Outstanding check take 2

Discuss questions around local unit policies for budgeting, reconciling, etc. This forum should not contain specific financial or membership information.
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studentclerk-p40
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Outstanding check take 2

#1

Post by studentclerk-p40 »

So I've been working on clearing up our ward's outstanding checks. I've run into a situation that I am unaware of how to deal with, and the bishop wasn't sure how to deal with it either. We have some outstanding checks from 2007 that were written to utility companies from our fast offering account. Do I call the utility company and ask if they have our check, if they still want the money? Do I have the bishop talk to the member about it? What if the offering is no longer needed? Void the check?

Thanks,
studentclerk
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aebrown
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Location: Draper, Utah

#2

Post by aebrown »

studentclerk wrote:So I've been working on clearing up our ward's outstanding checks. I've run into a situation that I am unaware of how to deal with, and the bishop wasn't sure how to deal with it either. We have some outstanding checks from 2007 that were written to utility companies from our fast offering account. Do I call the utility company and ask if they have our check, if they still want the money? Do I have the bishop talk to the member about it? What if the offering is no longer needed? Void the check?

You should find out if the company has the check. This is quite unlikely for any utility company, but it's worth asking. If you can determine that the payment still should be made but the check has been lost, then you call the administration office to ask them to stop payment on the check (probably unnecessary since the check is so old, but they probably will do it anyway) and then you can void the first check and send a replacement.

If the check is no longer needed, you still need to call the administration office for instructions. You may be able to void the check, but you need to follow proper legal procedures if the check needs to be listed on the Outstanding Checks Form.

In any case, in the future it would be good to stay on top of outstanding checks. Rarely will a check that is older than 3 months old get cashed, so it's prudent to start contacting payees much earlier so these problems don't linger.
crislapi
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#3

Post by crislapi »

studentclerk wrote:So I've been working on clearing up our ward's outstanding checks. I've run into a situation that I am unaware of how to deal with, and the bishop wasn't sure how to deal with it either. We have some outstanding checks from 2007 that were written to utility companies from our fast offering account. Do I call the utility company and ask if they have our check, if they still want the money? Do I have the bishop talk to the member about it? What if the offering is no longer needed? Void the check?
We found this exact problem in our mid-year audits with one of our student wards. The check was also from 2007. We contacted the power company and the member. We verified that the bill had been paid by other means, rendering the FO check unnecessary. Since the bill had been paid, the FO check did not have to be escheated. We did have to contact HQ to explain why it was being voided and not escheated, though.
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