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Latest update includes:

Fringe Benefit, Payroll Tax, Indirect Cost Charges for Accounting Period 8
The fringe benefit, payroll tax and indirect cost chargebacks for Accounting Period 8 (February), FY2013 will be run this Saturday, March 9. All eligible expenditures processed during Accounting Period 8 will be subject to these assessments.

Departments should ensure that the budget structure tables for appropriated (payroll tax only), federal grants and other non-budgetary accounts are properly established so these charges post without rejecting under object codes D09 (fringe benefits and payroll taxes) and E16 (indirect costs).

Annual Department Security Officer Briefing Friday, March 22 
The Annual Department Security Officer Briefing is scheduled for Friday, March 22nd from 9:30 A.M. -12:00 P.M. in the 21st Floor Conference Room at One Ashburton Place Boston. This meeting will include representatives from ITD and CTR. For those who can't attend in person, this session will be webcast. Please register for this session (live meeting or webcast) via the Comptroller's Training and Meeting Schedule.

Annual Close/Open Meeting Dates
The Comptroller of the Commonwealth Annual Close/Open meetings have been scheduled for:

  • Thursday, April 25 from 9:30 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. at the Federal Reserve Bank in Boston
  • Thursday, May 2 from 9:30 A.M. to 11:30 P.M. at the annual MASSbuys Conference at the DCU Center in Worcester. This session will also be webcast for those who cannot attend in person.

Chief Fiscal Officers (CFO) and staff with fiscal responsibilities are encouraged to attend the annual Close /Open meeting.  Please register for the in person meetings or webcast on the Comptroller’s Training and Event Portal.

The MASSbuys EXPO Thursday, May 2
Register Now for the 15th Annual MASSbuys EXPO on May 2nd at the DCU Center in Worcester, MA

Have you registered yet for the MASSbuys EXPO?  If not you might want to watch the Attendee Video to see what you will miss if you don’t!  At the MASSbuys EXPO you get a chance to network with your peers, meet over 350 vendors on Statewide Contracts, attend morning and afternoon workshops, and visit the eProcurement University to learn about upcoming updates. 

Enjoy an event packed day that will help improve job performance and increase professional growth.  We’ll be serving a FREE continental breakfast and hot buffet lunch in the arena!  The exhibit hall is open from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm, and parking is free.  Register here. We look forward to seeing you on May 2nd!

Contact: For questions about MASSbuys, email: massbuysadmin@state.ma.us.

Updated Fixed Asset Job Aids
The Job Aids Create a Capital (Fixed) Asset Manually and Create a Betterment to a Capital (FIXED) Asset Manually have been updated.  The updated job aids emphasize that there should be one fixed asset for each unit purchased.  Assets should not be bundled onto one document. There should be one fixed asset betterment for each unit.  Betterments should not be bundled onto one document.

MMARS Unavailable Saturday
Due to scheduled system processing, MMARS will be unavailable on Saturday, March 9.

Purge of Rejected Documents over 75 Days Old
Rejected documents in the system accumulate in the document catalog and are removed in a regularly scheduled monthly purge of documents over 75 days old. The next purge will occur on March 15 and will delete rejected documents entered before January 1. If you have documents entered before January 1 that you would like to save, please place them on "hold".

To place a document on "hold":

  • Locate the document in the Document Catalog.
  • Check the checkbox to the left of the document (in the Document Catalog).
  • Click "Action Menu", select "Scheduling Actions", select "Mark Document" and choose "Hold".

Weekly Fraud Awareness and Prevention Fact – Consequences of Fraud- Internal Consequences
Instances of Fraud can have many damaging internal consequences. Fraud can damage organizational integrity and credibility, take its toll on morale, create an environment of mistrust, and increase focus on your office from everyone (Auditors, Management, Media, Public).

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

  • Fraud Awareness and Prevention – Tuesday, March 12, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Executive Conference Room
  • HR/CMS Fundamentals – Wednesday, March 13, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Intro to MMARS Warehouse – Thursday, March 14, 9:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Payment Management – Tuesday, March 19, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Intermediate MMARS Warehouse – Wednesday, March 20, 9:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Establishing a Federal Grant in MMARS – Thursday, March 21, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • Security Officers Briefing – Friday, March 22, 9:30 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 21st Floor Conference Room
  • Webcast Security Officers Briefing – Friday, March 22, 9:30 A.M. – 12:00 P.M., Online Training
  • Vendor Management – Tuesday, March 26, 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. One Ashburton Place Boston, 9th Floor Training Lab
  • CIW Report Building with MS Excel – Wednesday, March 27, 9:00 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 – Document Reference 
Document referencing in MMARS is used to view either the previous document or the next document in the receivables or payables processing cycle.

  1. Make sure you are in a document. On the left side of the screen, in the secondary navigation channel, click on the Document Reference link.
  2. The Document Reference Query will open. Click on either the Forward Reference or Backward Reference link.
  3. The results will display both the original document being referenced from and the next reference step, either forward or backward, that occurred in series with the original selected document. Click on the document link to view the document.