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Latest update includes:

Periodic Allotment
On or about Tuesday, February 19, the Executive Office for Administration and Finance will process the seventh periodic allotment of FY2013 to increase the expenditure ceiling in budgetary accounts to 75% (a one-month allotment).

The next scheduled periodic allotment will be on or about March 18. Agency staff are asked to make ANF budget analysts aware of any requested ad hoc allotments as soon as possible to ensure that it can be reviewed by ANF staff in a timely fashion.

MMARS Saturday and Holiday Hours
MMARS and LCM will be available Saturday, February 16, from 9:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M. The Help Desk will not be staffed and any Saturday Help Desk calls will be returned on Tuesday, February 19.

MMARS and LCM will be available on Presidents’ Day, Monday, February 18, from 7 A.M. - 7 P.M. A normal LCM cycle, but no financial cycle will be run. The Help Desk will not be staffed and any holiday Help Desk calls will be returned on Tuesday, February 19.

Weekly Fraud Awareness and Prevention Fact –   Social Engineering - Phishing
Social engineering is the act of manipulating people through misrepresentation into performing actions or divulging confidential information. There are many forms of social engineering; one of the most common is “Phishing”. Phishing is a fraudulent act usually conducted via email to acquire passwords, usernames, credit card numbers, or other personal information by appearing to be sent from a legitimate source.

Please visit the Fraud Prevention section of our Internal Controls Page for a link to the Toolkit for Departments to Combat Fraud, Waste and Abuse and the Brochure. 

If you have any questions regarding this or previous Fraud Awareness and Prevention Facts, please contact the Comptroller Help Desk at 617-973-2468 or via email Comptroller.Info@State.MA.US. To report Fraud, Waste, or Abuse, contact one of the Commonwealth’s Whistleblower Hotlines.

Upcoming Training Sessions and Meetings

  • LCM Management – Tuesday, February 19, 9:00 A.M. – 3:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Fraud Awareness and Prevention – Wednesday, February 20, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Executive Conference Room
  • Intermediate MMARS Warehouse – Thursday, February 21, 9:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Intro to HR/CMS Payroll Warehouse – Tuesday, February 26, 9:00 A.M. – 3:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Intro to LCM Warehouse – Wednesday, February 27, 9:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • CIW Report Building with MS Access – Thursday, February 28, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Intro to State Finance MMARS Navigation – Tuesday, March 5, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Payroll User Group Meeting – Wednesday, March 6, 9:30 A.M. – 12:30 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 21st Floor Conference Room
  • Webcast Payroll User Group Meeting – Wednesday, March 6, 9:30 A.M. – 12:30 P.M., Online Training
  • Encumbrance Management – Thursday, March 7, 9:30 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab

Register for these sessions via the Comptroller's Training and Meeting Schedule which lists classes scheduled for the next three months and Payroll User Groups through December 2013.

MMARS Hint of the Week – Ready Payments - Making Manual Payment
A manual payment (PRC) can be made against a ready payment Recurring Purchase Order (RPO) only under certain circumstances, and requires an override from the Comptroller’s Office. An example of when this would be allowed is at the end of the fiscal year when there isn’t enough time left for the system to make self correction based on reconciliation data.