FILE: DIC
INVENTORIES
FIXED ASSETS
The Monroe City School Board directs the Superintendent to maintain a current itemized list of all land, buildings, improvements other than buildings, equipment, and any other general fixed assets which were purchased or otherwise acquired, for which the Board is accountable.
The property control system shall include a list for reporting purposes of all fixed assets with a value of $5,000 or more in the district including all items purchased or donated to the school district. Items purchased with funds identified by the state as 8(g) funds, valued at $250 or more, shall also be classified as fixed assets and included in the fixed asset records. The list shall include information as to the date of purchase, the initial cost, and the disposition, if any, and the purpose of such disposition and the recipient of the property or equipment disposed of. Where ascertaining the cost, exact selling price or any other relevant information on property or equipment is not available, estimates may be provided. Inventory records shall be managed and maintained in accordance with Board procedures.
For accountability and internal control purposes, an inventory of equipment and other items costing less than $5,000 may also be inventoried, tagged, and tracked by the School Board.
Definition of Fixed Assets
The major characteristics of fixed assets are as follows:
They possess physical substance such that they retain their original shape and appearance with use.
They are long-term in nature and are expected to yield services for longer than one year, as opposed to consumable goods which are depleted as used.
They are non-expendable; that is, if the article is damaged or some of its parts are lost or worn out, it is usually more feasible to repair it than replace it with an entirely new unit (which is not true of supplies).
They do not lose their identity through incorporation into a different or more complex unit or substance.
Physical Inventory
In order to maintain an accurate account of Monroe City School Board possessions, a physical inventory of all possessions is to be taken at the building level at least annually, but may be more frequent as needed. Principals are the designated custodians of all possessions at the school level and shall be ultimately responsible for the safeguarding and record maintenance of all possessions in their schools. However, any employee who has physical custody of School Board assets shall be personally responsible for safeguarding the assets, i.e., each teacher shall be responsible for his/her classroom, the librarian for the assets in the library, the band director for the assets in the band department, etc.
Building level administrators shall be responsible for ensuring that annual inventories are taken and that the property control officer is notified of any changes that need to be made to their respective inventory records or reported as required. The Superintendent and/or his/her designee shall maintain pertinent procedures for maintaining inventory and tracking records, including identifying, appraising, tagging, and removing fixed assets from any inventory records.
Disposal of Fixed Assets
All equipment or other such property considered worn out, traded in, destroyed, or in any manner becoming unusable shall be reported to the Property Control Officer by completing the Property Deletion Form, so that the proper information may be entered into inventory records. Equipment cannot be sold or given to School Board employees or anyone else. Any act of sale shall be conducted in accordance with Board policy.
Fixed assets that are of such a small value that it is not cost beneficial to auction or bid may be scrapped or disposed of by the Central Office through appropriate administrative procedures that render the property of absolutely no residual value. Disposal shall be witnessed and appropriate documentation of disposal shall be retained on record for at least three (3) years after date of disposal.
Retirement of Stolen Assets
In the event of the theft of fixed assets, the following procedures should be followed:
A thorough search of the premises shall be conducted for the missing assets.
Sign-out/sign-in logs on equipment should be reviewed and the person to whom each item was assigned shall be interviewed regarding the asset’s whereabouts.
The Property Incident Report shall be completed and submitted to the Property Control Officer. A copy should be retained for school records. These reports should be submitted within twenty-four (24) hours after discovery of the theft.
The stolen items listed on the report shall then be removed from the fixed assets master file.
Retirement of Missing Assets
In the event that assets cannot be located, and if there is no evidence of a physical break-in and an exhaustive search has been made for the item(s), the Property Control Officer shall be notified, in writing, explaining the circumstances so that an investigation can be made, if deemed necessary, and assets may be retired.
Additions to Fixed Assets
When a school acquires new assets during the year, either through purchases made by the school or from donations (not assets that are purchased by the School Board that are tagged by Central Office personnel), the designated fixed assets custodian shall fill in the MCSS Property Addition Form. A copy of the completed form should be sent to the Property Control Officer. The Property Control Officer shall issue a tag number for the asset and return it to the school. It is the responsibility of the school to affix the tag to the asset.
The cutoff for inventory items added to a fiscal year shall be the same as the cutoff for financial transactions (i.e. mid July). All items received/invoiced in a particular year shall be included in that year's inventory.
Fixed assets are recorded at cost or Fair Market Value at date of donation for any donated assets. When determining the cost of a particular item, the invoice price used and any ancillary cost such as shipping, setup, installation, etc. necessary to put the item in place and operating should be included.
Transfer of Assets to Another Location
The fixed asset system tracks assets by location; therefore, it is imperative that transfers of assets be recorded. To transfer an asset to a new location, the custodian of the asset shall fill the MCSS Property Transfer Form. A copy of the completed form sent to the Property Control Officer, who shall then update the fixed asset master file to record the transfer.
TEXTBOOK INVENTORIES
The School Board and each school shall keep an inventory record of all textbooks on hand at the beginning of the session, as well as records of those textbooks added, worn out, and in need of replacement. Textbook records should be kept on file for a minimum of three (3) years.
All lost or damaged books must be paid for by the student to which the books have been assigned. Money received by a principal for lost or damaged books must be recorded and deposited into the school account.
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:81, 24:515
Louisiana Accounting and Uniform Governmental Handbook, Bulletin 1929, Louisiana Department of Education
Monroe City School Board