State agencies will develop and implement internal policies and procedures to charge, as directed and in the manner prescribed by State Statute, interest and a late penalty fee on past-due accounts receivable. Interest shall be charged at the rate established pursuant to G.S. 105-241.21 on a past due accounts receivable from the date it was due until it is paid. Agencies should contact the Department of Revenue, to obtain the rate currently being charged. A late payment penalty fee of no more than ten percent (10%) of the accounts receivable shall be charged on all past due accounts.
Agencies and institutions shall develop internal policies and procedures for delaying or withholding certain state services to persons who refuse to pay their debts. This policy shall not be interpreted to be in conflict with the policies of any State-supported hospital and shall not be the basis of denying necessary mental health or medical assistance or other similar services deemed necessary under Federal or State laws to any individual.
The Attorney General’s Office is the primary agency responsible for the provision of all legal services and advice related to the collection of accounts receivable. For detailed procedures regarding submission of past-due accounts, please contact the Attorney General’s Office or the appropriate legal counsel.
Management should establish an allowance for doubtful accounts to reflect the amount of an agency’s receivables that management estimates will be uncollectible. The establishment of an allowance account ensures that the agency’s receivables are not overstated for financial reporting purposes.
Accounts should be written off an agency’s financial accounting records when all collection procedures, including those required by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), have been conducted without results and management deems the accounts uncollectible. Accounts due from individuals or vendors must be submitted to the Department of Revenue for setoff debt proceedings at least once prior to write off. After write off, these accounts shall continue to be submitted to the Department of Revenue for debt setoff proceedings.
The State Controller, with the advice and assistance of the State Treasurer, the State Budget Officer and the State Auditor, is charged with developing and implementing a uniform statewide plan to carry out the cash management policy for all State agencies, departments and institutions. This Statewide Cash Management Plan outlines the policies, duties, responsibilities and requirements for cash management within State government on a broad basis. It is the responsibility of each agency, department and institution to prepare a cash management plan that meets both the requirements of the Statewide Plan and the unique cash management needs of the individual agency, department or institution. When used in this policy, "State agency" means any agency, institution, bureau, board, commission or officer of the State; however, except as provided in G.S. 147-86.12, 147-86.13, 147-86.14, and 147-86.22, this policy does not apply to the agencies, institutions, bureaus, boards, commissions and officers of the General Court of Justice as defined in Article IV of the North Carolina Constitution or to the local school administrative units and community colleges and their officers and employees.
OSC develops, implements, and amends the Statewide Cash Management Policy for all State agencies. The Office of the State Auditor (OSA) monitors agency compliance with the cash management policy. The State Treasurer publishes a quarterly report on all funds in the control or custody of the State Treasurer, showing cash balances on hand, investments of cash balances, and a comparative analysis of earnings and investment performances.
All agencies, institutions, departments, bureaus, boards, commissions, and officers of the State shall devise techniques and procedures for receiving, depositing, and disbursing monies in their control and custody that are designed to maximize interest-bearing investment of cash while minimizing idle and nonproductive cash balances. This policy applies to the General Court of Justice, public school administrative units, and community colleges with respect to receiving, depositing, and disbursing monies required by law to be deposited with the State Treasurer and with respect to monies made available to them for expenditures by warrants drawn on the State Treasurer. All cash deposited with the State Treasurer by State agencies should be managed in pooled investment accounts to maximize interest earnings. This policy shall include the acceptance of electronic payments in accordance with G. S. 147-86.22 to the maximum extent possible consistent with sound business practices.
All community colleges and their officers and employees are subject to the provisions of G.S. 147-86.11 with respect to moneys required by law to be deposited with the State Treasurer and with respect to moneys made available to them for expenditure by warrants drawn on the State Treasurer.
All agencies, institutions, bureaus, boards, commissions, and officers of the General Court of Justice as defined in Article IV of the Constitution are subject to the provisions of G.S. 147-86.11 with respect to moneys required by law to be deposited with the State Treasurer and with respect to moneys made available to them for expenditure by warrants drawn on the State Treasurer; provided, that the provisions of G.S. 147-86.11 shall not apply to any funds deposited with a clerk of superior court unless the beneficial owner of the funds is either the State or a local governmental unit of the State.
All school administrative units and their officers and employees are subject to the provision of G.S. 147-86.11 with respect to moneys required by law to be deposited with the State Treasurer and with respect to moneys made available to the school administrative unit for expenditure by warrants drawn on the State Treasurer.
The purpose of this policy is to ensure that neither the federal government nor the State of North Carolina benefits or suffers financially as a result of the transfer of cash in support of State-administered federal assistance programs. This policy shall apply to all funds received from federal assistance programs and deposited into the State Treasurer's account by agencies and institutions.
When developing agency cash management plans, each state agency shall consider utilizing electronic payments methods for both outbound and inbound payments.
The Office of the State Controller (OSC), in concurrence with the State Treasurer, shall select a service provider to provide merchant card services to eligible participants, and shall select a service provider to provide electronic funds transfer financial services to eligible participants.
All applications that utilize merchant cards or electronic funds transfer (EFT) transactions as a method of payment via the Worldwide Web shall provide for the generation of a confirmation of the transaction at the time of the order. Confirmations shall adhere to the Office of State Controller Policy on “Security and Privacy of Data,” regarding the disclosure of confidential information.
For Merchant card transactions, the rules governing disputes are established by national card associations (e.g., MasterCard and Visa) or by other similar organizations for proprietary cards (e.g., American Express and Discover). For electronic funds transfer transactions, the rules governing disputes are established by the National Automated Clearing House Association (NACHA). Various laws and regulations may also apply, including the Federal Reserve Bank’s Regulation E.
All State agencies or other participants utilizing Merchant Card services, whether through the OSC’s Master Services Agreement or under separate arrangement, shall develop procedures to ensure compliance with the Processor’s operating guide regarding the obtaining of authorizations. Prior to the finalization of a merchant card transaction, an authorization approval code must be obtained from the merchant card processor. Real-time authorization shall be the preferred method, with the telephone authorization being the alternative method. Finalization of a transaction shall include both fulfillment of a sale or acceptance of an accounts payable, and the monetary settlement of the transaction.
All State agencies or other participants utilizing Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), whether through the OSC’s Master Services Agreement or under separate arrangement, shall develop procedures to ensure compliance with all NACHA operating rules, specifically as they pertain to Receiver (i.e. citizen or business) Authentication and Authorization, before originating debit or credit entries against the Receiver’s account (Article Two). This includes signed or written authorizations provided electronically in accordance with the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (15 U.S.C §7001 et seq.) which defines electronic records (as contracts or other records created, generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by electronic means) and electronic signatures.
The Office of the State Controller (OSC) will periodically consider the types of merchant cards that may be appropriate to be accepted as a means of payment by entities participating under a master services agreement provided by the State Controller, and participating entities shall adhere to the guidelines prescribed herein.
All participants in the State Controller’s Master Services Agreement for Merchant Card Services, as well as State agencies engaging in separate arrangements, are to devise a security incident response plan that incorporates the requirements of the Payment Card Industry Security Council. For those State agencies falling under the purview of The State Chief Information Officer, the incident response requirements defined by the Office of Information Technology Services (ITS) should also be incorporated.