STATE OF CONNECTICUT
NANCY WYMAN COMPTROLLER	OFFICE OF THE STATE COMPTROLLER 55 ELM STREET HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT 06106-1775	MARK OJAKIAN DEPUTY COMPTROLLER

MEMORANDUM NO. 2000-08

February 14, 2000

TO THE HEADS OF ALL STATE AGENCIES

1) EFT Vendors - In accordance with Comptroller Memorandums 98-7, 98-22, and 99-12, the Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) Vendor Pilot program is expanding to include the following nine (9) additional vendors:

• Corporate Express
• Kiewit Construction Co.
• Farmington Valley ARC, Inc.
• Raymond Ng
• Value Options, Inc.
• Corporation for Public Management
• Maguire Group
• Town of Ashford
• Forstmann Little & Co.

Effective February 28, 2000, payments to these vendors will be made electronically. Please follow the same EFT payment procedures as used in the EFT Vendor Pilot Program per Memorandum 98-22.

All payments to Corporate Express must be processed in accordance with Comptroller Memorandum 99-12.

2) EFT Listserv - The Office of the State Comptroller will discontinue the practice of issuing statewide memoranda as new vendors are added to the EFT process. A new listserv is being established to communicate future additions and changes to the EFT participant list. All state employees who need to know what vendors are to be paid electronically must subscribe to this listserv.

To subscribe, send an e-mail message to osc.apd@po.state.ct.us with SUBSCRIBE to EFT in the subject area. In the body of the message, include your name, employee number, email address, phone number, agency number and agency name. Each person must send an individual message and only state employees will be authorized due to the confidentiality of the information.

Each agency is responsible for ensuring employees' access to Internet e-mail and the State's website as well as notifying this agency when an employee leaves state service.

3) Laser Check Printing / New Vendor Edits - As part of our effort to streamline and expedite payments, a new edit will take effect no later than March 31, 2000.

Beginning in early April the Accounts Payable Division will utilize new technology in the printing and insertion of vendor checks. All checks except those designated with Code 14 will be automatically printed, inserted, and mailed directly to the payee. Accounts Payable Division personnel will be unable to retrieve checks for agencies or vendors.

Multiple checks to a vendor location will be inserted together by vendor number and suffix. If the complete vendor name and address on the CO-17 does not match the CAS Vendor File remittance name and address for the vendor number and suffix submitted, one of several new errors will be returned. Each agency will be responsible for submitting the proper information.

Agency-based accounting systems that interface with CAS must match the CAS Vendor File. Copies of the vendor file are readily available for immediate validation of information. Please contact our office as stated at the end of this memorandum.

4)Form W-9 - Definition - Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form W-9, Request for Taxpayer Identification and Certification is used to obtain certification from a vendor of the legal business name, taxpayer identification number (TIN), and business entity. The TIN may be a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN), or a Social Security Number (SSN). A sole proprietor may use either an SSN or FEIN, however, the IRS prefers the use of the SSN.

W-9 Requirement -In order to assure full compliance with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 1099 regulations, the following changes are effective immediately:

The IRS Indicator on the CAS Vendor File has been renamed W-9 Indicator, which displays whether or not a W-9 is on file in APD for a vendor.

When an agency is adding a new vendor to the CAS Vendor File, the W-9 Indicator will be defaulted to "N"-No. Upon receipt of a properly completed W-9 form, the APD staff will change the indicator to "Y"-Yes.

Each agency is required to identify those vendors providing reportable services (per section 6.8 of the State Accounting Manual) and ensure that a W-9 is on file in APD.

Each vendor providing reportable services must complete an IRS W-9 form supplied by the agency.

Reportable payments will not be processed against a vendor where the W-9 is not on file. Agencies must request a completed W-9 during the commitment / procurement process, not when the payment is due.

Agencies will be cited for not following reportable payment procedures in accordance with the W-9 requirement.

A new business entity code of 4 is also being added. This will indicate non-profit vendors. Agencies will be allowed to enter this code and will be expected to submit a properly completed W-9 within two (2) weeks. If one is not received, the vendor will be inactivated.

5) Special Processing of Expenditure Batches - Effective March 1, 2000, the following changes are being implemented:

• Agencies processing payments with a statutory due date will no longer use special processing code "04". However, all statutory due date payments must be submitted with the proper "Payment Due Date" to ensure that the payments are released on time, and not prematurely.
• Special processing codes "34" and "99" are being combined with the existing code "14"-Return to Agency. The agency must justify all returned checks.
  • Special processing code "34" for the Petty Cash Replenishment (PC), Pre-Payments (PP), and Employee (Tuition) Reimbursements (XP) is now a code "14".
  • Special processing code "99" is currently used to indicate the insertion of additional materials, such as the Remittance Statement (CO-894 "pink card") for the vendor to apply the payment. This will now be done by the agency submitting the batch with a code "14". The checks will be returned to the agency where the insertion will take place. The agency will be responsible for mailing the check.

6) Post Audit Requirements - Effective March 1, 2000, agencies are no longer required to submit commitment documents (i.e. purchase orders, personal service agreements, amendments, etc.) as backup for transactions selected for monthly post audits. The Accounts Payable Division will use the original commitment document(s) for auditing selected expenditure documents. However, agencies must continue to submit source documents pertaining to the selected audit document (vendor invoices, vendor statements, receipts, receiving reports, etc.).

Checks returned to the agency must be justified. The agency must keep a log of all checks returned and the reason. A copy of this log must be sent to the Accounts Payable Division - Audit Section on a monthly basis.

7) Vendor Check Cancellation Requests - Effective immediately, all vendor payments are reversed by the Vendor Check Cancellation Request Form (CO-790/CO-790-S). A copy of the original Invoice Voucher for Goods or Services (CO-17) must accompany the check with each Vendor Check Cancellation Request. The Vendor Check Cancellation Request is also used to reverse electronically transferred funds whether the payment was submitted as a Wire Transfer (special code 12 &17), an Electronic Funds Transfer (special code 70 & 75), or a Tax-Exempt Bond Fund (special code 80 & 85).

Questions:

All e-mails may be sent to osc.apd@po.state.ct.us or directed to the Comptroller's Accounts Payable Division as follows:

NANCY WYMAN
STATE COMPTROLLER

NW:MKA:ss

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