Working with accounts and sub-accounts in ACAS
- Rachel Wegener
ACAS was developed around the concept of a global chart of accounts, with organisations being able to create their own sub-accounts where further analysis is required.
Accounts
Only ACAS System Administrators can create new accounts. If you think a new account is needed, email Service Desk with the details and it will be discussed with other conferences.
Sub-accounts can be assigned to accounts for further analysis. By default, if a sub-account is assigned to an account, the sub-account become mandatory and you can no longer post to the account. See the Sub-Accounts section for further details. If you wish to post to the account and sub-accounts, there is a checkbox called "Allow posting to accounts" that can be ticked. Ask for assistance if you are considering using this option as it cannot be unticked once it has been ticked.
Accounts are coloured green, orange or red.
Green - sub-accounts are required, the account cannot be posted to
Orange - sub-accounts are optional. Generally, if a sub-account is assigned, it becomes mandatory, but that can be overridden by the "Allow posting to accounts" checkbox.
Red - sub-accounts are not allowed to be assigned
The account structure is as follows: Header - Account - Sub-Account.
The account 100-140100-CMF is made up of:
Header = 100 - Cash and Cash Equiv.
Account = 140100 - Bank Accounts
Sub-Account = CMF - CMF Bank Account
The account 640-301140-000000 is made up of:
Header = 640 - Local Offerings
Account = 301140 - Local Budget Income
Sub-Account = 000000 (the zeroes indicate that no sub-account has been assigned)
Sub-accounts
Sub-accounts are unique to an organisation, except for a few special global sub-accounts (Cash Drawer, CMF Bank Account, the global Funds, Unspecified Project)
Have various types that are used for different purposes - Givers, Suppliers, Non-Local Offerings, Projects, Funds, Bank Accounts.
Only sub-accounts of one type should be assigned to an account. You would not have a Bank Account and a Project assigned to the one account.
By default, if a sub-account is assigned to an account, the sub-account become mandatory and you can no longer post to the account. For example, account 643-300680-000000 Evangelism Income does not have transactions posted to it. The Project sub-account PRJ00001 - Outreach 2022 is assigned to it. The account that can be posted to is now 643-300680-PRJ00001 Evangelism Income - Outreach 2022.
Deleting sub-accounts - this can only be done if the below requirements are met
They are owned by the church (global sub-accounts may not be deleted)
There is no transactions posted to them
They are not assigned to any accounts
They are not assigned as a Fund in any accounts
Sub-Account Type | Usage |
|---|---|
Bank Account | Create a Bank Account sub-account for each bank account a church has. Being of the Bank Account type means it will show on Bank Account drop-down lists in payments and on the Bank Reconciliation search screen. |
Fund | Fund sub-accounts are used for closing off the balance of Income and Expense accounts to an Equity account when the Year End process is run. There is a global list of Fund sub-accounts, but a church can create their own if required. |
Giver | Create a Giver for anyone that requires a receipt and/or will have transactions processed on the Receipt Entry screen. These sub-accounts are created and managed from the Admin | Clients menu. |
Non-Local Offering | A Non-Local Offering is created at the Conference level and above for offerings that need to be available for multiple churches, and/or where funds need to roll up to higher entities. These sub-accounts are created and managed from the Admin | Non-Local Offerings menu. |
Project | Create a Project where any further analysis is needed on an account. Example 1 - you wish to separate the costs of each Sabbath School class in the Sabbath School Expense account. You could create a Project sub-account for Beginners, Kindergarten, Primary, Junior etc and assign them to the Sabbath School Expense account. Example 2 - you wish to track the income and expenses of a Fly 'N' Build. Create a Project sub-account called Fly 'N' Build 2022 and assign it to the Project Income and Project Expense accounts. |
Suppliers | Create a Supplier for anyone that will have transactions processed on the Expense Entry or Express Payment Entry screen. These sub-accounts are created and managed from the Admin | Clients menu. Note - you do not have to create a sub-account for the Conference. A special Supplier record called PARENT is automatically created in all churches, so use this record when recording expenses payable to the Conference. |
Tabs available
Account Type | Account Details | Assign Sub-Accounts | Owner - Basic | Budget | eGiving |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Asset, Liability, Equity | Yes | Depends on the Sub-Account Required field setting. If Required or Optional, and special header analysis is not set, e.g. All Giver, then the tab will be available. | No | N/A | |
Income | Yes | Depends on the Sub-Account Required field setting. If Required or Optional, then the tab will be available. | No | Yes | Are sub-accounts assigned, and is the "Allow posting to accounts" checkbox ticked? If No, and No, then the eGiving tab will be available If Yes and No, the the eGiving tab will not be available (it will be available on the sub-account/s) If Yes and Yes, then the eGiving tab will be available on the account and the sub-account/s |
Expense | Yes | Depends on the Sub-Account Required field setting. If Required or Optional, then the tab will be available. | No | Yes | N/A |
Bank Account sub-accounts | No | N/A | Yes | N/A | N/A |
Fund sub-accounts | No | N/A | Yes | N/A | N/A |
Project sub-accounts | No | N/A | Yes | Yes, when assigned to Income and/or Expense accounts | Yes, when assigned to Income accounts |