BARS Account Exports In this section, governments can access a report providing information on the allowability of BARS codes in fund types as well as export a chart of accounts specific to a government type.
BARS Codes to Fund Type BARS codes may be restricted for use in the annual report filing system. The following matrix “Codes to Funds” identifies which fund group(s) that each active BARS code may be reported in.
Download FY2022 Codes to Funds here. Codes are as of November 30, 2022.
Note: It is recommended to use this matrix in conjunction with the government specific BARS Account Export provided below.
BARS Account Export Download a government specific BARS Chart of Accounts in the export box at the bottom of this page.
Your annual report requires seven digits for all account codes however, their display in the chart of accounts export varies. The expenditure or expense accounts are presented in the export without object codes. Object codes will need to be added to the BARS Code to complete the required seven digits for the annual report. Additional details about object codes are available in the BARS Manual 1.4. The reporting at the subobject level is not required.
How to use the BARS Account Export
Select a government type The government type selection will limit the BARS accounts that are applicable to the selected government type. If allis selected, the export will include BARS accounts for all government types.
Select basis of accounting The basis of accounting selection will limit the BARS accounts that are applicable to the basis of accounting selected (GAAP or Cash). If allis selected, the export will include all the BARS codes regardless of their applicability to a specific basis.
Select export type The Excel option provides a spreadsheet which you can format. The PDF is formatted to highlight the different categories of account codes and for printing. For display purposes, the account codes contain decimal points which should be excluded in your annual report. Select a reporting level Above and Prescribed option includes all the accounts, including the accounts in which other codes are rolled up into for category presentation. These above prescribed codes are not valid for reporting, however they provide detailed information on the category of the codes. This listing also provides the Prescribed accounts, which are the required accounts for annual report filing. The Prescribed option includes only the accounts which are the valid BARS account codes for annual report filing.
2.4.1.10 A budget is a legal document that forecasts the financial resources of a government and authorizes the spending of those resources for a fiscal period. At a minimum, local governments’ budget must meet the requirements of Washington state law and the State Auditor’s Office. The SAO does not prescribe how to budget or what a budget should look like. The adopted budget should be of sufficient detail to be meaningful and meet the intention of the law. The SAO considers budgets showing revenues and expenditures at the legal fund level to be the minimum acceptable level of detail.
2.4.1.20 Budgeting is more than just an activity to satisfy state law. It is a sophisticated process of strategic planning, communication and policy development resulting in a detailed plan of operations for allocating and monitoring the use of limited resources among various competing demands. Teaching how to budget is outside the scope of the BARS. However, there are many educational resources available to local governments, such as the Municipal Research and Services Center (mrsc.org) and the Government Finance Officers Association (gfoa.org).
2.4.1.30 Glossary of budgetary terms:
Annual/biennial appropriated budget – A fixed budget adopted for the government’s fiscal period. The appropriated budget was traditionally used to determine a government’s property tax levy, and a ceiling on expenditures was made absolute so that the expenditures of a government unit would not exceed its revenues. This budget was also historically a balanced budget, estimated revenues equaling appropriations. The appropriated budget is still used to set tax levies and some budget statutes still require balanced budgets, but it is more generally used to authorize a specific amount of expenditures regardless of whether estimated resources meet or exceed that amount. Appropriated budgets are required by statute in cities (Chapter 35.32A RCW, Chapter 35.33 RCW and Chapter 35A.33 RCW), counties (Chapter 36.40 RCW), and most other local governments in Washington State. These budgets are also called legal budgets, adopted budgets, or formal budgets. The appropriated budgets should be adopted by ordinance or resolution.
Appropriation – The legal spending level authorized by a budget ordinance or resolution. Spending should not exceed this level without prior approval of the governing body.
Capital improvement budget – Consists of two elements: the annual/biennial portion of capital projects and annual/biennial appropriations for the purchase, construction or replacement of major fixed assets in the current fiscal period.
Comprehensive budget – A government-wide budget that includes all resources the government expects and everything it intends to spend or encumber during a fiscal period. The comprehensive budget contains annual/biennial appropriated budgets, the annual/biennial portion of continuing appropriations such as the capital improvement projects, debt amortization schedules, and grant projects, flexible budgets and all non-budgeted funds.
Continuing appropriation – A fixed budget which authorizes expenditures for a fiscal period that differs from the government’s fiscal year, such as capital projects, debt issues, grant awards, and other service projects. These expenditures require an ordinance or resolution to authorize the project, establish the assessment roll, adopt the debt amortization schedule, or accept the grant award. Such ordinances or resolutions set an absolute maximum or ceiling on the expenditures, but the time period for incurring expenditures does not coincide with the government’s fiscal year; it may even cover several years. The major difference between annual/biennial appropriated budgets and continuing appropriations is that the latter do not lapse at fiscal period end; this implies that no legislative action is required to amend the annual/biennial portion of a continuing appropriation, unless the total authorized expenditures would exceed the entire appropriation.
Encumbrances – Commitments related to unperformed (executory) contracts for goods or services should be utilized to the extent necessary to assure effective budgetary control and to facilitate cash planning. Encumbrances outstanding at year end represent the estimated amount of expenditures ultimately to result if unperformed contracts in process are completed; they do not constitute expenditures or liabilities.
Final amended budget – The original budget adjusted by all reserves, transfers, allocations, supplemental appropriations, and other legally authorized legislative and executive changes applicable to the fiscal year, whenever signed into law or otherwise legally authorized.
Fixed budget – Those budgets which set an absolute maximum or ceiling on the expenditures of a particular fund, department, or other specific category. A fixed budget can be either an annual/biennial appropriated budget or a continuing appropriation. Fixed budgets must be adopted by ordinance or resolution, either for the government’s fiscal period or at the outset of a service project, debt issue, grant award, or capital project.
Flexible budgets – Are usually regarded as managerial tools, which do not set a ceiling on expenses or expenditures but establish a plan for them at various levels of service. They are especially appropriate for the day-to-day operations of a public utility where it is essential to plan fluctuations in the demand for services and where revenues will automatically increase with demand, so that a balanced budget does not depend on establishing a ceiling for expenses.
Operating budget – Presents the estimated expenditures and available resources necessary to provide the services for which the government was created. An operating budget will contain flexible budgets and fixed budgets; the fixed budgets will include annual/biennial appropriations for services and the annual/biennial portion of continuing appropriations for debt service and for service projects.
Original budget – The first complete appropriated budget. The original budget may be adjusted by reserves, transfers, allocations, supplemental appropriations, and other legally authorized legislative and executive changes before the beginning of the fiscal year. The original budget should also include actual appropriation amounts automatically carried over from prior years by law.
Working capital budget – Combines flexible and fixed budget elements in one document for enterprise and internal service funds. Current operations are flexibly budgeted based on the estimated level of services to be provided and long-range sources and uses of assets are controlled by annual/biennial appropriations and continuing appropriations.
The guidance in sections 3.4.2.10 through 3.4.2.80 focuses mostly on local governments participating in the State of Washington cost-sharing, multiple-employer pension plans. However, the concepts are also applicable to single employer plans.
Management’s responsibilities
This guidance is intended to assist local governments in the application of pension standards. Local governments must apply their own professional judgment to determine if this guidance is appropriate for their facts and circumstances and must draw their own conclusions about the proper application of pension standards. Entity management is solely responsible for the content of the financial statements. Each local government is responsible for evaluating the information used to recognize and disclose pension amounts in its financial statements. Preparers must understand the underlying accounting and reporting concepts for pensions and retain adequate supporting documentation for all amounts reported.
Steps and procedures to calculate the proportionate share of collective pension amounts
3.4.2.30 Step 1 – Get your data
Much of the financial data necessary to report pension balances will be obtained from the State Department of Retirement Systems (DRS) at www.drs.wa.gov.
Download the Participating Employer Financial Information (PEFI) report from the Employers section of the website. This report is published annually, as of June 30, in the fall.
This report includes the Employer Allocation Schedules and the Schedules of Collective Pension Amounts for each pension plan.
Employer Allocation Schedules: Each separate plan presents a schedule of employer allocations. The schedules are sorted by allocation percentage, largest to smallest, and you will need to search each schedule for your local government’s name. Note that the PERS 1 and TRS 1 schedules have separate sections for both the regular allocation and the Plan 1 UAAL allocation. You will need both allocation percentages. If you have more than one DRS ORG ID number, you will need to combine the allocation percentages.
What is the Plan 1 UAAL? Under RCW 41.45.060, part of the contributions for PERS 2/3, SERS 2/3, PSERS 2, and TRS 2/3 are contributed to PERS 1 and TRS 1 to fund the plans’ UAAL.
Employers have a responsibility to exercise due care in financial reporting and to verify and recalculate amounts specific to them. Use the DRS Employer Reporting Application (ERA) contribution reconciliation to verify the reasonableness of contributions used in the calculation of your proportionate share percentage. Note that the DRS calculates contributions based on the process date (the day after the transmittal date), not your reporting date. This may cause timing differences between your accounting records and the DRS.
Schedule of Collective Pension Amounts: The PEFI also includes the schedules of collective pension amounts for each plan. Employers will use the collective pension amounts and apply their proportionate share from the employer allocation schedules to determine their own share of pension amounts (i.e., net pension liability, deferred inflows/outflows). The use of this schedule is further disclosed below.
3.4.2.35 Measurement date
For all plans:
Actuarial valuations should be performed at least biennially. The valuation date can be no more than 30 months and 1 day prior to the employer’s reporting date. The pension liability should be measured as of a date (the measurement date) no earlier than the end of the employer’s prior fiscal year, consistently applied from year to year. When the valuation date is before the measurement date, update procedures must be used to roll forward the valuation to the measurement date for the employer’s reporting. There is no requirement to roll forward from the measurement date to the employer reporting date; neither is it prohibited. Professional judgment should be used to determine the specific update procedures to be used (the roll forward is usually done by the actuary).
Earliest Available Valuation Date
Earliest Available Measurement Date Employer Can Use
Employer Reporting Date
6/30/2020
6/30/2021
6/30/2022
2/28/2020
8/31/2021
8/31/2022
6/30/2020
12/31/2021
12/31/2022
For DRS plans:
On the statement of net position, local governments will report a net pension liability or asset, deferred outflows and deferred inflows for the State plans in amounts that are measured as of June 30, (the measurement date). There is no need to “roll forward” these numbers to the employer’s reporting date. This is a concession made by the GASB to accommodate timely financial reporting.
Local governments with a reporting date of June 30, 2022 can use either the June 30, 2021 schedules or the June 30, 2020 schedules for their year-end balances. Local governments with a reporting date of December 31, 2022 will use the June 30, 2022 schedules for their year-end balances.
See calculation templates for PERS 1, PERS 2, PSERS 2, LEOFF 1, and LEOFF 2 on the GAAP Pension Worksheet (found on the BARS Reporting Templates page).
The Schedules of Collective Pension Amounts for each plan are published near the back of the DRS report.
Important! Before 2018, the amounts in the schedules of collective pension amounts were presented in thousands. You needed to multiply the amounts by $1,000 to convert to whole dollars before calculating your individual amounts. Beginning with the June 30, 2018 PEFI, the amounts in the schedules of collective pension amounts are presented in whole dollars.
For each plan in which you participate, multiply the amounts in these schedules by your unique allocation percentage to calculate your entity’s share of each plan’s pension liability, deferred outflows and deferred inflows. Note that the percentages reported in the employer allocation schedules are percentages, not simple decimal amounts.
3.4.2.41 LEOFF – Special funding situation
LEOFF plans 1 and 2 include a special funding situation in which the State has a legal obligation to make contributions directly to the plans. Although the State makes the contributions, individual employers are required by GAAP to recognize pension expense and an equal amount of revenue for their share of these contributions.
LEOFF 1 is fully funded and there have been no contributions since the year 2000.
LEOFF 2: The total amount contributed by the State appears in the PEFI at the end of the LEOFF 2 Employer Allocation Schedule. Note that allocation percentages have not been calculated for individual employers and each individual employer must calculate their own share of the State’s total contributions.
Formula: From page 119 of the 2022 PEFI, State of Washington special funding allocation percentage (39.312221%) divided by total State of Washington employer allocations (60.687779%) = 64.575638%.
Example as of June 30, 2022: $1,138,148 (employers LEOFF 2 contributions) x 64.575638% = $734,966.
Journal Entry
DR
CR
Pension Expense
$734,66
Intergovernmental Revenue (BARS 3350301)
$734,66
Employers will also use this allocation percentage to calculate the State’s proportionate share of the net pension asset associated with the individual employer for their note disclosures (a requirement of GASB Statement 68, paragraph 80).
Example as of June 30, 2022: $33,162,907 (employer’s LEOFF 2 asset) x 64.575638% = $21,415,159 (State’s proportionate share of the net pension asset associated with the employer).
Contributions are no longer made to LEOFF 1 and so employers need only disclose in the notes the State’s proportionate share of the net pension asset associated with the employer.
Formula: From pages 108 and 109 of the 2022 PEFI, State of Washington special funding allocation percentage (87.12% divided by total State of Washington employer allocations (12.88%) = 676.397516%.
Example as of June 30, 2022: $5,049,107 (employer’s LEOFF 1 asset) x 676.397516% = $34,152,035 (State’s proportionate share of the net pension asset associated with the employer).
3.4.2.45 Overview of journal entries
Annual pension expense is not the cash contributions made to the plans. Contributions are a reduction of the pension liability. The pension accounting standards do not change statutory contribution rates or cash flow and we recommend that you do not change the way payments to the DRS are recorded in your accounting system. You may want to consider the use of a “contra” account in your accounting system to accumulate all of the debits and credits to pension expense that result from pension journal entries.
3.4.2.60 Step 3 – Year-end balances: journal entries for ending balances of collective pension amounts
See calculation templates for PERS 1, PERS 2, PSERS 2, LEOFF 1, and LEOFF 2 on the GAAP Pension Worksheet (found on the BARS Reporting Templates page).
You must perform these calculations for each plan in which you participate.
Note for local governments with a June 30 year end. These instructions assume that entities with a June 30 year end will use the June 30, 2021 PEFI and defer contributions from July 2021 through June 2022 (12 months). However, you have the option of using the June 30, 2022 PEFI with no deferral of contributions, if available in time to meet your SAO reporting requirements. Once a measurement date is selected (current vs. one year prior) local governments should not switch back and forth between the two dates over the years. This would be a change in accounting principle that would require a restatement of prior periods. When making your selection for the measurement date, keep in mind that there is no guarantee the current year’s PEFI will be available by your annual report deadline.
3.4.2.62 Deferred outflows/inflows
The following collective deferred outflows and inflows of resources are determined at the plan level:
Net difference between projected and actual investment earnings on pension plan investments – amortized over five years
Differences between expected and actual experience – amortized over the average expected remaining service lives of plan participants (amortization period provided by the DRS)
Changes in actuarial assumptions – amortized over the average expected remaining service lives of plan participants (amortization period provided by the DRS)
Local governments will use their allocation percentages to calculate their individual proportionate shares of these deferred outflows and inflows. They will be amortized over the recognition periods published by the DRS in the PEFI.
There are two types of deferred outflows and inflows that must be calculated by individual employers:
Employer’s contributions subsequent to the plan measurement date and up to the end of the employer’s reporting period must be reported as a deferred outflow of resources. State of Washington plans have a June 30 measurement date. Employers with a December 31 year end will defer the last six months of contributions. Due to the timing of the plan’s financial reports, employers with a June 30 year end will defer 12 months. These amounts are reversed in the following year when the new year-end amounts are deferred. For your calculations, use actual contributions to the plans. Contributions from PERS 2/3, SERS 2/3, and PSERS that go to PERS 1 should be reported as PERS 1 contributions.
Changes in proportionate share and differences between actual employer contributions and proportionate share of contributions – amortized over the average expected remaining service lives of plan participants (amortization period provided by the DRS). The DRS uses actual contributions to determine proportionate share, and so differences between actual employer contributions and the proportionate share of contributions is expected to be rare. However, an employer’s proportionate share of each plan’s collective liability and deferred outflows/inflows is expected to change each year. The effect of that change should be calculated at the beginning of the period.
There are three methods for calculating the restricted net position related to each individual pension plan’s net pension asset.
SAO’s preferred method The restricted net position is equal to the net pension asset, minus the deferred inflows, plus the deferred outflows. Only include the deferred inflows and deferred outflows for the pension plans that have a net pension asset.
GASB’s preferred method The restricted net position is equal to the net pension asset. Both deferred inflows and deferred outflows are excluded from the calculation.
Final option The restricted net position is equal to the net pension asset minus deferred inflows. Only include the deferred inflows for the pension plans that have a net pension asset. Deferred outflows are excluded from the calculation.
The method selected for the calculation of restricted net position should be consistent from year-to-year and should be disclosed in the Notes to the Financial Statements, Note 1 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies.
3.4.2.65 Change in proportionate share
If there is a change in proportion of the collective net pension liability since the prior measurement date, the net effect of that change on the employer’s proportionate shares of the collective net pension liability and collective deferred outflows of resources and deferred inflows of resources should be recognized in the employer’s pension expense, beginning in the current reporting period, using a systematic rational method over a closed period (expected remaining service lives).
The DRS will maintain and publish the amortization schedules for the collective deferred outflows/inflows (see the June 30 Participating Employer Financial Report). Individual employers must maintain their own amortization schedules for the deferred outflows/inflows that result from the changes in proportionate share. Note that the PERS 1, TRS 1, and LEOFF 1 have a recognition period of one year, as of the beginning of the measurement period. As a result, all changes in proportion for these plans are expensed in the current year with no need to amortize.
See the calculation of changes in proportionate share and amortization schedules on the GAAP Pension Worksheet (found on the BARS Reporting Templates page).
The provisions of GASB statements need not be applied to immaterial items. Governments may consider adopting an amortization threshold for their deferred outflows/inflows related to pensions. For example, amounts less than $500 could be expensed in the current year rather than amortized over many years.
3.4.2.67 Allocation of pension amounts to funds and activities
The pension accounting standards do not mention specific requirements for allocation of pension-related amounts to individual funds. However, basic governmental accounting principles (see GASB Codification 1500.102) require that long-term liabilities that are directly related to and expected to be paid from proprietary-type funds be reported in those funds.
You should allocate the net pension liability, deferred outflows/inflows, and pension expense among governmental vs. business-type activities and individual proprietary-type funds. The SAO does not prescribe any particular method. However, entities should consider a method similar to that prescribed by GASB Statement 68 for cost-sharing plans – “based on the manner in which contributions are assessed.” For example, allocating to funds and activities based on their proportionate share of actual employer contributions to the plan (employee contributions should not be included):
Contributions by Fund:
Governmental Funds
765
60%
Utility Fund
385
30%
IS Fund
125
10%
1,275
100%
Many local governments with a PERS 1 liability do not have PERS 1 employees. We recommend you use your PERS 2 contributions to make the allocation. Other methods may also be acceptable based on individual facts and circumstances. The allocation methodology used by the local government should be disclosed in the notes to the financial statements.
In the statement of activities, pension expense for governmental activities should be further allocated by function. Pension liability, deferred outflows/inflows, and pension expense should be reported in each applicable proprietary fund.
3.4.2.80 Note disclosures and Required Supplementary Information
The accounting and financial reporting standards for non-governmental defined benefit pension plans are established in the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB Statement 78), Pensions Provided through Certain Multiple-Employer Defined Benefit Pension Plans.
Some local governments may provide pensions to their employees through a cost-sharing, multiple-employer defined benefit pension plan that:
(1) is not a state or local governmental plan,
(2) is used to provide defined benefit pensions to both employees of state or local governmental employers, and
(3) has no predominant state or local governmental employer (either individually or collectively with other state or local governmental employers that provide pensions through the plan).
A union sponsored pension plan is an example of a plan meeting these criteria. Participating employers report no pension liability, deferred outflows, or deferred inflows. Pension expense is equal to contributions to the plan.
Chapter 41.20 RCW – Police Relief and Pensions in First Class Cities
GASB Statements 67/68 are applicable only to pension plans that are administered through trusts or equivalent arrangements in which:
a. Contributions from employers to the pension plan and earnings on those contributions are irrevocable. Irrevocability is understood to mean that an employer no longer has ownership or control of the assets, except for any reversionary right once all benefits have been paid. Assets may flow from an employer to the plan, but not from the plan to an employer unless and until all obligations to pay benefits in accordance with the plan terms have been satisfied by payment or by defeasance with no remaining risk regarding the amounts to be paid or the value of plan assets (implementation guide Q&A No. 6). Refunds of the non-vested portion of employer contributions that are forfeited by plan members are consistent with this criterion.
b. Pension plan assets are dedicated to providing pensions to plan members in accordance with benefit terms. The use of pension plan assets to pay plan administrative costs or to refund plan member contributions is consistent with this criterion. The commingling of pension and OPEB assets in the same trust is not consistent with this criterion.
c. Pension plan assets are legally protected from the creditors of employers, the plan administrator and plan members.
Pay-as-you-go funding is not a qualifying trust.
Depending upon how individual local governments have established their pre-LEOFF I police and firefighter plans, they may or may not meet the criteria of GASB Statements 67/68. Local governments that have these plans should carefully review all legislation establishing and modifying the plans and consult with their legal counsel regarding the status of the plans.
Under GASB Statement 73, the pension trust fund cannot be reported as a fiduciary fund. It should be rolled into the general fund for financial statement reporting.
4.1.2.10 Pursuant to RCW43.09.230, Annual Reports are to be certified and filed with the State Auditor’s Office within 150 days after the close of each fiscal year.
4.1.2.20 The legal reporting requirements prescribed by the State Auditor’s Office for local governments in Washington State are consistent with the national standards of financial reporting prescribed by the GASB. These requirements for GAAP local governments are as follows:
Basic Financial Statements, including notes to financial statements.
Required Supplementary Information (including MD&A)
Supplemental Schedules
4.1.2.30 For the basic financial statements, the local government needs to prepare worksheets to summarize the general ledger trial balances, the resources and the expenditures schedules at the required account level. Most of these worksheets do not need to be submitted as part of the annual report, but they must be available for audit. The matrixes in BARS Manual 4.1.4, Summary of Reporting Requirementsidentify the statutory reporting requirements for GAAP local governments.
4.1.2.35 Local governments are required to update the materially incorrect financial statements. The requirement applies to all errors found prior or during an audit.
4.1.2.40 If a local government elects to prepare the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), it will have to produce additional schedules and statements that are NOT described in this Manual. However, the statements and schedules required for BARS reporting can be placed directly in the ACFR, and nearly all of the additional financial requirements of the ACFR are readily met by formally preparing the data used to satisfy BARS requirements. No duplication of effort is necessary to produce the ACFR from BARS reports. For additional information on preparation of a ACFR see BARS Manual 4.9, GFOA Financial Reporting Recognition Programs.
4.1.2.45 The Department of Health (DOH) Accounting and Reporting Manual for Hospitals, which contains uniform accounting, budgeting and reporting for licensed hospitals in the state of Washington, is available from the DOH Office of Hospital and Patient Data Systems at (360) 236-4210 or from the Department’s website. The requirements in this Manual do not substitute the reporting requirements contained in the Department of Health (DOH) Accounting and Reporting Manual for Hospitals.
Filing instructions
4.1.2.50 Electronic reporting is encouraged when filing annual reports. Annual reports should be submitted via the Online Filing option on the State Auditor’s website at: www.sao.wa.gov. Acceptable file should adhere to the prescribed record layout and should be an Excel file. It should include column headings. All columns must be formatted as text except the Actual Amount column which is numeric. More details are provided on the website.
For questions and/or support, please use the HelpDesk through our Online Services.
If the local government cannot provide the annual report in the electronic format mail the annual report to:
Annual Report State Auditor’s Office Local Government Support Team PO Box 40031 Olympia, WA 98504-0031
Certification
Prepare the certification and sign and date the certification before submitting the report.
Annual Report Disclosure Form
MCAG No. _______
(City/County/District)
(This form is not required if you are submitting your annual report electronically.)
Please check if the statements/schedules are attached. Use the column which is appropriate for your government type. If Schedule 17 is not applicable mark the spot NA (not applicable). An unmarked spot in your government type column will indicate that a schedule is not attached due to lack of activities described in this schedule in reported year.
Checklist Footnotes
[1] Local governments with no financial activity, defined as having neither expenditures, other than small automatic bank fees (such as dormant account fees) and the state auditor’s office audit billings, nor revenues other than interest income on any cash balances, have the option to submit summarized annual reports. These governments need to submit a Schedule 01 reporting cash balances at the beginning and end of the reporting year as well as any investment income received on those balances if applicable. These governments also will be required to submit no activity supporting documents such as meeting minutes and county reports and/or bank statements verifying no activity. Note that by selecting this submission option, preparers of the annual reports are certifying that their government meets the definition of no activity as explained above.
[3] Only cities and special purpose districts with revenue usually less than $300,000 are required to prepare this schedule. However, conservation districts, fire districts, transportation benefit districts, local/regional trauma care councils and industrial development corporations are required to prepare the Schedule regardless of the amount of revenue. However, no financial activity reports do not require a formal Schedule 22 to be submitted. Governments who file a no activity report will be required to submit supporting documents to confirm no activity, such as meeting minutes, county reports and/or bank statements.
512.52 New Code – This code is to be used when a municipal government contracts out their court services and should also be used by governments providing the court services to another municipality.
Added instructions and a new resource "Codes to Funds"
Added instructions for chart of accounts export. All codes from the Chart of Accounts as of November 30th are included in the resource with the allowable fund types indicated.
3.4.7 Intergovernmental and Forgivable Loans – Moved accounting for forgivable loans out of the Schedule 09 instructions and added information on intergovernmental loans.
3.5.1.40 – Added a definition and more examples for unearned revenue (Liability). 3.5.1.50 – Added additional examples for unearned revenue (deferred inflow) and deferred inflow unavailable revenues.
3.9.1.10 – Added when interfund loans could be used and requirements for interfund loans from the General Fund. 3.9.1.31 – Added information on negative fund balances and the accounting for those balances. 3.9.1.32 – Added information on when interfund payments become interfund loans.
3.10.5.60 – Changed capital leases to installment purchases 3.10.5.70 – Added leases to the obligations that do not constitute debt for debt limitation.
4.2.4 Added footnote 2 that the government should have a policy to address the assignment of revenues that could be classified under multiple functions.
4.3.7 Added determinations for Flexible Savings and Health Savings Accounts, both when a government controls the asset and when the government does not.
4.9 Removed the listing of requirements for the GFOA ACFR certificate. Created a link for accessing the official GFOA website and requirements for the certificate program.
Moved note template from the templates page to the notes section. Updates, changes, and clarifications for disclosing pensions made throughout (annual updates).
Fiscal year 2021 Pension and OPEB templates are available for download
Schedule 19 – Labor Relations
BARS Reporting Templates
Removed due to change in state law.
BARS Alerts
12/17/2021
Hot Topic - GAAP Proprietary Fund schedule 01 reporting: Proprietary funds reported in the SAO annual report must include the following: - Actual depreciation amounts reported in each proprietary fund (501XX) - Actual expense amounts for capital expenditures (594XX and 595XX) - Actual expense amounts for principal debt repayments (591XX, 593XX, 599XX)
12/17/2021
Leases accounting is effective for fiscal year 2022 reporting in 2023. See the Leases project page for more information.
12/17/2021
Annual update, see changes in table below
Overview of Changes – Applicable to the Reporting Year 2021
344.71 (Transits, Railroads and Other Transportation Systems Services)
344.71 New Code - Include private vanpool charges, streetcar and monorail fares, disabled/aging transportation fees, etc. For cities/counties: this code is not reported on the road/street report to WSDOT.
369.70 (Pension/OPEB Contributions) Should only be used for contributions made to a pension/OPEB plan administered by the reporting government. Not for use in the fiduciary funds.
395.30 New code - Use for any proceeds received for the sale of capital assets. Examples: real estate (land and buildings), equipment, street vacations, timber sales (timber owned by the municipality). Relatively insignificant proceeds from sales of capital assets should be coded as other revenue. If the money is further distributed to other local governments, such distributions should be coded 337 by these receiving governments.
For GAAP enterprise funds, see 372-373 for applicable coding.
395.40 (Compensation for Loss/Impairment of Capital Asset)
395.40 New code - Include insurance and other recoveries for damaged, destroyed, stolen, or lost governmental capital assets. If the recoveries meet the criteria of extraordinary items, they should be reported as such in the financial statements. Insurance recoveries that are related to storm cleanup and are realized, or are measurable and available, in the same year as the related cleanup expenditures should be netted against those expenditures. Insurance recoveries that are related to cleanup and are recognized in subsequent periods should be reported as other financing sources or extraordinary items, as appropriate. FEMA grants are not insurance recoveries and should be coded as direct/indirect federal grants.
For GAAP enterprise funds, see 372-373 for applicable coding.
547.10 (Transits, Railroads and Other Transportation Systems Services)
547.10 New Code - This account should be used only if the local government operates its own, or with other governments, transit, railroad or other transportation system. These expenditures are related to public transportation. For cities/counties: this code is not reported on the road/street report to WSDOT.
3.7.1 Changed title to Federal Awards to include all items that must be reported on the Expenditures of Federal Awards (Schedule 16). Updates, changes, and clarifications for reporting awards made throughout.
4.8.14.10 Added clarification that governments who file a no activity report will not be required to submit a formal Schedule 22, but will need to submit supporting documents.
Added Quick Links to specific guidance 4.14.5.70 Added additional information on COVID-19 Expenditures including donated personal protective equipment purchased with COVID-19 federal financial assistance, COVID 19 Vaccines - Immunization Cooperative Agreements CFDA #93.268, Provider Relief Fund (PRF) CFDA #93.498 4.14.5.155 Moved and retitled 4.14.5.230 to Preparing the preformatted SEFA template for upload to Online Filing 4.14.5.180 Added yellow flag caution under column 4 instructions. 4.14.5.230 Changed to example of finalized Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards.
348.00 (Internal Service Funds Sales and Services)
348.00 (Internal Service Funds Sales and Services) – Allowed only in internal service funds. Read more about the use of 348.00 and internal service funds in the audit connection blog, “BARS Code Spotlight".
541 (Roads/Streets Construction – Preservation Projects)
541 (Roads/Streets Construction – Preservation Projects) – This code is for modified approach to infrastructure. Allowed in all fund types except fiduciary and permanent.
GAAP Fund Balance and Net Position Codes – 308.20/508.20, 308.30/508.30, 308.40/508.40, 308.50/508.50, 308.90/508.90 – allowed only in governmental funds. 308.60/508.60, 308.19/508.19, 308.89/508.89 – allowed only in proprietary funds. Exception: 308.19/508.19 allowed in GAAP fiduciary funds.
Other Increases and Other Decreases in Fund Resources Removed BARS Codes 3821000, Refundable Deposits, 3822000, Retainage Deposits, and 5821000, Refund of Deposits, 5822000, Refund of Retainage Deposits. These should be reported as liability accounts for GAAP basis.
Fiduciary funds – Added a reference to the new Determining Fiduciary Activities to be Reported in Custodial Funds Fiduciary funds – Added a GASB 34, Paragraph 106 reference for capital assets reported in fiduciary funds
3.6.8.10 Changed "Programs must be approved by the behavioral health organization and the secretary of the Department of Social and Health Services" to "…secretary of the Department of Health" to match RCW 71.24.555
3.7.1 Updated references to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circulars 3.7.1.20 Included other federal financial assistance guidance 3.7.1.30 Removed reference to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) 3.7.1.30 Added Identification of COVID-19 related awards requirements 3.7.1.41 Removed the Common Rule Administrative Requirements section 3.7.1.51 Removed the OMB Circular A-87 Cost Principals section
4.1.1.210 Clarified the definition of "financially accountable" 4.1.1.220 Clarified the reporting of component units Financial Reporting Entity Flowchart updated for determining fiduciary trust funds and defined compensation plans
Clarified requirements for reporting and calculations of the components of net position 4.2.8.10 Created a downloadable worksheet for converting governmental fund balances to net position
Removed this section from proprietary fund financial statement section and created a new section for the additional reporting requirements for risk pools.
Section number updated to 4.14.3 (from 4.8.3). 4.83.100 Updated information on reporting pension (264.30) and OPEB liabilities (264.40) 4.8.3.110 Updated the due date instructions to list I.D. Numbers that do not require a due date to be reported.
Section number updated to 4.14.5 (from 4.8.5). Annual update for SEFA requirements including updated notes and COVID-19/CARES Act reporting requirements.
The templates for the online filing schedules have been updated for Fiscal Year 2020 reporting. Schedule templates updated are: Schedule 01, Schedule 16, Schedule 16 Notes, Schedule 21
3952000, Compensation for Loss/Impairment of Capital Assets
3952000, Compensation for Loss/Impairment of Capital Assets Added the following information: Insurance recoveries that are related to storm cleanup and are realized, or are measurable and available, in the same year as the related cleanup expenditures should be netted against those expenditures. Insurance recoveries that are related to cleanup and are recognized in subsequent periods should be reported as other financing sources or extraordinary items, as appropriate.
3132700, Affordable and Supportive Housing Sales and Use Tax
3132700, Affordable and Supportive Housing Sales and Use Tax A new BARS code 3132700 was assigned to code the sales and use tax authroized by the SHB 1406, Laws of 2019.
BARS codes 5990000, Payments for Refunded Debt, these codes should be used for payments to an escrow agent for refunding debt payments and direct payments of refunded debt (e.g., BANs, refinancing or loans, etc.). Note this correlates to current refundings, advanced refundings utilize 5930000 codes.
Other Increases and Other Decreases in Fund Resources Added BARS Codes 3821000, Refundable Deposits, 3822000, Retainage Deposits, and 5821000, Refund of Deposits, 5822000, Refund of Retainage Deposits to be used for deposits that are not custodial activities. These codes are replacing 3891000, 5891000, 3892000, 5892000 which are no longer valid BARS codes.
3.1.3.10 Updated information about the "Green Book." 3.1.3.30 Added information that states the SAO is not part of the internal control functions of a government. 3.1.3.40 Updated the five components of internal controls. 3.1.3.90 Updated information about the different areas that should be reviewed for creating internal controls.
Removed "signed" in 3.6.620 b. which now says "A file must be maintained of those payers who have authorized to add moneys to your account electronically including the proceeds form third party vendors for credit card remittances."
Removed "signed" in 3.8.11.20 b. which now says "A file must be maintained of authorizations by payees who have therby agreed to have moneys added to their accounts electronically."
Added the fourth bullet in 3.8.11.30 which now says "Policies and procedures should be in place to validate these authorization to protect resources being transferred electronically."
Other Postemployment Benefit (OPEB) Plan Schedules, 4.7.340 - 4.7.410 - Updated the requirements to match GASB 74 and 75. Added links to the appropriate templates.
4.8.5.40 Removed reference to the fact that the SEFA must be prepared on the same basis of accounting since Uniform Guidance does not require the SEFA. 4.8.5.50 Removed references to CFDA 10.665: Title I - Schools and Roads, Title II - Special Projects on Federal Land, Title III - County Projects in the Direct costs of expenditure transactions associated with grants, cost-reimbursement contracts, cooperative agreements, and direct appropriations. 4.8.5.128 Revised the requirements for Disbursements to Subrecipients to "expended" rather than "paid." 4.8.5.130 Updated the exceptions for EPA Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (CFDA 66.468) and Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CFDA 66.458). 4.8.5.230 Removed Note 8 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 from the SEFA Notes Template.
New account for revenues for Medicaid payments related to an implementation of the Transformation Plans. The addition was communicated on August 1, 2018 in BARS Alert
The account was divided between internal and external legal services. Within each category were created more separate accounts for different specific legal expenditures. The change will allow governments to analyze and compare costs much more effectively. This also aligns accounting records with procedures auditors are required by professional standards to perform an audit on legal liabilities, so it will help make the audit process more efficient. This change was already announced in 2016 and was not required for the FY 2017 reports; however, the new accounts will be required for 2018 reporting.
Object code 50 was removed and the definitions of object codes 30 and 40 adjusted to include the transactions which were previously reported using object 50. For other details see BARS Alert issued August 1, 2018.
GASB Statement 84, Fiduciary Activities – the Statement is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018; however we incorporated the required changes in this version of manual. The additional information will be available on our website under Fiduciary Funds in BARS manual.
Also, updated was the discussion of enterprise [400] funds. There are no new reporting requirements and the update expands the current prescription.
The update incorporates the changes to RCW 36.32.210 which removed the annual inventory requirement. The change was communicated on March 21, 2018 in BARS Alert.
Removed requirement to capitalize interests during construction. This is an early implementation of GASBS 89, Accounting for Interest Cost Incurred before the End of Construction Period which is applicable for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019.
Added GASBS 86, Certain Debt Extinguishment Issues update regarding accounting and reporting when the debt is refunded with the government’s own resources.
Removed requirement to capitalize interests during construction. This is an early implementation of GASBS 89, Accounting for Interest Cost Incurred before the End of Construction Period which is applicable for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019.
New section was added regarding Equipment Rental and Revolving (ER&R) Fund. This guidance was previously available outside the BARS manual and it is now incorporated into the manual allowing an easy access.
Added a new section to provide a general overview of interfund transactions.
REPORTING
GASB Statement 84, Fiduciary Activities – the statement is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018; however we incorporated the required changes in this version of manual. The following sections were updated: 4.1.1.150 (removed due to the changes in reporting requirements for custodial funds and their impact on financial reports); 4.1.4.20, 4.3.1.40, 4.3.2.70, 4.8.3.50, and 4.9.140. These changes involved only a title change from the agency to custodial funds.
The most significant change involves changes in financial reporting and these are incorporated into 4.3.5, Fiduciary Funds Financial Statements.
Removed requirement to capitalize interests during construction. This is an early implementation of GASBS 89, Accounting for Interest Cost Incurred before the End of Construction Period which is applicable for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019.
Removed requirement to capitalize interests during construction. This is an early implementation of GASBS 89, Accounting for Interest Cost Incurred before the End of Construction Period which is applicable for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019.
Removed requirement to capitalize interests during construction. This is an early implementation of GASBS 89, Accounting for Interest Cost Incurred before the End of Construction Period which is applicable for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019.
Added reporting requirements of GASBS 88, Certain Disclosures Related to Debt, Including Direct Borrowings and Direct Placements. This Statement is applicable for reporting periods beginning after June 15, 2018.
Added link to the WA State Department of Revenue page containing information regarding state’s abatements. This update was communicated on March 7, 2018 in the BARS Alert.
Clarified that the governments should be reporting both short- and long-term liabilities on the Schedule. Also added new ID. Numbers for registered warrants and lines of credits.
Revision reflect the clarification for reporting federal grants provided by federal agencies.
Remove discussion of ARRA grants.
The example of reporting FEMA grants was updated.
Updated for changes related to reporting the following grants: EPA Drinking Water (CFDA 66.468), Clean Water (CFDA 66.458), USDA Interim Financing (CFDA10.760) and (CFDA 10.766).
Revised rules for reporting grants with missing CFDA numbers.
The Schedule was revised to provide relevant information needed in assessing and auditing governments’ risk management circumstances.
ONLINE FILING
Schedule 09
The Schedule 09, Schedule of Liabilities, includes a new validation check for net pension liabilities. Governments will receive a red flag if they have pension related liabilities but do not report them on the Schedule 09 or if they are using the incorrect ID No.
