Re: Invoice payment -- "general accounting practice"

Dung-Lan,

If you are talking about database subscriptions and not periodicals, an option might be to ask your vendors to change the subscription periods to align with the  university’s fiscal year payment policy. We did a mild version of this with EBSCO (and others) when we had database subscriptions that came in June-August and had to wait on budget transitions while sometimes incurring late fees. Now we get a large consolidated invoice in the Fall and one in the early Spring.  One factor in this process is how much room in your budget you have to accommodate any prorating the vendor wants to do to change the subscription period. Another factor is if you think that this policy is going to be long term and make it worthwhile to put forth the effort to change the subscription periods. There may also be some vendors who will only bill on a calendar year.


Glenda Alvin
Associate Professor
Assistant Director for Collection Management and Administration
Head, Acquisitions and Serials
Brown-Daniel Library
Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Blvd
Nashville, TN 37209
615-963-5230 (office)
615-963-1368 (fax)

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Sent: Wednesday, November 18, 2015 4:06 PM
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Subject: Re: [ACQNET-L] Invoice payment -- "general accounting practice"

Our business office prefers we pay subscriptions in the fiscal year the bulk of the subscription falls in. So 6 months in each is a toss up and I usually pay those in the current fiscal year.
Towards the end of the fiscal year as I have invoices that will be charged against next year's budget, I ask them to "prepay" out of next fiscal year funds. I just have to keep track of those invoices so that I can post them in the new fiscal year.
They do make exceptions if the charge is under $5,000. They will pay that in the current fiscal year regardless of how much falls in that year. If I can pay with a credit card I sometimes do that and then it becomes a non-issue for us.
I would actually hate to have to split the invoices between fiscal years!

Vicki Burgess


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From: acqnet-l_at_lists.ibiblio.org
To: acqnet-l_at_lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Wednesday, November 18, 2015 9:27:00 AM
Subject: [ACQNET-L] Invoice payment -- "general accounting practice"

Hi all,

I am hoping to find out if your institution’s Accounting Office is doing something similar to what our College’s Financial Services Office calls “general accounting practice.”  Recently, we were informed by our Financial Services Office that payments for renewals/subscriptions will come out of our budget matching exactly when the subscription term takes place.   Our fiscal year starts June 1 and ends May 31 the following year.

Say we just a renewal invoice for database subscription for 01/01/2016 – 12/31/2016 that is billed at 1200.00 for the renewal.  Our Accounts Payable is now splitting the $1200 into two fiscal year because the subscription period falls into two separate fiscal years.  So this is what they are doing now – they split the total into two amounts by charging five months of the subscription (Jan. 1 – May 31, 2016), $500 against current fiscal year budget.  And holding $700.00 to be put against next fiscal year which it starts on June 1, 2016.    They would still pay the whole bill in full $1200 to the vendor/provider.   So basically at the Library we have to invoice $500 for current fiscal year in our ILS and set a reminder to invoice the other $700 when new fiscal year starts in June.    We’ve never had to invoice this way for the past 12 years since I’ve been here until very recently.   The Accountant in our Financial Services Dept. called this as a “General Accounting Practice.”    I was wondering how general this practice really is as she calls it  and if any other institution’s Accounting Office/Dept. is doing something similar?   I guess I’m looking for endorsement to this “general accounting practice” to lower my blood pressure … sigh!

Thanks in advance for any information you are willing to share!

Best,
Dung-Lan

*********************************************
Dung-Lan Chen
Bibliographic Services/Acquisitions Librarian
Lucy Scribner Library
Skidmore College
815 N. Broadway
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
Voicemail: 518-580-5511
Fax: 518-580-5541
Email: duchen_at_skidmore.edu<mailto:duchen_at_skidmore.edu>
*********************************************


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--
Vicki Burgess
Acquisitions Manager
Carleton College Library
1 N. College St.
Northfield, MN 55057

vburgess_at_carleton.edu
Phone 507.222.4262
Fax   507.222.4087

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