FILE:  DIA

Cf:  DK, JHB

 

ACCOUNTING SYSTEM

 

 

The Webster Parish School Board delegates to the Superintendent or his/her designee, the responsibility for accounting for all School Board and school funds, and for maintaining complete, accurate, and detailed records of all financial transactions in the school district. These records shall be in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, as prescribed, and approved regulations of the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE).

 

Said accounts and fiscal records shall be available during normal business hours for inspection by the public.

 

SCHOOL BOARD FUNDS

 

The School Board shall require the Superintendent to provide the necessary guidance and direction for the administrative implementation, review, analysis, reporting, and modification of all budgeted activities as approved by the School Board.  All regulations developed and maintained governing the fiscal responsibility of the School Board and its personnel and resources shall be designed to promote efficient management and sound fiscal accountability at every level of the school system.

 

All School Board employees charged with receipt, handling, and/or disbursement of any School Board funds shall abide strictly by state and federal law, policies of the School Board, and regulations and procedures developed by the Superintendent or his/her designee.

 

SCHOOL FUNDS

 

The School Board shall require that uniform procedures be applied throughout the school system to assure the proper accounting for, and expenditure of, all funds under the control of each individual school.  Such funds shall be subject to regular audit by the internal audit department or as may otherwise be provided.

 

Adherence to and implementation of all regulations and procedures, as may be established by the Superintendent and staff, shall be the responsibility of each school principal or his/her designee.  These shall include, but not be limited to the following:

 

  1. Each school shall install a uniform system of bookkeeping, prescribed by the Webster Parish School Board, to include all financial records in each school, ledger binders, sheets and appropriate reporting forms furnished by the School Board.
     

  2. Each school shall submit by the 10th of each month an itemized financial statement of receipts and expenditures for the previous month’s activities. The format for this report shall be furnished by the School Board and shall be hereafter referred to as Financial Report No. 1.
     

  3. All financial records shall be submitted to the School Board office for auditing during the month of July.  These audits shall be paid for by the School Board.  The following financial records shall be submitted for audit:

 

    1. Checkbook, properly stubbed, with each check and stub properly numbered.
       

    2. All bank deposit slips.
       

    3. All cancelled checks attached to supporting invoices.  (Each invoice shall include the date and the check number that paid for the invoice.)
       

    4. All bank statements signed by the principal.
       

    5. Ledger sheets for each school account, including both receipts and disbursements.

 

  1. Other regulations:

 

    1. All net monies collected at schools shall be used for purchases that would result in the improvement of the school.
       

    2. No school shall pay an employee of the Webster Parish School Board bonuses or extra compensation.
       

    3. Principals may authorize coaches and/or faculty members to take trips for school functions and pay the owner of the automobile which makes the trip up to 32 cents per mile.  Principals may also pay for school trips they may take.  The check stub should reflect the following information:  destination, date, mileage, and reason.
       

    4. No facsimile stamp shall be used instead of a signature on a check. 
       

    5. No check shall be drawn for cash except:

 

      1. Change for school activities.  Note:  A notation shall be made on the check indicating for which ball game or other school activity the check is made, and change shall be returned and properly noted on the deposit slip.)
         

      2. Postage.  A receipt from the postmaster is required.
         

      3. Petty Cash Fund.  (A limit of $10, substantiated by cash payout slips)
         

      4. Change for opening of school (To be returned and noted on deposit slip)

 

    1. Personal or civic dues shall not be paid from school funds.
       

    2. Pre-numbered receipt books shall be used to record the receipt of cash.
       

    3. Deposit Slips:

 

      1. Duplicate copies of all deposit slips shall be kept.
         

      2. A record of the funds to be credited to each account shall be entered on each deposit slip.
         

      3. Deposit slips shall be used to transfer monies to ledger to balance accounts

 

    1. Checkbooks and Stubs:

 

      1. All checks and stubs shall have corresponding numbers.
         

      2. The number of the invoice paid for by that particular check shall be indicated on both the check and check stub.

 

    1. Invoices:

 

      1. All invoices shall be kept on file.
         

      2. Each invoice shall indicate (a) date invoice paid and (b) check number.
         

      3. Either at the end of the month or at the end of the fiscal year invoices shall be attached to cancelled checks and placed in numerical order by check number for the auditor.
         

      4. If invoices are kept until the end of the year, before attaching cancelled checks, they shall be filed in an expanding file folder by name of company.
         

      5. Invoices are not needed for some items, such as game officials, provided that they are paid for by check and the check indicates what the payment is for.
         

      6. All payments shall be made from itemized invoices only.
         

      7. Invoices shall bear two (2) signatures; one shall be of the principal and the other shall be of the purchaser.

 

Teacher Receipts

 

In order to trace receipt of monies from teachers to a specific deposit ticket, Use of Cash Receipt Books and Teacher Logs shall be utilized as follows:

 

  1. Each teacher or collector shall prepare cash receipt tickets when money is transferred to the school secretary or person responsible for preparing deposits.  The receipt shall clearly state who presented the money and to what account the money is to be deposited.
     

  2. When the money collected is deposited, the date it was deposited shall be placed on the office copy of the cash receipt ticket.
     

  3. Teachers shall maintain a list of students paying money in a single notebook (Teacher Receipt Log) with separate pages designated for each fundraising activity.  Each page shall reflect:

 

    1. Name of the fundraising activity.
       

    2. Name of the student, amount of money paid, date paid, and date the money was transferred to the office for deposit (a copy of the cash receipt ticket from the office shall be stapled to the fundraising activity sheet).  Note:  The Cash Receipt Ticket and total monies transferred to the office on that date must be equal.

 

  1. At the end of the school year, each teacher shall turn in his/her Receipt Log to the office for inclusion in the financial records made available for audit.

     

The School Board shall receive annual reports from the Superintendent of all income, expenditures, balances in the schools' various accounts, and such other data as the School Board may prescribe, in addition to regular financial reports.  In every way possible, the School Board shall provide financial assistance relative to student activity programs within each school.

 

 

Ref:     La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:59, 17:196, 17:414.3, 24:515, 39:1301, 39:1302, 39:1303, 39:1304, 39:1305, 39:1306, 39:1307, 39:1308, 39:1309, 39:1310, 39:1311, 39:1312, 39:1313, 39:1314, 39:1315

Opinion No. 84-167, Commission on Ethics for Public Employees, State of Louisiana

Louisiana Handbook for School Administrators, Bulletin 741, Louisiana Department of Education

Board minutes, 8-1-66, 9-9-91, 3-94, 11-1-99

 

Webster Parish School Board