Purpose
The purpose of this Quick Reference Guide (QRG) is to provide answers to the most frequently asked questions regarding NCFS Cash Management System.
Frequently Asked Questions
This document provides in depth responses for commonly asked questions regarding the NCFS Cash Management System.
I enter deposits/disbursements for multiple agencies. When I go to enter the accounting distribution on a journal entry, I do not see all my agencies or budget codes.
Journal entry accounting distribution security is tied to the Data Access Set value. Verify you are in the correct Data Access Set value before starting your journal entry and change it if needed. For users with access to all agencies, the Data Access Set value should be “NC CASH-US.” For DHHS users with access to all DHHS divisions, the Data Access Set value should be “NC CASH-AGENCY DHHS.” All other Data Access Set values are for individual agency codes. If your Data Access Set value is correct and you still do not see any/all your values, contact the OSC Helpdesk for assistance.
I need to enter an ACH deposit, and I do not see my agency’s bank account listed under the DEP-ACH category.
Deposit categories determine workflow approval routing. DEP-ACH and DEP-WIRE are approved by DST Banking Operations. Only ACH or Wire deposits that utilize the DST general account (0006269000345) are approved by DST Banking Operations. If your agency has a different bank account for ACH type transactions, that account will be listed under the DEP-CASH & CHECK category.
I need to enter a journal entry for a deposit (or disbursement), and I cannot find the bank account number I need under any of the deposit (or payment) type values.
Only a few values appear in the popup box where you select the bank account number. First, click on the Search hyperlink at the bottom of the list. In the next window, click the radio button for ALL and click the SEARCH button. This brings up all values under this deposit (or payment) type. Use the scroll bars to move through the list until you review all values. Do this for each of the deposit (or payment) types. If you are still unable to find the desired bank account number, contact the OSC Helpdesk at 919-707-0795 for assistance.
What is the difference between the bank accounts lists under PAY-DISBURSEMENT verses PAY-OTHER type values?
PAY-OTHER includes the bank accounts used on the requisition attachment screen in CMCS. PAY-DISBURSEMENT includes general expense or payroll bank accounts.
I entered a deposit entry and requested approval. I realized I forgot to enter the bank account information on the cash lines. What do I do now?
It depends on the Deposit Category and whether the AutoPost program has run and posted the journal yet. If the deposit must be approved by DST Banking Operations before posting (categories DEP-ACH or DEP-WIRE), they will reject it because of the missing bank account number. You can then update the rejected entry and request approval again. To update your entry before DST Banking Operations rejects it, you can withdraw the entry from the approval workflow using the following steps:
- Open the bell notifications window and select “Show All.”
- On the Notifications page, select the “Created by Me” tab.
- Find the notification for the JE batch to withdraw and click the Withdraw button. The system will display a “Done” message.
- Go to Manage Journal Screen and select the JE batch that was withdrawn. Verify Approval Status updated to “Required.” Make your changes and Save/Complete the transaction.
- Go under the Batch Actions menu and “Request Approval” to re-start the approval workflow.
All Deposit Categories other than DEP-ACH and DEP-WIRE are approved automatically and will post daily at 9:45 am. Prior to the entry posting, the journal can be edited using the following steps:
- Select the journal from the Manage Journals screen. The Edit Journal screen displays for the selected transaction.
- Click the Edit button and then click Yes to the confirmation message to move the journal back to the unapproved state.
- Edit the journal lines to add the bank account information.
- Click the Save button to save your changes.
- Under the Batch Action menu, click Request Approval to start the approval workflow process on the updated transaction.
Once a journal has posted, the only recourse is to reverse it and re-enter it with the missing bank account information.
Can I copy an existing journal entry to re-use?
Yes. Select the Copy option under the Batch Actions menu for the JE you want to copy. Complete the pop-up box with a new journal batch name, accounting period, and date. Your new JE is ready for you to edit all other fields as needed. Once your edits are complete, Save/Complete and Request Approval on your new JE.
NCFS requires a “balanced” journal entry to record a deposit or disbursement. What does that mean?
NCFS is a general ledger which requires a two-sided accounting entry. This means that total debits and total credits must equal within a JE. NCFS does not allow an entry where the debits and credits are not equal to be submitted for approval. To maintain cash integrity within budget codes and funds, OSC has configured an additional rule within NCFS to require total debits and total credits also must equal within each budget fund value entered on a JE. If the entry is not balanced by budget fund, it will error out during posting with the message “The journal doesn’t balance by balancing segment.” This error batch displays on the Requiring Attention tab to be corrected and submitted again.
When do I enter an amount in the Debit column verses Credit column on a journal entry?
- To record a deposit, increase cash (Debit) and increase revenue (Credit).
- To record a disbursement, decrease cash (Credit) and increase expenditure (Debit).
- To record a refund of expenditure, increase cash (Debit) and decrease expenditure (Credit).
- To record a refund of revenue, decrease cash (Credit) and decrease revenue (Debit).
On a transfer transaction, how do I know whether to enter amounts in the debit or credit column?
Unlike a journal entry, for a transfer transaction, enter only the revenue/expenditure accounting distributions, and the system generates the cash accounting distributions to create a balanced entry.
If you are the provider agency, you are sending funds to the receiver agency.
- On the Transaction row that identifies the receiver agency, enter the transfer amount in the Credit column because it is a Revenue/Transfer In for the receiver agency.
- On the provider tab in the Transaction Distribution section, select the expenditure clearing account (00005000) and enter the transaction amount in the Debit column because a debit increases your expenditures. The system automatically generates the decrease (credit) to cash to balance the entry when it posts.
If you are the receiver agency, you are receiving funds from the provider agency.
- On the receiver tab in the Transaction Distribution section, select the revenue clearing account (00004000) and enter the transaction amount in the Credit column because a credit increases your revenues. The system automatically generates the increase (debit) to cash to balance the entry when it posts.
- As the receiver agency, note how the provider agency set up the transfer. If amounts are entered in the Debit column, a refund of revenue type transaction is created sending funds back to the provider agency.
My internal documentation has the CMCS department numbers. How do I translate the department number to the NCFS agency numbers to use on my transfer transactions?
In CMCS, an agency may have more than one department code but in NCFS there is only one agency number per entity. See the “Dept Code to NCFS Agency Xwalk” spreadsheet for assistance.
I completed the accounting distribution on a journal entry line but now I cannot expand it to enter the bank account information. I am getting an error message on a new line. How do I get back to the other line?
NCFS does not allow you to leave the accounting distribution field blank. Once you start a new line, you must complete the accounting distribution field to get off that row. If you accidently start a new line, the easiest correction is to delete the line. Click the X button on the Journal Lines menu bar. Click Yes on the confirmation message and the system deletes the error line. You can now highlight a row to expand to enter the bank account information.
I have expanded a journal entry row to enter the bank account information but the new fields do not show the drop-down arrows so I can select a value.
You must first select/highlight a row to be able to edit it. Move your cursor to the left side of the expand/collapse button until it turns into a solid black arrow. Click to select/highlight the row. All fields are now editable, and the expanded fields show the drop-down arrows.
I accidently typed my amount value in the accounting distribution field. When the Account selection box popped up, I noticed that all the field values were blank. After selecting the correct agency, budget fund, and account values, is it okay to leave the other fields blank.
No part of the accounting distribution can be left blank. They must contain a valid value even if your agency is not using that segment for your internal reporting/accounting. For each of the additional fields, use the drop down to select the DEFAULT value. For the Funding Source field, select the UNDESIGNATED value.
I entered a disbursement journal entry and requested approval. I realize I made a mistake I need to correct. How do I get it back?
The deadline for submitting disbursement entries to OSC for approval is 10:45 am. Before then, you can withdraw the entry from the approval workflow using the following steps:
- Open the bell notifications window and select “Show All.”
- On the Notifications page, select the “Created by Me” tab.
- Find the notification for the JE batch to withdraw and click the Withdraw button. The system will display a “Done” message.
- Go to Manage Journal Screen and select the JE batch that was withdrawn. Verify Approval Status updated to “Required.” Make your changes and Save/Complete the transaction.
- Go under the Batch Actions menu and “Request Approval” to re-start the approval workflow.
If you are not able to withdraw the journal entry, contact OSC Central Compliance and ask that they reject the batch. You can then update the rejected entry and request approval again to process the next day. Once a disbursement journal entry is approved and posted, it can no longer be edited.
What happens if I use the wrong PAY category on a disbursement? Will OSC Central Compliance reject the disbursement?
The PAY categories in NCFS replace the payment priority codes used in CMCS. Payment priority codes are used to determine what/when to pay expenses from the general fund when the State has restricted cash flow. For example, debt service and payroll payments are a higher priority than general expense or intergovernmental (IGO) payments. The number in the PAY category name indicates the priority. While agencies should classify their payments appropriately, OSC Central Compliance only rejects disbursements due to insufficient funds.
Can I use transfer category “TFR-9 INTERNAL- WITHIN BUDGET CODE” to update my revenue and expenditure account balances in NCFS to match my source system balances?
No. The transfer category value “TFR-9 INTERNAL- WITHIN BUDGET CODE” was created to allow agencies to transfer cash between budget funds within a budget code. This transfer category is excluded from approval workflow. It is also excluded from cash management reports so not to increase revenues and expenditures artificially since overall cash in the budget code is not increased/decreased by such transactions. The only report that includes this transfer type is “FBR Internal Transfers Exception Report.”
I went in to the Create Transfer screen and realized it was the wrong screen. When I try to Cancel, I’m getting an error message on the Additional Information Context field. How do I get out of this screen without creating an entry?
NCFS will not allow the Additional Information Context field to be blank. Using the drop-down for this field, select “IC_Transfer.” Click the Cancel button and then click Yes to the warning message to exit this screen without creating a transfer entry.
Why don’t I see the Select Icon for the Account field when I am trying to enter a new row?
First, be sure you are in the row field for the Account column. If you still do not see the Select icon at the end of the field box, make the Account column wider. In the column header row, click and drag the Account column border to the right. The border may be difficult to see. If so, slowly move your cursor between Account and Debit column headings until you get the column width indicator (2 parallel lines with arrows on each side). Click and drag the Account column border to the right until you see the Select icon in the rows.
When using the spreadsheet to create a transfer entry to upload to NCFS, I cannot see enough of the Provide or Receiver agency name in the pop-up box to tell what to select. Can this box be made bigger?
The column for the agency name in the search results can be expanded. In the column header row, click and drag the column border to the right. The column border may be very difficult to see. If so, point your cursor to the column header and slowly move your cursor to the right until you get the column width indicator (2 parallel lines with arrows on each side). Click and drag the column border to the right to expand the column.
How do I know what general ledger accounts to use for deposits, disbursements, and transfer entries?
In Release 1, there are only three general ledger accounts to remember:
- Revenue/Transfer In: 00004000 Revenue Clearing Account
- Expenditure/Transfer Out: 00005000 Expenditure Clearing Account
- Cash: 11120000 Consolidated Budget Code Cash
The only exception is a different cash account for limited, specific budget codes:
- 11124000 Pool Csh Gen Fund Rev - Only used in general fund reserve budget codes (19930 – 19949)
- 11225000 Pool Inv Bond Proc Restri - Only used by Gov Office and DST in select bond related budget codes
The “Budget Code to NCFS Codes Xwalk” spreadsheet can be filtered by agency and/or budget code and lists the valid accounts for that budget code.
What happens to all the bell notifications if I do not access them or use them to approve/reject a transaction?
In production, a program will run every 15 minutes to sync the bell notifications with actions that were completed outside of the bell notification window.
Why do I see Transfers with a status of Approved on my Needs Attention tab? What else do I need to do for these transfers?
When OSC Central Compliance approves a transfer transaction, it displays on the Needs Attention tab until the extract to GL program runs around 1pm. There is nothing you need to do.
Is there a way to screen shot a journal entry to include all the journal lines?
While OSC recommends using the various custom reports to print NCFS data, the Print option under the Batch Actions menu can be used to print a journal entry in the “data entry screen” format:
- Expand the cash account rows to display the bank account information in the journal lines section if you want that data included in your print output.
- Scroll to the last line in the journal lines section.
- Select the Print option in the Batch Actions menu. The system opens a new browser tab that displays all journal lines.
- Use the Print option in your browser menu to print the data on this new tab.
An alternative method is to click the Export to Excel icon in the Journal Lines menu row. This creates a spreadsheet of the journal line details including the bank account information without having to expand each line first. The spreadsheet output does not include the Batch or Journal Header information. You can do a screen capture of that information and paste it into the Excel spreadsheet if needed.
Is there a way to print the Create Transfer screen data?
OSC recommends using the various custom reports to print NCFS data. NCFS does not include a print function on the Transfer screens, but the keyboard/browser print screen function or a 3rd party screen capture software can be used to print the NCFS screen.
Do we have to enter separate journal entry batches for each type of deposit, or can we put all a day’s deposits into one batch?
Each journal batch should represent a single bank deposit to facilitate DST’s matching of banking deposits to cash management entries. DEP-ACH and DEP-WIRE categories which require DST approval should never be mixed with other category types within the same batch because approval workflow is based on the journal header category, not the journal line type.
Are there any disadvantages to putting all manual disbursement entries into one journal entry batch instead of creating separate batches based on payment category?
Approval workflow is based on the PAY category value at the journal header level. Because all disbursement journal entries are approved by OSC Central Compliance before posting, combining types of payments in one journal batch does not impact approval workflow. However, approval/rejection is at the batch level. If there are insufficient funds for one budget code in the batch, the entire batch must be rejected. Splitting disbursement entries into separate batches by PAY type reduces the risk of an entire day’s transactions being rejected. Also, if statewide cash flow is restricted, the PAY category values help determine the priority for approving payments. Combining different types of payments under a single PAY category could impact when the payments are approved.
If I do not know what category to use on a disbursement journal entry, what should I do?
There are 10 PAY category values. It is up to the agency/university creating a manual disbursement journal entry to determine which PAY category to use. All may not be relevant for your agency/university. The number in the PAY category indicates the priority for approving disbursements when there is a statewide cash flow problem. If your disbursement is specific to debt service, payroll, state aid, health benefits/health provider payments, or refunds, it is to your advantage to use the related PAY category. PAY-5 E PAYMENT and PAY-6 GENERAL EXPENSE are for general payments to outside vendors while PAY-9 IGO is for general payments to another NCAS agency. PAY-7 TRANSFER OUT identifies a transfer of funds to another state or governmental entity that is not on CMCS/NCFS. PAY-5 E PAYMENT is primarily used within the NCAS interface process to segregate electronic payments to vendors while PAY-6 GENERAL EXPENSE identifies when a check is created. There is no requirement for manual disbursement entries to be segregated by electronic, check or intergovernmental categories. If none of the more specific PAY categories seem applicable to your disbursement, use PAY-6-GENERAL EXPENSE for general fund budget codes or PAY-10-SPECIAL FUNDS for all other budget codes.
How will I know if I forgot to request approval on a journal entry?
As part of your daily process, run both the FBR Daily Deposits Report and the FBR Daily Disbursements (Requisition) Report and look for “Required” in the Approval Status column. Required status means the entry is waiting for you to request approval.
How will I know if I forgot to enter the bank account on a deposit or disbursement journal entry?
It is a critical part of your daily process to run both the FBR Daily Deposits Report and the FBR Daily Disbursements (Requisition) Report and look for rows with blank bank account information. Deposit entries must be corrected prior to 9:45am and disbursement entries prior to 10:45 a.m.
How do I know if I have completed all the steps when receiving a transfer or that I have transfer transactions to complete?
There are several steps to complete work related to transfer transactions depending on whether you are in the role of provider or receiver. As the provider, review the Requiring Attention tab for Intercompany Transactions for “rejected” batches to complete. Also review the new tab for any intra-agency transfer transactions to be completed or transfers uploaded from a spreadsheet that need to be submitted. As the receiver, select the Manage Approvals option on the Intercompany Transaction task list. Entries on the Requiring My Approval tab are waiting for you to complete as the receiver. As part of your daily process, run the FBR Internal Transfer Exception report to review and correct any exceptions noted.
There are two Manage Intercompany Transaction screens – inbound and outbound. Which one do I use for what purpose?
The Manage Intercompany Outbound Transactions is from the provider viewpoint. It is a useful screen to review for any batches not in “complete” status for follow up. “Complete” status batches have posted to general ledger and updated your cash balance. From this screen, you can withdraw from the receiver a batch that not in “complete” status that the receiver has not started to process yet. The Manage Intercompany Inbound Transactions is from the receiver viewpoint. From this screen, you can search for transfers from a specific provider. You can also search based on the status of the batches. “Received” status batches are still pending completion/approval and can be selected to edit from this screen. “Complete” status batches have posted to the general ledger and updated your cash balance. This screen also gives additional batch statuses not available on the Outbound screen such as “Rejected” and “Rejection Reviewed.”