Bank reconciliation
Bank reconciliation checks each bank account's statement, a month at a time, against what Finance recorded going through it. Once a statement is approved it is final.
The bank accounts are set up in Settings › Finance.
The list
Every statement loaded, newest month first.
| Column | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Month | |
| Account | The bank account |
| Statement closing | The closing balance |
| Outstanding | Recorded in Finance, not on a statement yet |
| Matched | How many lines of how many are matched or explained |
| Status | Matching, Doesn't add up (opening plus the lines isn't the closing), or Reconciled |
Loading a statement
Load a bank statement opens the dialog.
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Account | The bank account |
| Month | Starts at last month. Not a closed month. Each account takes one statement a month |
| Opening balance | Filled in with last month's closing when there is one. It has to match it |
| From the Plaid bank feed / From a file | Offered when the account is linked through Plaid. The feed is chosen to start with |
| Closing balance | As the statement shows it |
| Choose the file | From a file only |
- From the Plaid bank feed takes the month's posted transactions from Plaid, which syncs each morning. The Closing balance can be left blank, and is then the opening plus the month; type the statement's closing to check the feed against it.
- From a file takes the month exported from the bank's site as CSV or OFX (Quicken/QuickBooks). It needs the date, description and amount; a check number column helps. Both balances are required. Up to 3,000 lines. Rows that couldn't be read are listed at the top.
Deposits are positive and withdrawals negative, as the bank shows them.
What Finance expects to see
Money out of the account that Finance recorded:
| Recorded | How it shows |
|---|---|
| A payment run sent from this account | Its direct deposits as one withdrawal, on the pay date. Each check by its number, on the day the run was sent |
| A bill paid by hand | Wherever Paid from named this account. A check by its number |
| A card statement paid | Wherever Paid from named this account |
| A petty cash top-up | Wherever Paid from named this account, by its check number |
A bill, card statement or top-up whose payment named no account counts against the authority's only operating account, when it has just one.
Money coming in, such as HUD's funding or CivicPort's payouts, is not something Finance records, so each deposit line is explained.
Matching and explaining
When a statement loads, each line is matched where it can be: a check by its number and amount, anything else by the same amount within five days.
The page shows, at the top:
| Figure | What it is |
|---|---|
| Opening balance | |
| Activity on the statement | Every line added up |
| Closing balance | |
| Recorded, not cleared yet | What Finance recorded that no statement has shown yet |
| Adjusted balance | What the account really holds once all of that clears: the closing balance plus what is outstanding |
When opening plus the lines isn't the closing balance, it says so: check the balances, or whether the file has every line.
Each line shows the date, what the statement says (with the check number) and the amount, then what it is In Finance: what it matched, how it was explained, or Not matched.
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Match | Picks something Finance recorded, of the same amount, that hasn't cleared yet |
| Explain | What it is and, where it belongs to one, the Program (if it belongs to one), with a Note |
| Undo | Takes a match or explanation off |
What it is is one of:
- HUD funding received
- CivicPort payout (rent paid online)
- Deposit made at the office
- Interest
- Bank fee
- Transfer between the authority's accounts
- Returned or reversed item
- Other: the Note is required
HUD funding and interest explained here are what the Financial Data Schedule reads for those lines, by the program given.
Outstanding items
Recorded, not on a statement yet lists what Finance recorded through the account, up to the end of the month, that no statement has matched: the uncashed checks and the like. Each stays outstanding from month to month until a statement clears it.
Approving
Approve is offered once the statement adds up and every line is matched or explained. It is refused to whoever loaded it and, with approvers named, to anyone who is not one. It then shows Reconciled, and nothing on it can change.
Every active bank account reconciled for the month is the first thing month close checks.