Approved by President
Effective Date: June 5, 2017
Responsible Division: Business and Finance
Responsible Office:  Business and Finance
Responsible Officer:  Associate Vice President, Business and Finance

I.  Purpose

This policy shall apply to all payments received on behalf of Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or University) and establishes the process for transmitting and depositing those receipts.

All payments received on behalf of MTSU must be receipted on official receipts at the Bursar Office within the Office of Business and Finance.  All checks in payment of amounts due the University should be made payable to Middle Tennessee State University, or MTSU, and should be mailed directly to the Office of Business and Finance, Cope Administration Building, Room 103, by the maker when possible.  All such checks should indicate the account or function to be credited.

Checks received on behalf of the University, not mailed directly to the Office of Business and Finance, should be turned in to the Bursar Office promptly, accompanied by a Departmental Checks for Deposit form.  Checks should not be made payable to departments, department heads, or any university official or employee designated by name. If this occurs, the department is responsible for informing the payer to make future checks payable to Middle Tennessee State University. The back of each check should be restrictively endorsed immediately upon receipt with a stamp “For Deposit Only – Middle Tennessee State University, Department Name” upon acceptance.

For departments accepting credit card payments, a settlement statement showing the total payments processed for the day must accompany the deposit. These departments must comply with all requirements of the Payment Card Industry – Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS) as outlined in Policy 652 PCI DSS Information Security.

All receipts must be deposited intact. No expenditures may be made or checks cashed from cash receipts. No receipts may be retained within a department for departmental use.

No separate official or semi-official funds (other than official Petty Cash Funds) may be maintained in any department, unless the same has been reported to and approved by the Vice President for Business and Finance. Any such funds on hand should be transmitted to the Office of Business and Finance with statement as to source and designation of account to be credited.

II.  Recording of Receipts

Departments or activities regularly receiving cash in their routine operations must record each transaction in an official University Receipt Book (available from the Bursar Office) or record the transaction on a cash register in the presence of the customer or payer. When the payment involves currency to be recorded in an official receipt book, the original receipt must be initialed by the person accepting the money and delivered to the payer. A notation must be made on each receipt specifying whether payment was by check or cash and the purpose for which the money was collected. When necessary to void a receipt, the voided receipt must be properly explained and the original must be retained and stapled to the copy.

Departments or activities, which have only isolated instances of receipts and do not maintain a receipt book, should not accept currency payments but should direct the payer to the Bursar Office for obtaining an official receipt. Checks which are received by such departments should be promptly transmitted to the Bursar Office accompanied by a Departmental Checks for Deposit form.

III. Transmittal and Deposit of Receipts Frequency

Campus departments should deposit funds each day when five hundred dollars ($500.00) in funds has been accumulated. In all cases, a deposit must be made at least once each work week (Monday – Friday), if there are any funds to be deposited. The five hundred dollars ($500.00) is considered in excess of any established change fund amount.

The official University Receipt Book, on which the receipts have been recorded, must be transmitted with receipt items for deposit  Bursar Office cashiers will verify the deposit and include departmental receipt numbers on the official receipt. The original Bursar Office receipt will be given to the transmitting unit or department for their records.

For departments recording sales revenue using a cash register system, the funds for deposit must be balanced against the cash registers’ sales summary. The reconciliation between the funds collected and the recorded sales per the cash register must be presented to the Bursar Office cashiers at the time of the deposit. Any overages and shortages must be recorded.

IV. Special June 30 Fiscal Year Closing Procedure

Under present University and State regulations, it is imperative that receipts of all University departments through the close of business on each June 30 (or the last business day of the fiscal year) be deposited by 2:00 p.m. on this day in order that credit for these receipts be reflected on the records for the proper fiscal year. Departments with credit card terminals should consider settling their terminals earlier in the day to meet the 2:00 p.m. deadline. Every effort should be made to get all departmental receipts receipted on June 30.

V. Custody and Safekeeping of Receipts

Department heads should see that proper safekeeping facilities are available and that proper safeguards are taken to protect official funds until transmitted to the Bursar Office for deposit. Currency should never be transmitted through the campus mail. Combinations to safes should be changed whenever employees having the combinations are terminated. No more than two (2) or three (3) responsible employees should have access to funds stored in a department. Cash and checks should not be left in cash registers, drawers, or other unsecured locations overnight. If unusually large sums are on hand, arrangements should be made for use of the night depository procedure, making deposits daily (or more frequently), or for a University Police officer to accompany the deposit.

An employee who does not handle money received should perform a monthly reconciliation. A reconciliation consists of comparing the original receipt copies in the department’s receipt book to the official receipt printed from the Bursar Office and the entry recorded to the department’s account. If departments are unable to separate duties as described due to insufficient staffing, Audit and Consulting Services may be contacted to help find an alternate solution.

Personnel handling University funds should be advised of the proper actions to take in the event of a robbery. It is the University’s position that no employee should endanger themselves or others by attempting to resist robbery. Generally, the instructions issued by persons attempting an armed robbery should be followed as precisely as possible. No more or less action than specified should be followed, particularly in the case of armed robbery. In the event that a robbery or theft of funds occurs, the University Police and Audit and Consulting Services should be immediately notified.

VI.  Cash Overage/Shortage

In the event a shortage of funds of five hundred dollars ($500.00) or more occurs, the University Controller and Audit and Consulting Services must be notified immediately. A Notification of Loss Report must be completed and submitted to the Board of Trustees (Board). All cash overages and shortages will be recorded to Account Code 74910 of the expenditure account of the department responsible for receiving the funds. Any cash overage/shortage must be reported on the related deposit transmittal.

Forms:  

Departmental Checks for Deposit

Revisions: none.

Last Reviewed: March 2022.

References: Policy 652 PCI DSS Information Security.