or re-enable CoA values submitted through CSMA will be processed according to the normal daily schedule (7 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday - Friday) throughout year-end. CSMA requestors wishing to specifically designate for the JUN-06 period any CoA changes entered from July 1 through August 9 (the date of the July close) should enter 30-JUN-2006 as the effective date for their request.
The Financials FY06 Year End web page for standard and ad hoc reporting provides detailed information on the fiscal year-end close and illustrates how to use the Common Reporting Environment for the Warehouse (CREW) reporting features to automate and organize year-end reporting.
The FY06 Reporting web page will show you how to use the Detail Listing close period dates to capture results from each close. By grouping these reports together and scheduling the group to run after each close, you can streamline the steps you need to take to run your reports, as well as ensure that the majority of year-end reports run overnight, reducing traffic to allow more system bandwidth during normal business hours.
Fiscal Year 2006 Close Dates |
Detail Listing Report Periods: Show Transactions “Between Dates” |
CREW Scheduled YE Closes “Event” Kick-off Date |
First Close |
Fiscal June entries from June 1 through July 7 |
Saturday, July 8 |
Second Close |
Fiscal June entries from July 8 through July 14 |
Saturday, July 15 |
Third Close |
Fiscal June entries from July 15 through July 21 |
Saturday, July 22 |
Fourth Close |
Fiscal June entries from July 22 through July 27 |
Friday, July 28 |
Fifth and Final JUN Close |
Fiscal June entries from July 28 through August 1 |
Wednesday, August 2 |
Every year-end we experience exceptional reporting demands during the closings. Following these suggestions on reporting will reduce the time required to run your reports.
Please follow this link for a "printer-friendly" version of the summary schedule.
|
Date |
Time |
Event |
|
Wed., May 24 |
5 p.m. |
CoA values to be disabled that require approval submitted through CSMA |
|
Fri., June 2 |
5 p.m. |
Credit vouchers with foreign checks to Cash Receipts |
|
Wed., June 7 |
10 a.m. |
CoA values to be disabled that do not require approval submitted through CSMA |
| Mon., June 26 | 5 p.m. |
|
| Tues., June 27 | 5 p.m. |
|
| Wed., June 28 | 5 p.m. |
|
| Thurs., June 29 | 5 p.m. |
|
| Fri., June 30 | 10 a.m. |
US wire transfers: web vouchers entered and approved by tubs; related invoices to Cash Management |
| 5 p.m. |
|
|
| Mon., July 3 | 12 p.m. |
Massachusetts Taxable Sales Deposit forms for 6/30 to Cash Receipts |
| Wed., July 5 | 10 a.m. |
First closing sponsored funds Cost Transfer requests to OSP |
| 3 p.m. |
PCard system final FY2006 sweep |
|
| Thurs., July 6 | 4 p.m. |
First closing General Ledger feed deadline |
| Fri., July 7 | 9 a.m. | First closing manual journal entry deadline (including interdepartmental billing JVs) |
| 5 p.m. |
|
|
| Sat., July 8 | 9 a.m. | Data Warehouse updated for first closing results |
| Tues., July 11 | 10 a.m. | Second closing sponsored funds Cost Transfer requests to OSP |
| Wed., July 12 | 5 p.m. |
|
| Thurs., July 13 | 4 p.m. |
Second closing General Ledger feed deadline |
| Fri., July 14 | 9 a.m. | Second closing manual journal entry deadline (including interdepartmental billing JVs) |
| 5 p.m. | Web vouchers to be processed in FY2006 entered and approved by tubs; related invoices to Accounts Payable |
|
| Sat., July 15 | 9 a.m. | Data Warehouse updated for second closing results |
| Tues., July 18 | 10 a.m. | Third closing sponsored funds Cost Transfer requests to OSP |
| Thurs., July 20 | 4 p.m. | Third closing General Ledger feed deadline |
| Fri., July 21 | 9 a.m. | Third closing manual journal entry deadline |
| Sat., July 22 | 9 a.m. | Data Warehouse updated for third closing results |
|
For questions relating to ... |
Please contact: |
||
|
Transaction |
Office |
Location |
Phone |
|
A/P web vouchers |
Accounts Payable |
1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor | 5-8500 |
|
Credit vouchers |
Cash Receipts |
Holyoke 953 | 6-8332 |
| Check voids / re-deposits | Cash Management | Holyoke 451 | 5-4175 |
| Wires and drafts | Cash Management | Holyoke 451 | 6-3018 |
| PCard transactions | Travel Desk | 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor | 6-2273 |
| Travel authorization forms | Travel Desk | 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor | 5-7760 |
| Web Voucher Reimbursement reports | Travel Desk | 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor | 5-7760 |
| AR invoices | Accounts Receivable | 1033 Mass. Ave., 2nd floor | 5-3787 |
| Journal vouchers | UBSS | 8 Story Street | 6-4692 |
| Cost transfers - sponsored funds | Sponsored Research | Holyoke 617 | 6-2513 |
Across the University, we pay honoraria and other fees and expense reimbursements to visiting lecturers, speakers at symposia, panelists, and performers (including actors, actresses, producers, directors, musicians and professional athletes), who travel to Massachusetts to speak or to participate in performances. Virtually all of those individuals are considered to be independent contractors, who are paid through the University's AP system using Web Voucher. Although each person receiving an honorarium or other payment for services has always had the responsibility to report and pay taxes owed in Massachusetts on this service income, until recently the University was not required to withhold income tax from those payments.
That has changed! The University must now withhold on payments made to visiting speakers, lecturers and other performers in many different contexts across the University at the same 5.3% income tax rate applicable to employees, regardless of whether the payment is made to an individual or to an entity. This withholding requirement only applies where the individual or entity has received payments from one or more University departments for services subject to this tax, which aggregate to more than $5,000 within the calendar year. An exemption from withholding exists with respect to events or performances where total payments to all performers do not exceed $10,000 for that particular event or performance; utilization of this exemption presents significant administrative challenges, however, so the University is contemplating how best to document its availability.
Stay tuned for more information on this withholding tax. Developers are currently working on programming for our AP system and AP is working on the related business processes. We are preparing specific instructions on how to process payments of this type and how to benefit from certain exceptions to the withholding requirements. Our goal is to provide the training and support necessary to ensure the University's tax compliance.
Some departments are finding it useful to schedule individual meetings in order to discuss how this withholding tax applies to particular activities. In situations where total payments for a performance or event will exceed $10,000 or where you believe it would be helpful to your department to schedule an individual meeting on this topic, please contact Barbara Hunt in University Tax Services (617-496-0299 or barbara_hunt@harvard.edu).
Reports |
|
Description |
Modifications |
| HRJOBDP005: Departmental-Action Report and Job Group Movement Analysis |
New parameter: New data elements: |
| HRXFRDP204: Departmental Transfer Report |
New report ! This report lets users view basic job information for any employee who has transferred within the University. This report is assigned to the HDW^HRUNV^TUB^Job No Comp role. |
| HRJOBDA029: Departmental-Time Limit Violations, Temp Staff No Backfill |
The hash marks (#####) that populated the column Job Code Entry Date have been fixed in the report. |
HR Data Warehouse (DWHRPRD) AD HOC Notes |
|
Description |
Modifications |
| VIEWS: OHR_DEPT_AFFILIATIONS_CURR_V OHR_DEPT_AFFILIATIONS_HIST_V OHR_DEPT_AFFILIATIONS_LAST_V |
Modified to include the 30-character affiliation description (*_affil_desc30); the short affiliation description (*_affil_abbr);, the department 50-character description (dept_desc); the department 30-character description (dept_desc30); and the department short description (dept_abbr) |
| DEPT_CHILD_PARENT_V |
The objects have been dropped and will not be available for ad hoc reporting. |
If you have any questions or need any information regarding HR reporting, please contact the Information Management Services Group at 617-496-0166.
For Fiscal Year 2007, the object codes for Extra Compensation are changing to make financial reporting more useful. These new object codes will be effective July 1, 2006. Appointment-level costing will be adjusted for all employees during the Copy Prior Fiscal Year process over the weekend of June 10, 2006. These changes will also be reflected in the Earnings Codes Summary document on ABLE within the next few weeks.
The Office of Human Resources publishes this monthly electronic newsletter for users of Harvard University's financial, HR, and reporting systems, policies, and procedures. Generally, the e-News is published on or around the 15th of each month.
It contains:
We welcome questions and suggestions for improvement from readers. If your questions are of general interest, we will answer them in future issues.
Please send comments, questions, or suggestions for improvement by email to us at: admin_systems_enews@harvardedu