SACS2015ALL Software Readme

What's New

Listed below is a summary of changes made to the 2015–16 budget and interim, and the 2014–15 unaudited actual, components of the standardized account code structure (SACS) software. We incorporate changes requested by users wherever possible; you may recognize one of your suggestions being implemented here.

This year our efforts were primarily focused on required changes [e.g., changes due to Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement 68]. For additional information on each of the changes, refer to the relevant sections of this user guide.

Global Changes

Removed the “Dual Budget, July 1” and “Dual Budget, September 8” dual budget options and all related forms and processes, effective 2015–16 budget period. The dual budget adoption option was eliminated by Assembly Bill (AB) 2585 (Chapter 309, Statutes of 2014). All 2015–16 budgets are subject to the single budget adoption process.

Querying the SACS2015ALL Software Database

After last year’s SACS software was modified to mitigate the worst of its incompatibilities with Windows 7, software users were no longer able to directly query the SACS software database. The following workaround is available to query the SACS2015ALL Software database: Upon default installation of the SACS software, a QuerySACS2015ALLData.accdb file is created in the C:\SACS2015ALL subdirectory. To create a queryable copy of the SACS2015ALL software database, close the SACS2015ALL software, double-click the QuerySACS2015ALLData.accdb file, and follow the instructions. Currently, only five tables (UserElement, UserGL, StateElement, StateGL, LEA) are included in the copy. If you need copies of additional tables, please send an email to sacsinfo@cde.ca.gov.

Revised Fund Forms

• Forms 01/01I—Other State Revenue Section
  • Removed Resource 6355, ROCP: Direct Support Professional Training Program, from the ROC/P Entitlement Current Year and Prior Years detail lines for Object 8311, Other State Apportionments – Current Year, and Object 8319, Other State Apportionments – Prior Years, and moved the resources into the “All Other” Object 8311 and Object 8319 line, effective 2014–15.
  • Removed detail line for Resource 6360, ROC/P Entitlement Current Year / Object 8311, Other State Apportionments – Current Year, and moved Resource 6360 into the “All Other” Object 8311 line, effective 2014–15.
• Forms 01, 09 and 62—Other State Revenue Section
  • Removed line for Object 8434, Class Size Reduction, Kindergarten and Grades One through Three (K–3), effective 2014–15. Although Object 8434 was obsolete due to local control funding formula (LCFF), it was left open in SACS2014ALL for 2013–14 actuals to accommodate the final deferred payment.
• Forms 01/01I, 09/09I, 62/62I—Other State Revenue Section
  • For Budget/Unaudited Actuals periods: Shaded the Budget column for Resource 6240, Healthy Start, detail line, Object 8590.
  • For Interim periods: Removed the line for Resource 6240, Healthy Start, detail line, Object 8590, and moved Resource 6240 to the All Other State Revenue line, Object 8590.                          
• Form 14/14I—Other Local Revenue Section
  • Added new line for Object 8625, Community Redevelopment Funds Not Subject to LCFF Deduction, effective 2015–16, to allow local educational agencies (LEAs) to account for Community Redevelopment Funds Not Subject to LCFF Deduction revenue that is committed to the purposes of Deferred Maintenance.
• Form 56/56I—Other Sources/Uses Section
  • Added new lines for the following object codes, effective 2014–15. Per GAAP, the use of the proceeds of refunding bonds should be reported as another financing use rather than as an expenditure. Affects county offices of education (COEs) and districts.
  • Sources Section. Object 8979, All Other Financing Sources
  • Uses Section. Object 7699, All Other Financing Uses
• Forms 61, 62, 63, 66, 67, 73—Liabilities Section
  • Added line for new Object 9663, Net Pension Liability, effective 2014–15, to allow LEAs to record net pension liability in accrual-basis funds in accordance with the provisions of GASB 68, as amended by GASB 71.
• Forms 66—Liabilities Section
  • Added line for Object 9664, Net Postemployment Benefits Other Than Pensions (OPEB) Obligation, effective 2014–15, to allow LEAs to record net OPEB obligation in the Warehouse Revolving Fund, consistent with other accrual-basis funds. Affects COEs and districts.

Revised Supplemental Forms

• Form A/AI—Average Daily Attendance
  • All worksheets
    • District Funded County Program Average Daily Attendance (ADA) Section, Line A5d/B2d/C3d. Renamed line description from “Special Education Extended Year-NPS/LCI” to “Special Education Extended Year,” to match the data collection line description in the Principal Apportionment Data Collection Software.
  • Charter School ADA worksheet
    • Expanded worksheet to classify charter school ADA into two categories: One section to report charter school ADA corresponding to financial data reported in Fund 01; and a second section to report charter school ADA corresponding to financial data reported in funds 09 and 62. This distinction of data is needed for extraction into district Criteria and Standards and district Form MYP.
  • All worksheets
    • County School Tuition Fund line. Removed Line B1a(County Office ADA tab)/C2a(Charter School ADA tab), County School Tuition Fund, from the County Program Alternative Education ADA Section, and moved it to District Funded County Program ADA Section, as a new Line A5f(District ADA tab)/B2f(County Office ADA tab). Due to Education Code Section 2576(c).
• Form CA—Unaudited Actuals Certification
  • Certification worksheet. Removed the “Selection of Budget Adoption Cycle” Section. The dual budget adoption option was eliminated by AB 2585 (Chapter 309, Statutes of 2014).
• Form CB—Budget Certification
  • Inserted a checkbox in front of the first paragraph, requiring districts to check the box relating to the required certifications. If the district does not check the box, a fatal technical review check (TRC) exception will result for the new CB-BUDGET-CERTIFY supplemental check.
  • Inserted a second paragraph with checkbox: If the budget includes a combined assigned and unassigned ending fund balance above the minimum recommended reserve for economic uncertainties, at its public hearing, the district complied with the requirements of Education Code Section 42127(a)(2)(B) and (C). If the district does not check the box, a warning TRC exception will result for the new CB-BALANCE-ABOVE-MIN supplemental check.
• Form CEA/CEB—Current Expense Formula/Minimum Classroom Compensation
  • Part I, Current Expense Formula; and
    Part II, Minimum Classroom Compensation
  • Added the following resource codes to the reductions in Column 4a and Line 13a: Resource 3724, Advancing Wellness & Resilience in Education (NITT-AWARE) Program; Resource 6126, Child Development: California Transitional Kindergarten Stipend (CTKS) Incentive Program; Resource 6382, California Career Pathways Trust; Resource 7124, Broadband Infrastructure Improvement Grant (BIIG).
  • Removed the following obsolete resource codes from the reductions in Column 4a and Line 13a: 3015, 3035, 3170, 3718, 3816, 3820, 3825, 3831, 3928, 4130, 4140, 4141, 5451, 6200, 6210, 6226, 6260, 6267, 6280, 6290, 6292, 6296, 6330, 6365, 6377, 6380, 6405, 6550, 6701, 6761, 7021, 7022, 7026, 7056, 7080, 7127, 7150, 7155, 7156, 7157, 7158, 7160, 7165, 7170, 7180, 7185, 7186, 7255, 7256, 7259, 7268, 7270, 7271, 7282, 7286, 7292, 7296, 7325, 7380, 7396, 7397, 7398.
  • Part IV, Explanation for adjustments
  • Added this new section for LEAs to provide an explanation for adjustments entered in Column 4b, Reductions (Overrides). Districts only.
  • Added a new warning internal form check prompting users to provide an explanation for any adjustments entered in Column 4b, Reductions (Overrides). For the first year only (in SACS2015), this internal form check will have a warning severity, i.e., the user can still close the form without providing an explanation, and an explanation is not required to complete an official export. However, in SACS2016, this internal form check’s severity will be changed from warning to fatal; where the user can still close the form without providing the explanation, but the explanation must be provided in Form CEA/CEB to complete an official export. Districts only.
• Form DEBT—Schedule of Long-Term Liabilities
  • Governmental Activities and Business-Type Activities sections. Added new line for Net Pension Liability, due to the implementation of GASB 68, as amended by GASB 71.
• Form GANN—Appropriations Limit Calculations
  • Updated inflation adjustments on Line D2.
  • State Aid Received Section. Removed Line C26, Class Size Reduction, Grades K‑3 (Object 8434), and renumbered lines accordingly. Although Object 8434 was obsolete due to LCFF, it was left open in SACS2014ALL for 2013–14 actuals to accommodate the final deferred payment. Districts only.
• Form MYP/MYPI—Multiyear Projections
  • Adjusted the dollar amounts used in the Unrestricted/Restricted worksheet, Reserve Standard Percentage Level (Line F3d for COEs only) and Reserve Standard – By Amount (Line F3f for COEs and districts, and Line F7 for joint powers agencies), based on the adjustment to the statutory COLA factor made in the Criteria and Standards Review form.
  • Unrestricted/Restricted worksheet
    Line F2, District ADA. Modified ADA extraction to exclude charter school ADA for charter schools that report financial data in the district’s funds 09 and 62. District and charter school ADA extraction now includes only the ADA corresponding to the financial data reported in the district’s Fund 01. Districts only.
• Form NCMOE—No Child Left Behind Maintenance of Effort
  • Section II, Expenditures Per ADA
    • Line A, Average Daily Attendance
      • Modified Form A extractions. Due to the LCFF change in funding for the former County Office Funds Transfer ADA, and the subsequent accounting guidance, related expenditures will appear as part of the district’s total expenditures. To reflect this change, the ADA will now be credited to the district for NCLB MOE purposes.
      • COEs: Modified Form A extraction to exclude Total District Funded County Program ADA.
      • Districts: Modified Form A extraction to include Total District Funded County Program ADA.
  • Section IV, Detail of Charter School Adjustments
    • Deleted entire Section IV, Detail of Charter School Adjustments, modified related lines accordingly, and deleted related fatal Internal Form Check.
• Form SEA—Special Education Revenue Allocations
  • Section I, Total SELPA Revenues. Modified description of Line I.F, Low Incidence Materials, Services, and Career Technical Education Apportionment, to “Low Incidence Apportionment.”

Revised Criteria and Standards

• Form 01CS/01CSI—Criteria and Standards Review—Budget and Interim periods
  • Adjusted deficit spending and fund balance levels for COEs, and reserve levels for all LEAs, based on prior year's statutory COLA factor.
  • Average Daily Attendance Criterion 1, COEs only—Budget and Interim periods
    • Criterion 1, Section 1A, Calculating the County Office’s ADA Variances—Interim periods only
    • Criterion 1, Section 1B-1, Calculating the County Office’s Historical Average Projected ADA for County Operated Programs—Budget period only
    • Criterion 1, Section 1B-2, Calculating the County Office’s Projected ADA for County Operated Programs—Budget period only
      • Renamed “County Program ADA” title to “County and Charter School Alternative Education Grant ADA,” and modified Form A extractions to also include Total Charter School County Program Alternative Education ADA.
      • Renamed “Charter School County Program ADA” title to “Charter School ADA and Charter School Funded County Program ADA,” and modified Form A extractions to also include Total Charter School Regular ADA.
  • Average Daily Attendance Criterion 1, Districts only
    • Enrollment Criterion 2, Districts only
    • ADA to Enrollment Criterion 3, Districts only
    • In the following sections, replaced Form A extractions to include Total District ADA (Form A, Line A6) and Total Charter School ADA (Form A, Line C9), and modified to allow overwrite for districts that opt to exclude charter school ADA corresponding to financial data reported in funds 09 and 62:
      • Criterion 1, District ADA line (Budget period only)
      • Criterion 1, Section 1A, Calculating the District’s ADA Variances (Budget and Interim periods)
      • Criterion 2, District ADA line (Budget period only)
      • Criterion 3, Section 3A, Calculating the District’s ADA to Enrollment Standard (Budget and Interim periods)
  • LCFF Revenue Criterion 2, COEs only—Interim periods only
    • Reactivated the criterion, which was entirely disabled in SACS2014ALL due to LCFF. Modified to determine if LCFF revenues have changed by more than two percent between budget adoption and first interim reporting period, and between the first interim and second interim reporting periods. Even though criterion is disabled for the budget period, it is relevant at the interim reporting periods to determine whether or not LCFF revenues have changed by more than two percent since budget adoption.
  • LCFF Revenue Criterion 4, Districts only—Budget period only
    • Section 4A, Calculating the District’s LCFF Revenue Standard
    • Section 4A1, Calculating the District’s LCFF Revenue Standard. Step 1, Change in Population.
    • Line 1a, ADA (Funded). Modified ADA extraction to exclude charter school ADA for charter schools that report financial data in the district’s funds 09 and 62.
    • District and charter school ADA extraction now includes only the ADA corresponding to the financial data reported in the district’s Fund 01.
  • Facilities Maintenance Criterion 5/7, COEs/Districts
    •  Budget period—Restored the minimum contribution requirement of the Ongoing and Major Maintenance/Restricted Maintenance Account from one percent to three percent. In SACS2009, the minimum contribution requirement was reduced from three percent to one percent, per Education Code Section 17070.766 and Senate Bill (SB) 70 (Chapter 7, Statutes of 2011), effective 2008–09 through 2014–15.
    • First Interim period—Line 1, OMMA/RMA Contribution, Modified the Required Minimum Contribution column to allow key entry, and to no longer extract from Budget period, as required by Assembly Bill (AB) 104 (Chapter 13, Statutes of 2015), which amended Education Code Section 17070.75, effective for the 2015–16 and 2016–17 fiscal years.
  • Fund Balance Criterion 9, Districts only—Budget period only
  • Reserves Criterion 10, Districts only—Budget and Interim periods only
  • Modified ADA extraction to exclude charter school ADA for charter schools that report financial data in the district’s funds 09 and 62. District and charter school ADA extraction now includes only the ADA corresponding to the financial data reported in the district’s Fund 01.
  • Additional Fiscal Indicator A3, Districts only—Budget period only
    • Modified the enrollment comparison to use the Actual column for prior years instead of the Budget column.

Technical Review Checks—New

• CB-BALANCE-ABOVE-MIN
  • New warning supplemental TRC
  • Applies to Budget period only
  • Applies to budget data types
  • Applies to districts only
  • In Form CB, the district should check the box relating to compliance with Education Code Section 42127(a)(2)(B) and (C).
  • Rounding allowance is not applicable
• CB-BUDGET-CERTIFY
  • New fatal supplemental TRC
  • Applies to Budget period only
  • Applies to budget data types
  • Applies to districts only
  • In Form CB, the district must check the box relating to the required budget certifications.
  • Rounding allowance is not applicable
• CHK-RES6500xOBJ8091
  • New fatal import TRC
  • Applies to all reporting periods
  • Applies to all data types
  • Applies to all LEAs
  • Verifies there is no activity in Resource 6500 (Special Education) with Object 8091 (LCFF/Revenue Limit Transfers – Current Year) or 8099 (LCFF Transfers – Prior Years)
  • No rounding allowance
• NET-INV-CAP-ASSET
  • New warning general ledger TRC
  • Applies to Budget and Unaudited Actuals periods
  • Applies to actual data types
  • Applies to all LEAs
  • If capital asset amounts are imported/keyed, objects 9400-9489 (Capital Assets) in funds 61-73, an amount should be recorded for Object 9796 (Net Investment in Capital Assets) within the same fund.
  • Rounding allowance is not applicable

Technical Review Checks—Deleted

• BDGT-ADOPTION-PRVDED
  • Deleted fatal TRC for all periods and data types. This TRC required that a budget adoption cycle be selected in Form CA, Unaudited Actuals Certification.

Technical Review Checks—Revised

• UNAUDIT-CERT-PROVIDE
  • Modified to no longer require the selection of a budget adoption cycle.
• NCMOE-IMPORT
  • Modified to also look for Resource 5630, NCLB: Title X McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants.
• NCMOE-ADA
  • Modified to look for ADA in Section II, Line A, rather than in Section II, Line C, which no longer exists.

Revised Reports

• Reports CNVRT/ENTRY/GSA/GSNP—Government-Wide Reports
  • Added conversion entries and modified government-wide statements to recognize pension expense, deferred inflows of resources relating to pensions, deferred outflows of resources relating to pensions, and pension liabilities, pursuant to GASB68 as amended by GASB71.
    
    
• Report ENTRY—Conversion Entries
  • Detail (Conversion Entry Detail) worksheet
    • Entry CE014, Incorporation of Assets, Deferred Outflows of Resources, Liabilities, and Deferred Inflows of Resources of Internal Service Funds
      • Added new lines for Object 9490, Deferred Outflows of Resources – pensions only, and Object 9690, Deferred Inflows of Resources – pensions only.
      • Modified existing Object 9490 line description from “Deferred Outflows of Resources” to “Deferred Outflows of Resources – other”.
      • Modified existing Object 9690 line description from “Deferred Inflows of Resources” to “Deferred Inflows of Resources – other”.
      • Added new line for Object 9663, Net Pension Liability (Asset).
      • Entry CE022, Other Liabilities Not Normally Liquidated with Current Financial Resources
      • Modified Entry description from “To accrue expenses and liabilities for obligations incurred during the year that will not be liquidated with current financial resources, other than compensated absences and long-term debt . . .” to “To accrue expenses and liabilities for obligations incurred during the year that will not be liquidated with current financial resources, other than compensated absences, long-term debt, OPEB, and pensions . . .”
    • Entry CE023, Employer’s Net Pension Liability and Pension Expense
      • Added new Entry CE023 to adjust for the LEAs share of the change in net pension liabilities, not accrued in governmental funds because they are not normally expected to be liquidated with current financial resources, and to recognize pension expense, deferred outflows of resources relating to pensions, and deferred inflows of resources relating to pensions.
    • Entry CE024, Employer Pension Contributions Made Subsequent to Measurement Date
      • Added new Entry CE024 to adjust for employer pension contribution expenditures made by the LEA subsequent to the pension plan measurement date.
    • Entry CE025, State’s Share of Pension Expense — Special Funding Situation
      • Added new Entry CE025 to record pension expense for the portion of the State’s proportionate share of collective pension expense that is associated with the LEA.
  • Summary (Conversion Entry Summary) worksheet—Modified to reflect changes and additions made to the above detail entries.
  • Begin Balance (Beginning Balances) worksheet—Removed entries BB001, Capital Assets; BB002, Long-Term Liabilities; and BB002, Deferred Outflows of Resources and Deferred Inflows of Resources; and replaced with a single Beginning Balance entry to record beginning balances of capital assets, deferred outflows of resources, long-term liabilities, and deferred inflows of resources relating to governmental activities, but not reported in governmental funds.
• Report CNVRT—Government-wide Conversion
  • Fund Consolidation worksheet
    • Added new lines for Object 9490, Deferred Outflows of Resources – pensions only, and Object 9690, Deferred Inflows of Resources – pensions only.
    • Modified existing Object 9490 line description from “Deferred Outflows of Resources” to “Deferred Outflows of Resources – other”
    • Modified existing Object 9690 line description from “Deferred Inflows of Resources” to “Deferred Inflows of Resources – other”
    • Liabilities section. Added new line for Object 9663, Net Pension Liability (Asset).
  • Conversion worksheet
    • Added new lines for Object 9490, Deferred Outflows of Resources – pensions only, and Object 9690, Deferred Inflows of Resources – pensions only.
    • Modified existing Object 9490 line description from “Deferred Outflows of Resources” to “Deferred Outflows of Resources – other”.
    • Modified existing Object 9690 line description from “Deferred Inflows of Resources” to “Deferred Inflows of Resources – other”.
    • Liabilities section. Added new line for Object 9663, Net Pension Liability (Asset).
    • Updated the conversion entry column to reflect the changes made in Report ENTRY, Detail worksheet.
• Report GSA—Government-Wide Statement of Activities and Reconciliation of Fund Statements
  • GSA Reconciliation worksheet
    • Inserted new line for Pensions for the difference between accrual-basis pension costs and actual employer contributions.
• Report GSNP—Government-Wide Statement of Net Position and Reconciliation of Fund Statements
  • Statement of Net Position worksheet
    • Modified Deferred Outflows of Resources line to now extract both Object 9490, Deferred Outflows of Resources, lines from CNVRT workbook, Conversion worksheet.
    • Liabilities section. Long-term liabilities line. Modified extraction to also include Object 9663, Net Pension Liability (Asset), line from CNVRT workbook, Conversion worksheet.
    • Modified Deferred Inflows of Resources line to now extract both Object 9690, Deferred Inflows of Resources, lines from CNVRT workbook, Conversion worksheet.
  • GSNP Reconciliation worksheet
    • Long-term liabilities—Added new line for Net Pension Liability (Asset).
    • Added new line for “Deferred Outflows and Inflows of Resources relating to pensions”

Reports SEMA/SEMB/SEMAI—Special Education Maintenance of Effort

• Report SEMA—LEA Exps CY and SELPA Exps CY worksheets
  
• Report SEMB—LEA Budget and LEA Exps worksheets
  
• Report SEMA—LEA Projected and LEA Actual worksheets
  • Federal Expenditures, State and Local Budget/Expenditures, Local Budget/Expenditures. Removed resources 3330, 3340, 3355, 3360, 3370, 3375, and 3405 from exception list, effective 2014-15. Special Education funding originally assigned these federal resource codes has since been reassigned state resource codes.
• Report SEMA—LEA Exps CY and SELPA Exps CY worksheets
  
• Report SEMB—LEA Budget, LEA Exps, SELPA Budget, and SELPA Exps worksheets
  
• Report SEMA—LEA Projected, LEA Actual, SELPA Projected, and SELPA actual worksheets
  • Local Budget/Expenditures Section. Removed line for objects 8091/8099, Revenue Limit Transfers to Special Education. The combinations of Resource 6500, Special Education, with Object 8091, LCFF Transfers - Current Year, and Object 8099, LCFF/Revenue Limit Transfers - Prior Years, were closed effective 2013–14. (In 2014, California Department of Education (CDE) determined the “revenue limit” transfer to Special Education was a holdover from before the AB 602 funding model was implemented. There is no part of the LCFF calculation that is tied to amounts that should be transferred to Special Education.)

KNOWN ISSUES:

Symptom

Formatting problems sometimes occur when printing forms from the Table of Contents. For instance, all of the grid lines will print in the upper left hand corner.

Probable Cause

Printer drivers. Unfortunately we have not found one printer driver that works for all components of the SACS software.

Resolution/Workaround

Various printer drivers work differently with the SACS software. Try changing the printer driver or print from the open form rather than from the table of contents.

Symptom

GPF error or system runs very slowly.

Probable Cause

The computer runs out of physical/virtual memory.

Workaround

Avoid opening too many windows concurrently. If the error is received, shut down the application and reboot the machine.

Problem: Known Printing Issues Relating to Windows 7

After the SACS software was modified to mitigate the worst of its incompatibilities with Windows 7, many software testers encountered a remaining printing problem where a fund form, supplemental form, or report is sent to the printer, and the SACS software print status window freezes. (This is not an issue when printing the Technical Review Checklist, the import log, or from the User Data Input/Review screen.)

Workaround

Anticipating this problem for all Windows 7 users, CDE’s workaround is to print first to Microsoft XPS Document Writer or Adobe PDF, then send the document to the printer.

Possible Fix

After extensive testing within CDE’s test environment, we are able to send forms and reports directly to printers by using the following print drivers (which are specific to our model printers), and by changing a particular printer setting specifically for Hewlett-Packard (HP) printers. CDE does not advocate the purchase or use of any specific printer brand or model and provides this information only as a basis for LEAs to test with different print drivers and/or settings if desired.

• For Samsung printers: Samsung Universal Print Driver 2 PS
• For HP printers: HP Universal Printing printer command language (PCL) 6 print driver
• Additional printer settings required for some HP printers:
  • Notes:
    • For some users, these printer settings must be changed outside of the SACS Software (e.g., changed through the Control Panel) or else the printer settings are lost each time the SACS Software is closed.
    • Some users need to reset these printer settings each time they install the SACS software.
    • Some users need to intermittently change these printer settings within the SACS software (i.e., changed through the print prompt) as well.
  • Specific steps CDE uses for HP printer settings:
    • Open SACS software form
    • File menu, Print… option
    • Properties [button]
    • Effects [tab]
    • Click on the radial button “Print Document on:”
    • Then it should default to "Letter" right underneath it.
    • It should also add a checkmark next to "Scale to Fit"
    • Click Apply
    • Then OK to print