Financial Management Resources and Tools

OJP TFSC provides these resources and tools to assist you, an OJP grant recipient, in developing and enhancing your organization’s financial policies and procedures.

Guide Sheets introduce key terms and offer ideas for your agency to consider when creating policies and procedures. Job Aids provide step-by-step instructions for completing tasks.

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Accounting Methods

Accounting Methods Guide Sheet (PDF)      Guía para Nomina de Sueldos (PDF)

All recipients of federal awards must establish and maintain adequate financial records by following appropriate accounting practices. This guide explains the two types of accounting methods (cash and accrual) and considerations for selecting each. (September 2021)

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Accounting Systems

Accounting Systems Guide Sheet (PDF)     Guía para Sistema de Contabilidad (PDF)

OJP requires all grant recipients and subrecipients to have an accounting system that manages the records and reports of receipts, obligations, and expenditure of grant funds. This guide aids organizations in evaluating if their accounting system has features and accounting functionalities that closely align with OJP’s requirements. (July 2021)

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Allowable Costs

Allowable vs. Unallowable Costs (PDF)     Guía para Costos Permitidos vs. No Permitidos (PDF)

Allowable costs are charges incurred by a program that can be covered with your OJP. This guide sheet explains conditions for determining allowable versus unallowable costs and provides best practices for avoiding unallowable costs. (August 2021)

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Conflict of Interest

Conflict of Interest Guide Sheet (PDF)      Guía para Conflicto de Interses (PDF)

Decisions related to the use of OJP-awarded funds must be free of undisclosed personal and organizational conflicts of interest. This guide explains the types of conflicts of interest and provides examples, and then provides guidance on effective conflict of interest policies. (September 2021)

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Excluded Parties Verification

Excluded Parties Verification Guide Sheet (PDF)     Guía para Verificación de Partes Excluidas (PDF)

Prior to entering a contract, agencies are required to verify that the individual or entity is not an excluded party (suspended or debarred from doing business with federal funds). This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to utilize SAM (the federal System for Award Management) to search the excluded parties database and to register contractors. (April 2021)

Helpful Links:

1. Excluded Parties Search on SAM.gov
    
2. Dun & Bradstreet D-U-N-S Request Service for US Federal Government Contractors and Assistance Awardees
    
3. NCAGE Code Request Tool for International Contractors

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General Ledger and Chart of Accounts

General Ledger and Chart of Accounts Guide Sheet (PDF)     Guía para el Mayor General y el Catálogo de Cuentas (PDF)

The general ledger (GL) is the bookkeeping system used to record the financial transactions an agency or organization conducts. It is on the GL that all accounting/financial entries are found, and that information is used to create financial statements. The chart of accounts is a list of all accounts used to record financial position and activity in the GL. (July 2021)

Helpful links:

• Standard on Not-For-Profit Financial Reporting from Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB)

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Matching or Cost Sharing Requirements

Matching or Cost Sharing Requirements (PDF)      Guía para Requisitos de los Fondos de Contrapartida o Participación en los Costos (PDF)

Matching or cost sharing means that a portion of the project’s cost is not paid by federal funds. This guide explains the two types of matching (cash and third-party in-kind) as well as restrictions on uses of funds, determining the match amount, and maintaining records on matching funds. (September 2021)

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Monthly Financial Close

Monthly Financial Close Guide Sheet (PDF)     Guía para Cierre Financiero Mensual (PDF)

Financial staff use the monthly financial close period to balance revenues and expenses and properly record assets, liabilities, and equity to ensure that all necessary general ledger entries have been correctly processed and documented. This guide sheet provides recommendations for closing cycle best practices. (August 2021)

Bank Reconciliation Guide Sheet (PDF)     Guía para Conciliación Bancaria (PDF)

Financial reconciliation is an accounting process that explains the difference, on a specified date, between the balance shown in two different accounts records. This process provides the opportunity to recognize irregularities. (August 2021)

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Payroll

Payroll Guide Sheet (PDF)      Guía para Metodos Contables (PDF)

Payroll is an organization’s financial record of their employees, encompassing salaries, wages, and deductions. This guide explains how organizations process payroll and how to comply with federal and state requirements (as applicable). (September 2021)

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Preventing Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Mismanagement

Preventing Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Mismanagement (PDF)       Guía para Prevenir el Fraude, el Despilfarro, el Abuso, y el Mal Manejo (PDF)

As an OJP grantee, you are responsible for providing adequate safeguards to prevent fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement of federal funds. This guide sheets provides examples of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement and explains how proper management of award funds can reduce this risk. (August 2021)

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Program Income

Program Income Guide Sheet (PDF)      Guía para Ingresos del Programa (PDF)

Program income for a federal grant can include things like fees for services performed during the period of performance and rental of real or personal property acquired under federal awards. This guide explains how to recognize program income and the three methods for applying program income (deduction, addition, and cost sharing or matching) to the project budget. (September 2021)

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Property and Other Insurance Coverage Requirements

Property and Other Insurance Coverage Requirements Guide Sheet (PDF)     Guía para Requisitos de Cobertura de Propiedad y Otros Seguros (PDF)

As an OJP grantee you are responsible for providing adequate safeguards to prevent loss, damage, and theft of property acquired with federal funds, which includes having adequate insurance coverage. This guide sheet explains how to determine insurance coverage needs, common types of insurance coverage, and when insurance is an allowable cost under federal grants. (April 2021)

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Subawards

Subaward Guide Sheet (PDF)

A subaward is an award provided by a pass-through entity to a subrecipient for the subrecipient to carry out part of a Federal award received by the pass-through entity. This guide sheet explains when grantees might make subawards, responsibilities of the pass-through entity, and the difference between subrecipients and contractors. (August 2021)

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Recorded Webinars on All Topics

For additional assistance or to request individualized technical assistance on any of these or other financial management topics, please contact the OJP TFSC Virtual Support Center by email at [email protected] or schedule a consultation call with one of our financial specialists.