The information provided in this guide will assist a departmental fund manager, or authorized designee, in properly reviewing departmental general ledger transactions. Reviewing general ledger transactions helps provide assurance that each transaction is valid, appropriate, reasonable, funded, recorded accurately, supportable, and accounted for in the appropriate time period.
Complying with these transaction control standards is critical to preparing financial statements that provide a fair picture of the campus’ and University’s financial position and performance to University benefactors, such as the state, federal government, donors, granting agencies, and lenders.
For questions, please contact accounting@ucsc.edu.
In combination with other controls in a financial transaction process, monthly review of the general ledger is meant to provide a reasonable level of assurance that transactions comply with the following seven transaction control standards:
Different divisions or departments may choose to depend more or less on ledger transaction review as a key control depending on the relative strength of other process controls in place. Refer to the Seven Financial Control Standards for more information about the seven standards.
Here are some ways transactions appearing in the UCSC general ledger are presented for review purposes:
To perform a proper review, a ledger report must, at a minimum, include the following data:
The person, commonly referred to as a “fund manager” or “fund custodian,” receives delegated authority to expend funds from a particular organization code. A fund manager is accountable for reviewing ledger transactions, and certifying proper fund usage and accounting consistent with the seven control standards described in Review Objectives segment.
Refer to Appendices for information about ledger reviewer proficiency requirements, as well as ledger review responsibility.
Consider the following factors in developing a ledger review strategy:
Successful ledger review depends on deploying an effective blend of approaches.
Be on the lookout for these things in reviewing ledger transactions.
Follow these steps if you identify a questionable transaction.
Upon successful completion of a monthly ledger review, the fund manager or designee, certifies the validity, accuracy, appropriateness, and timely recording of each transaction appearing in the ledger. This is documented in one of the following ways.
InfoView System: The ledger reviewer’s user identification and review date recorded by the system when a ledger report is accessed may constitute adequate documentation provided that a formal written agreement is obtained. In the agreement, the reviewer attests that the presence of his or her user identification and date stamp confirms the following.
Avoid these oversights in devising a ledger review strategy:
Avoid these oversights in reviewing ledger transactions:
Assistance is available for your general ledger review questions from the Campus Controller’s Office.