Employee Funding Process: Commitment Accounting

Commitment Accounting 101

This Quick Reference introduces the ConnectCarolina process of employee funding. Provides an overview of how to enter initial funding, perform a budget check, and enter funding source changes.

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Common Payroll Personnel Account Codes

The Quick Reference gives you the most commonly used personnel account codes.
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All Payroll Personnel Account Codes

You can get an exhaustive list of Personnel Account Codes through the InfoPorte Chartfield Lookup Tool.
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UNC uses Electronic Personnel Action Request or ePAR funding forms to update funding on personnel.

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HR Overview

This self-paced course explains the relationship between the person, position, and job in ConnectCarolina. It also covers the ePAR forms used to submit HR actions.

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ePAR Overview

This guide introduces the electronic Personnel Action Request (ePAR), which is the form used to enter all HR actions in ConnectCarolina.

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Tips for Searching ePARs

This guide provides tips for searching ePARs.

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Printing an ePar form

This guide explains how to print an ePAR form.

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Basic Originators 1: Understanding Employee Funding

This online training course explains what an affiliate is and how to complete the Add or Update an Affiliate ePAR form. It also explains the process for requesting a PID for an affiliate and how to use the affiliate ePAR form to add or update affiliates.

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Basic Originators 2: Entering Funding Swaps

This online training course describes the uses of a funding swap and explains how to use the funding swap ePAR form to change how a position or appointment is funded, and how to use the funding swap ePAR form to enter retroactive funding swaps.

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Basic Originators 3: Adding or Updating Affiliates

This Computer-Based Training describes how to fund appointments and positions, make changes to the sources their funding comes from, and resolve errors that can occur when submitting changes to funding.

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Basic Originators 4: Making Lump Sum Payments

This Computer-Based Training course covers the definition and uses of lump sum payments. It also describes the type of information needed to enter and fund a lump sum payment.

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Lump Sum ePARs

When submitting a Lump Sum ePAR, the effective date of the lump sum should be the first day of the pay period in which it will be paid, EXCEPT

• If it is for a new employee (such as an MCD) whose Hire effective date is not the first day of that period.
• If the employee is owed pro-rata longevity then the effective date on the PRL lump sum should be the last day the employee is in pay status.
• Lump sum payments should be submitted once the work or the reason for the lump sum has been completed. Do not ‘pre-pay’ an employee for future work to be completed.

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Online Training Course List

Review the full inventory for additional courses related to Hr actions.

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UNC users utilize the Payroll Accounting Adjustment Tool (PAAT) to adjust personnel funding transactions that have already posted.

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PAAT Guide

The PAAT Guide provides comprehensive information about PAAT transactions.

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Before gaining access to PAAT, users should complete the three online courses below.

Adjusting Funding Sources for Past Pay Periods Using PAAT

This self-paced course explains when to use PAAT and the difference between a PAAT adjustment and a Funding Swap ePAR. It also covers the steps you’ll need to take to create, manage and submit a PAAT adjustment.

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Approving PAAT Actions

This self-paced course explains the information you need to review when approving a PAAT adjustment. It also covers the step-by-step instructions to Approve or Recycle an adjustment and the approval route an adjustment follows.

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Running Reports Using PAAT

This self-paced course covers how to access and run the following PAAT reports: Review Pending Transactions; Current Suspense Charges; and Labor Expense Summary.

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The Retro Pay Program monitors most retro earnings codes in ConnectCarolina to identify retroactive payments and distributes the retro pay to the funding sources that were on record for the work period the retroactive pay is for.

Retro Earnings Codes that the Retro Pay Program Identifies
The Retro Pay Program uses the following codes to identify and distribute retro pay. If a payment was made using a retro earning code not listed below, you’ll need to use a PAAT after payroll distribution is complete to move the retro pay to the correct sources.

Earnings Code	Description
R18	Retro TCH
R19	Retro STT
RLO	Retro Annual Longevity
ROT	Retro Overtime
RRF	Retro Regular (No FICA)
RRG	Retro Regular

 

Exceptions
These scenarios give examples of when you need to submit PAAT actions after payroll distribution is complete to move the retro pay to the correct funding sources.

• If the retro pay doesn’t have the correct earnings code, the Retro Pay Program won’t identify it.
• The Retro Pay Program does not identify or distribute retroactive deductions and taxes if they do not have associated retro earnings.
• Retro pay that crosses between company, pay group, or both will not be adjusted. Examples:
  • Transfers between temp and perm.
  • Transfers between SHRA and EHRA.
• The Retro Pay Program doesn’t account for NIH salary caps and effort percentages.
• If there is no paycheck during the retroactive work period, the retro will remain on current funding.
• If the funding sources during the retroactive work period have expired or are no longer valid, the retro pay will be charged to the home department’s suspense. Examples of why this might happen are:
  • Projects in closed, hold or reporting statuses.
  • Combo edit errors.
  • Chartfield values that have been inactivated.

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Detailed FAQ

See the Retro Pay section of the FAQ for tips and detailed answers to the most common Retro Pay questions.

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Payroll Suspense refers to a chartfield string that contains the expense account 511190. It exists in ConnectCarolina as a temporary expense option when the system incurs a funding error due to an issue such as an expired funding source or incomplete funding data.

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Payroll Suspense Policy

The Payroll Suspense policy offers a framework for managing payroll suspense.

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Payroll Suspense Procedure

The Payroll Suspense procedure recommends the tools for managing suspense.

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Suspense Management Reports

This is the PowerPoint deck used for the Suspense Management Reports webinar. The content contains: the importance of managing suspense particularly for Project Closeout, the Funding End Date Notification Report, the Suspense Analysis Report, and queries for managing open transactions for Project Closeout.

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Suspense-Related Reports

More information about each of the suspense-related reports can be found in the Payroll Reports section below.

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Detailed FAQ

See the FAQ for detailed answers to the most common Payroll Suspense questions and for tips for using the Current Suspense Charges report.

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Postdoc Trainees and Clinical Fellows (usually funded on account 568770 or 568780) who are paid from a FICA exempt source are considered RNF (Regular No FICA) and require extra steps on the part of the administrator submitting the action.

• Each time an ePAR is executed for an employee that involves a stipend (adding, removing, or changing chartfields, amounts, or percentages related to account 568770 or 568780), the department needs to also submit a remedy ticket. There are some behind-the-scenes manual changes that must also be done to the employee’s “Job Earnings Distribution” and “Department Budget Table” tables to ensure the stipend (and salary, if split funding), deductions, and taxes will be posted correctly.
• If the behind-the-scenes manual changes are not completed before the payroll posts, then it may be necessary to submit a remedy ticket to Payroll to refund any overcharged FICA.

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Detailed FAQ

See the FAQ for detailed answers to the most common stipend-related questions on employee funding.

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Payroll Deadlines Calendar

Payroll publishes deadlines for the calendar year that include the payroll lockout date, payroll confirm dates, and payday. Hire, Job Change, Lump Sum, Position, and Termination ePARs (and Fund swaps involving post doc stipends/RNF) must be fully approved and executed by noon on the payroll LOCKOUT date for the action to process in that particular payroll. Fund Swap ePARs (except those related to post doc stipends / RNFs) can still be approved and executed at any time and if completed before the payroll CONFIRM at noon should be used on that paycheck’s distribution.

PAAT actions can be submitted at any time, but departments cannot initiate a PAAT for a paycheck on the same day that it is being confirmed. The new paycheck must be fully distributed through Finance before it is available to be entered in a PAAT action to be redistributed.

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Please note – users may not have access to the reports on this list, depending on the user’s role and/or the security designated to these reports.
CCInfo has a full list of employee funding queries and reports to explore as well.

Employee Funding Reports List

A quick snapshot of the different reports.

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Funding End Date Notification Report

• Location: ConnectCarolina > HR/Payroll Menu > Payroll Accounting Reports > Funding End Date Notification Report
• Description: A report of the current funding sources for projects that have ended or are scheduled to end soon. The departments should submit the appropriate ePARs for the affected employees to move their payroll to new funding sources if the project truly is ended/ending or should work with their appropriate program administrators if the project is expected to be extended. (Reminder – if a project line is listed as expiring soon but the project is extended prior to the affected paycheck being confirmed and distributed then the system should automatically extend the funding end date on that employee’s / position’s funding sources, without the department having to submit a fund swap ePAR first.)
• More information can be found at in the Funding End Date Notification Report Guide.

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Salary Funding Report

• Location: InfoPorte > HR > Payroll > Salary Funding
• Location: InfoPorte > Finance > Financial Reporting > Salary Funding
• Description: Shows the current and historical funding source information for an employee based on their executed ePARs. Does not include lump sum request information or retroactive payroll changes done via PAAT.
• More information can be found in the Salary Funding Report guide.

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Salary Projections Report

• Location: InfoPorte > HR > Payroll > Salary Projections
• Description: Shows the current estimated salary and fringe for employees based on their employee group, funding sources, and end dates.
• More information can be found at in the Understanding Salary Projections Quick Reference.

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Current Suspense Charges

• Location: ConnectCarolina > Main Menu > HR/Payroll Menu > Payroll Acct Adj. Tool (PAAT) > Current Suspense Charges
• Description: A list of the suspense transactions (earnings + deductions + taxes) currently sitting in the department’s suspense that need to be resolved.
  The Current Suspense Charges Report includes A list of the suspense transactions (earnings + deductions + taxes) and any associated fringe (deductions and taxes).
• More info can be found in the Running Reports in PAAT Computer Based Training.

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Suspense Analysis Report

• Location: ConnectCarolina > HR/Payroll Menu > Payroll Accounting Reports > UNC Suspense Analysis
• Description: Provides a cause and aging analysis of the transactions that are currently posted to the department’s suspense account. Analysis is based on the employee’s funding sources as established on the executed ePARs and may not include transactions retroactively posted to suspense via a PAAT action.
• More information can be found in the Suspense Analysis Report Guide.

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Labor Expense Summary Report

• Location: ConnectCarolina > HR WorkCenter > Labor Expense Summary
• Location: InfoPorte > HR > Payroll > PAAT > Labor & Expenses Summary
• Description: View the final labor expenses posted for an employee, OSR project, chartfield, or pay date from payroll actuals, including retro distributions.
• More info can be found in the Running Reports in PAAT Computer-Based Training.

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Review Pending Transactions Report

• Location: ConnectCarolina > Main Menu > HR/Payroll Menu > Payroll Acct Adj. Tool (PAAT) > Review Pending Transactions
• Description: A list of all pending PAAT actions for a department, a school or MOU that have been entered but not submitted yet or recycled back to the submitter for changes (“In Progress” status) or have been submitted but are awaiting approval (“Needs Approval” status.)
• More info can be found in the Running Reports in PAAT Computer-Based Training.

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Payroll Accounting Report

• Location: InfoPorte > Finance > Financial Reporting > Personnel > Payroll Accounting Report
• Description: A report of detailed payroll information by financial accounting date for reconciliation and grants billing purposes.
• Resources: More information can be found in the Payroll Accounting Report Guide and the Accounting Report Explainer Video.

Payroll Accounting Report Guide

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Payroll Accounting Report Explainer Video

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