Disbursement Services Checklist

This checklist is used by Disbursement Services staff in their approval process.

1. Is Request for Payment an original form and not a copy?

       If not, contact department to determine why original form was not submitted.

2. Is Request for Payment properly approved?

Has RFP been approved by authorized departmental staff? If not, return to department for approval. Staff is not allowed to approve their own RFP'S (ex. Petty Cash Reimbursements).

3. Is the appropriate supporting documentation attached?

Original invoice showing what was purchased or faxed copies of invoices are acceptable if the original copy has been lost. Departments must submit individual invoices for each purchase. Statements are not acceptable documentation unless the vendor bill are only on the statement and does not issue invoices.

       Registration forms showing cost and dates of training.

       Subscription/Membership renewals showing the service period.

4. Who are we paying?

       Determine who the correct payee is and where the payment should be mailed.

Payments to employees, individuals, County departments and other non-routine vendors should be closely reviewed to determine appropriateness of expenditure. County normally does not conduct business with close relatives of County employees unless unusual circumstances. If vendor is unusual, non-routine or questionable, first check with other Disbursement Services team members. If further clarification is needed, check with the Financial Services Manager for the departments question.

5. How much are we spending?

RFP's that are more than $1000 should be closely reviewed to be sure departments are following County policies for purchasing spending limits.

Purchases of merchandise/tangible items that exceed $1000 for a single purchase are required to be on a purchase order. Purchases of merchandise/tangible items that are separate orders, on separate invoices are not required to be on a purchase order but should still be looked at closely to determine if the dept. had the vendor split the order/invoice to circumvent the $1000 spending limit.

RFP's for services that exceed $5000 are required to be on a contract. (If payable to an individual, the amount cannot exceed $1000 without being on a contract).

Always check on-line to determine whether a PO/CC exists before assuming that a department has violated County policies for spending limits. Sometimes the PO/CC exists but the department has failed to list the number on the RFP. If policy has been violated, alert the Financial Services Manager for the department in question.

Is index code appropriate for department submitting RFP? Index codes are specific to each department and departments should use only their own codes. Occasionally, departments need to charge a portion of the expense to another department and will use another department's index code. They should only do so with that department's approval.

Is sub-object consistent with type of expenditure? Departments may use any sub-object within an appropriate range and are given a great deal of leeway interpreting the codes. There are a couple of important distinctions to be made for certain payments.

A) If the payments are for services, Disbursement Services may need to change the sub-object to an appropriate code to meet 1099 reporting requirements.

Each payment for services must be reviewed to determine whether the payment is 1099 reportable and if so, that the department has used a 1099 reportable sub-object. If the department has used a non-reportable sub-object, then Disbursement Services must change the code to an appropriate reportable sub-object.

The vendors we pay for 1099 reportable payments must also be reviewed to be sure we have their tax ID numbers in the system.

SEE PRINTOUT ON 1099 REPORTING REQUIREMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER PAYMENTS ARE REPORTABLE. If you still have questions, you may contact Karen Thiessen at 856-6142.

B) If the purchases appear to be for fixed assets, Disbursement Services should be carefully reviewing the sub-object codes to make sure that they are consistent with the fixed asset capitalization requirements of the County. Questions concerning fixed assets should be directed to Sonya Hicks at 856-5523.