[Msoadm] Business & Financial Services Insider News

Wed Mar 5 17:09:26 PST 2025

Dear Colleagues,

The Business & Financial Services (BFS) Insider News
<https://ucr.bmeurl.co/12358954> delivers key updates and activities
related to *financial systems, reports, and business processes* that
support your work. Please take a few minutes to review the latest edition
and share it with your departmental teams as needed.

Sincerely,

*Asirra Suguitan*
Associate Vice Chancellor and Campus Controller
Business & Financial Services

*http://bfs.ucr.edu/* <http://bfs.ucr.edu/>

[image: image.png]

*Fixed-Price Award Balance Transfers *The Extramural Funds (EMF) team is
actively working on transferring fixed-price award balances to Sales &
Service (S&S) accounts. These transfers ensure compliance with university
policies by moving unspent balances (less applicable IDC) to an established
Organization Sales & Service Fixed Price Surplus Fund.

The EMF team is developing a new request form and implementing a
streamlined process for fixed-price balance transfers. These improvements
will provide clear guidelines and enhance processing efficiency. To ensure
a smooth transition, *we kindly ask departments to refrain from emailing
EMF directly at this time*. Stay tuned for further updates!
*Relocation and Gift-Related Purchases*
*Friendly reminder*: Departments are responsible for ensuring compliance
with policy requirements and maintaining records for relocation and
gift-related purchases from suppliers such as Burgess, Pods, and Barnes &
Noble. For applicable purchases, all supporting documents should be
attached to the purchase order (PO).

Department responsibilities include:

   - Obtaining the required levels of approval before making purchases.
   - Maintaining proper cash handling procedures
   <https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A53&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
for
   bulk gift card purchases.
   - Retaining all supporting documentation for audit purposes.
   - Ensuring compliance with applicable policies
   <https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A54&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
   :

   -
      - *BFB-G-13:* Policy and Regulations Governing Moving and Relocation
      - *BFB-G-41:* Employee Non-Cash Awards
      - *BFB-G-42:* Gifts Presented to Non-Employees on Behalf of the
      University

*Web Recharge Enhancements *We are excited to introduce new enhancements to
Web Recharge, improving service request submissions, billing accuracy, and
audit controls for over 120 Service Providers on campus.

*What’s New & What’s Coming Soon?*

 ✅ Request a New Service Provider – Live, with new training resources here
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A55&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
!
 ✅ Template Billing – Live, with training resources on the way.
 🔄 Service Provider Update Request Form – In testing, deployment coming
soon!
 🔄 Mass/Batch Billing – Design will kick off soon to address this highly
requested feature!

*Training Resources are Available! *Our training guides and videos will
help you learn how to submit requests, manage billing, and conduct audits.
Just search "Web Recharge" in Training Resources
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A56&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>.

Read the full notice here
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A57&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
.
*New Process for Manual Salary Cost Transfers (MSCTs)*

Effective immediately, new forms and an updated submission process for *Manual
Salary Cost Transfer Exception Requests* are in place to improve tracking
and streamline processing.

Each request must include the MSCT Exception Request Form, Pre-Journal File
Template, and applicable supporting documentation (e.g., Looker Payroll
Distribution Report, Notice of Award Letter, Approval Email Thread). Once
complete, submit a Universal Request (UR) ticket to Finance and
Administration Support under Payroll Coordination and Analysis.

To access the required forms and submission details, visit the Manual SCT
Exception Requests webpage
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A58&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
under Forms & Resources or the PCA/ORG Teams collaboration channels. *Note:
*It is essential to follow the submission procedures and naming
conventions.

*UCPath SCT Process*
The UCPath SCT process encountered

some defects when SCT transactions were processed through the GL processes:

   1. Vacation Leave Assessment (VLA) was applied to restatements of
   transactions that had originally zero VLA amount.
   2. Grad Tuition Remissions were erroneously applied to a few
   transactions.
   3. Payroll Coordination & Analysis (PCA) Team is also looking into
   another finding related to Work study.

UCPath is collaborating with each location on corrections. For UCR, Payroll
Coordination & Analysis (PCA) is leading this effort. Corrections will
occur in phases: the first by February 28 and the second sometime in
mid-March. Updates will be shared as available.

UCPath identified that the phased GL rewrite processes in July and Nov.
2024 caused these errors. As a result, the SCT GL confirm process has been
paused since February 3 and will resume after testing a fix on March 3.
Thank you for your patience as we resolve these issues.

*SCT & Payroll Certifications *The Payroll Coordination & Analysis (PCA)
team is prioritizing FY24 manual Salary Cost Transfers (SCTs),
collaborating with ORGs to reconcile and process all requests.

*Backlog Status* (as of Feb 25, 2025):

   - ~220 manual SCTs remain in the queue (subject to change as
   reconciliation continues).
   - Target completion:* End of March* (dependent on ORG collaboration and
   assistance).

The new *Payroll Certifications* system will roll out after FY24 SCTs are
processed. A new SCT form is also in development—stay tuned for updates!

*Manual* *Non-Payroll Cost Transfers Tips*

To ensure successful submission of your Manual Non-Payroll Cost Transfer
(NCT) form, please follow these important tips:

   - Submit both a signed PDF and Excel copy of the manual NCT form.
   - Ensure all signatures are completed by the appropriate individuals,
   including the Preparer, Principal Investigator (PI), and Chief Financial
   Administrative Officer (CFAO),  if applicable.
   - Don't forget to attach copies of the invoice(s) related to use tax
   corrections.
   - Make sure all attachments are clear and concise for efficient
   processing.
   - Consolidate requests by including up to 10 lines per NCT form (if
   possible) rather than submitting separate forms and tickets for each
   request.
   - Check the Universal Request/support ticket comments for any follow-ups
   from Accounting— *we may require additional details!  *

Lastly, please remember that NCT requests under *$5* for non-C&G fund
sources and under *$1* for C&G fund sources will not be processed. Let's
work together to make this process efficient!

*Save on Sales Tax for Research Equipment *Visit the Research Equipment
Partial Sales Tax Exemption
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A59&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
webpage to learn how to take advantage of the reduced sales/use tax rate on
qualifying purchases. The webpage includes eligibility definitions, a list
of commonly used purchasing categories, and instructions on requesting the
exemption when submitting a purchase requisition!

To be eligible, all three (3) conditions must be met:
*✔*  Qualified Property – The item must meet state-defined criteria.
*✔*  Qualified Person – The purchaser must be engaged in certain types of
business.
*✔*  Qualified Activity – The property must be used for research-related
activities.

*Important Reminder*: The reduced tax rate only applies to qualifying
inventorial equipment valued at $5,000 or more.

*Thinking About Buying Furniture? *

Before making any furniture purchases, please take a moment to look over
the Furniture Products
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A5A&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
guidance to ensure a smooth and compliant process. This guide walks you
through essential steps, from obtaining quotes to understanding building
permit requirements.

*Special orders? No problem!* Get guidance on patio furniture, lab stools,
and event seating. Once your furniture arrives, "receive in" the lines on
the PO so the supplier’s invoice can be processed for payment. *Failure to
do this delays payments!*

*Finance & Administration Support Portal *

We are enhancing the Universal Request form to increase clarity and improve
routing efficiency. Choosing the appropriate Service/Business Area will
lead to quicker processing. Here are the main updates:

   - "COA Guidance & Cost Transfer Support" → "COA Guidance"
   - "General Accounting & Web Recharge" → "General Acct, Web Recharge, &
   Cost Transfers" (applies to non-payroll cost transfers (NCTs)

"Cost Transfers" will soon be replaced with “NCTs.” Salary Cost Transfers
will continue to be categorized under "Payroll Coordination & Analysis."
Please visit the Request Help - Submit a Ticket
<https://ucr.benchurl.com/c/l?u=12358A5B&e=197F296&c=158834&&t=0&l=12493212E&email=hpBO7BFH3nrxAaSPLVE6Rw%3D%3D&seq=1>
webpage for further information.

*Known Issues Tracker *

Review the
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Issues Tracker
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for the latest information on issues affecting financial processes and
reports.

*Insider News is brought to you by Business & Financial Services,
delivering timely updates on financial systems, reports, and business
processes to support your work. *

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