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Massachusetts Charter Schools

FY17 Charter School Audit, End of Year Financial Report and FY18 Audit Guide

To:Commonwealth Charter School Leaders, Board Chairs, and Business Managers
From:Alison Bagg, Director
Date:September 21, 2017
In accordance with M.G.L. c. 71, §89, each Massachusetts Charter School shall have its independent audit filed annually on or before November 1 following the fiscal year end. In addition, charter schools are required to electronically file the FY2017 Charter School End of Year Financial Report (FY17CSEOYFR) on or before November 22, 2017. The FY17CSEOYFR file for each charter school is available for download in the Charter School File Exchange Drop Box Outbox in the ESE Security Portal. New charter schools that opened for the 17-18 school year are not required to complete an FY17CSEOYFR.

Changes to the FY17CSEOYFR

The 17CSEOYFR file includes an additional schedule; Schedule B Charter School Building Information which will allow the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department) to collect all relevant building and facility information on each charter school.

Changes to the FY18CSEOYFR

As previously reported, the Department is working to better align the district and charter school's end of year financial reports. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) will require changes to school based reporting that will also have an effect on the CSEOYFR in the future. We will keep charter schools informed of these changes so that each school can adequately prepare.

Changes to the F18 Audit Guide

There has been one important addition to next year's audit guide. Effective in FY18, section 1001 Internal Controls-Recommended Audit Procedures now ask the auditor to:
  • Determine if school operates in accordance with its credit card policy.
It is extremely important that all Board of Trustees, School Leaders, and Business Managers ensure that the school's credit card policies are strictly adhered to. To prepare for the additional audit procedure, it is recommended that each school's credit card policy is reviewed for clarity and to ensure tight controls. The Department strongly recommends the limited use of all credit cards, whether school issued or personal, for school purchases. The current and revised audit guide can be found on the Accounting and Auditing page of the Department's Charter School website.

Submission Instructions

The Department will not be collecting any hard copies of the audit, financial review, or CSEOYFR. Please do not mail hard copies to the Department. Please ensure that your auditor and other staff members do not mail hard copies either, as it creates an additional burden on all parties. All documents must be submitted to the Department in electronic form only via the Security Portal. Please be sure to upload these documents to the Charter School File Exchange Drop Box in the Department's Security Portal. Please be sure to use the following naming conventions when you submit the following documents, as applicable.
  1. The completed audit report in PDF format. Please label this file FY17Audit_School Name_ #### (where #### represents the school's 4-digit LEA code). Please do not include the words Public or Charter School. For example; if your school's name is Malden Public Charter School with an LEA code of 4545 it should be named: FY17Audit_Malden_4545
  2. If a new charter school has been granted permission to have a financial review performed in lieu of an audit, please label the file FY17FinReview_School Name_####.
  3. Management letter, if issued, in PDF format. Please label this file FY17mgtltr_School Name_####.
  4. Signed Board Acceptance Letter as a scanned PDF file. Please label this file FY17BOTltr_School Name_####.
  5. Completed FY17 Charter School End of Year Financial Report in Microsoft Excel format, named 17CSEOYFR_School Name_####.
  6. Signed 17CSEOYFR Certification Statement as a scanned PDF file. Please label this file 17CSEOYFRcert_School Name_####.

Reminders

  • The first three audit documents must also be submitted to the Office of the State Auditor. This can be done via email to Richard.Giovino@SAO.state.ma.us.
  • Single audits, if applicable, performed in accordance with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidance must also be filed with the Federal Audit Clearinghouse. Please refer to the Uniform Guidance for the federal filing requirements.
Additional guidance can be found in the Accounting and Auditing section. If you anticipate or experience problems with the timely, accurate completion of your audit, financial review (some new schools), or 17CSEOYFR file, please contact Joanna Laghetto at 781-338-3221 or jlaghetto@doe.mass.edu or James DiMaio at 781-338-3228 or jdimaio@doe.mass.edu. Thank you for your cooperation and assistance in providing this very important financial data.



Last Updated: September 21, 2017



 
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
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