This document outlines the procedures to be used by State University of New York (University) campuses for New York State bank accounts. These procedures cover designation of bank depositories, monthly reports of bank balances and reconciliation, sole custody reporting and banking services account procedures.

1. Designation of Bank Depositories
   1. General
      
      A bank account may need to be opened and maintained by a campus for revenue collections, cash advances, or other authorized agency sole custody purposes. The following procedures are to be followed by all State-Operated campuses of the University for the purpose of establishing, maintaining and closing these bank accounts.
   
   
   2. Requests to establish bank accounts
      1. Campuses must request to establish a bank account. These requests must be in writing and processed through the University Controller's Office for review and approval for submission to the OSC Bureau of State Accounting Operations Cash Management Unit (BSAO CMU). The request letter must include the following:
         • Name and purpose of the account;
         • Statutory reference where applicable;
         • Justification for establishing the new account;
         • Estimated initial balance;
         • Estimated maximum balance anticipated on both a short-term and long-term basis;
         • A description of the flow of the cash, e.g., "the cash will be held by the agency until disbursed" or “the cash will be transferred to the New York State Treasury”;
         • Address of office making deposits and withdrawals;
         • Name and title of the official(s) responsible for the account;
         • Name and location of the commercial bank where the agency wishes to open the account
         • Services anticipated to be provided by the bank.
         • Affirmation that the account custodian understands the need for and has implemented internal controls necessary to protect state assets - including monthly reporting and bank to book reconciliations.

         All correspondence concerning agency bank accounts should be sent to:

         Office of the State Comptroller
         Bureau of State Accounting Operations
         Cash Management Unit
         110 State Street - 9th Floor
         Albany, New York 12236

      2. Unless specifically approved by OSC, a campus shall not request a bank to provide any service in conjunction with a state bank account, except the following:
         • Standard bank checks - pre-numbered and imprinted with appropriate identification;
         • Deposit slips; or
         • Electronic access to monthly statements; and
      3. All requests for banking services, other than those outlined above, must be justified by a campus or System Administration. Such justification must include the potential financial advantage of such services to the state as compared with the cost of such services. This requirement includes services for new accounts and changes to services for existing accounts.
         1. If an account requires special services, OSC requires a depository bank be selected by competitive bidding for such services where feasible. If OSC determines that a depository bank should be selected by competitive bidding (Outlined in Chapter XI, Section 11.C- Banking Services Contracts), the University is required to prepare in cooperation with OSC a request for proposal (RFP) detailing the services to be provided by a bank. Bank proposals will be evaluated on the basis of the total cost to the state of the requested services and the ability of the bank to perform such services. OSC shall select those candidate banks which will be eligible to participate in the bidding process.
         
         
         2. Where an account will not require special banking services, OSC will advise the University Controller’s Office and Campus of its findings.
         
         
         3. When a banking services request is approved, BSAO CMU will designate a depository for the account and establish, pursuant to §106 of the NYS Finance Law, the initial level of collateral to secure monies deposited into the account. In turn, the University Controller’s Office will advise the campus. Once the account is opened, the campus must notify the OSC BSAO CMU of the new account number.
   3. Miscellaneous Account Details
      1. Bank Compensation- OSC is responsible for determining the amount of compensation a bank should receive for services related to state accounts. State agencies may not enter into any agreement with any bank for the payment of compensation for bank services unless such payment is required by law or is expressly approved by OSC.
      
      
      2. Savings Accounts-No state agency should establish an interest bearing bank account without the express approval of OSC. The purpose of this restriction is to ensure that all state money that is available for investment is invested in a comprehensive manner with proper collateralization.
      
      
      3. Unofficial State Accounts- It is never permissible for any state agency employee to open and maintain a bank account for unofficial business (e.g., coffee funds, goodwill funds, party funds, etc.). No such account should ever include a State Federal ID number, nor the names of either the State of New York or a state agency in the title of the account.
      
      
      4. Cash Advance Checking Accounts-Campuses must use one consolidated checking account to account for cash advances. Agencies using more than one checking account for this purpose should close all existing cash advance checking accounts and establish one cash advance checking account entitled "AGENCY ADVANCE ACCOUNT". Agencies that have facilities at multiple locations may, with the approval of OSC, have more than one advance account.
      
      
      5. Closing Bank Accounts -Any bank accounts which are no longer needed by a state agency should be closed. The BSAO CMU must be notified within 10 days of such action.
      
      
      6. Banking Support Services -The BSAO CMU will assist state agencies with banking-related problems. Such assistance includes providing current information about the various types of services which banks provide.
      
      
      7. Collateral Requirements- OSC is responsible for the maintenance of collateral held in escrow with the state's fiscal agent to secure all New York State deposits. OSC relies on the state official responsible for their agency accounts to notify BSAO CMU when new approved accounts are opened, if unusually high balances are in existing accounts or accounts are closed. The individual agency officials share the responsibility for ensuring the funds in their custody remain fully secured.
2. Reporting Bank Balances
   1. General:

      The University Controller's Office has instituted a wire transmittal process whereby monies in local bank depositories are transferred daily to the New York State Treasury. These monies are drawn from the major fee account at each campus (at the medical centers monies are drawn from the special hospital deposit account). The University Controller's Office coordinates the reporting of balances in these accounts in accordance with NYS Finance Law §107.

   2. Reporting of Bank Balances

      The reporting of balances in other state accounts maintained at local bank depositories must be made by the individual campuses monthly. On or before the fifth of each month, each campus is to send a report (Monthly Statement of Balances in State Depositories) of these account balances to the University Controller's Office. The report should be e-mailed to the appropriate staff member. For the name of the current staff member receiving these reports please contact the University Controller's Office at (518) 320-1439.

      Contents of the report must include

      • Name of campus;
      • Date of report;
      • Name of preparer;
      • Telephone number of preparer;
      • Name of the bank(s) of official depository;
      • Account title/name;
      • Last 4 digits of account number; and
      • Bank balance amount(s) Reconciled Balance
   3. Monthly Bank Reconciliations

      State agencies must perform monthly bank reconciliations. The difference between the cash book and bank statement balances of an account may be due to:

      • Checks issued but not yet cleared by the bank (outstanding checks);
      • Deposits recorded but not yet sent to the bank (deposits in transit);
      • Unrecorded bank charges and credits; or
      • Recording errors.

      Campuses must reconcile the bank and book balances of all accounts to determine the reasons for any differences and to correct any errors in the accounts. An employee not involved in recording receipts and disbursements must perform the reconciliation within 5-7 days of each month-end to safeguard assets, check the accuracy and reliability of campus-maintained accounting data, and permit the timely reporting of account balances to the Commissioner of Taxation and Finance for publication in the New York State Register (discussed above). Documentation of the reconciliation must be retained for audit purposes. Any format which clearly shows the balances being reconciled and the details of all reconciling items is acceptable. Bank statements often contain an outline for performing the reconciliation.

      For additional information regarding Reconciliation Procedures and Post-Reconciliation please refer to the Office of the State Comptroller’s Guide to Financial Operations Chapter XIV Special Procedures.4. Agency Bank Accounts C. Bank Account Reporting and Reconciliations

   4. Outstanding checks

      Outstanding Checks must be written-off after one year of the date of issuance.  For additional information regarding Outstanding Checks refer to the Office of the State Comptroller’s Guide to Financial Operations Chapter XV End of Year, Section 10, Uncashed Checks and SUNY’s procedure for Outstanding Checks Outreach and Escheatment is #7401

3. Sole Custody Bank Account Annual Reporting

   The state's accounting and financial reporting system under the control of OSC provides for the collection, summarization and reporting of unique financial data and information maintained at state agencies. Financial data and related information is required to ensure full and proper disclosure in the financial statements prepared in accordance with generally-accepted accounting principles (GAAP).

   In April of each year, a secure website for reporting agency sole custody account information is activated for the purpose of gathering financial data for any bank account under the administrative control of any State officer or board. The website is used by agencies to report reconciled bank account information needed for the State's annual financial statements, using information derived from monthly bank reconciliations.

   For additional information regarding Sole Custody Reporting please refer to the Office of the State Comptroller's Guide to Financial Operations Chapter XV End of Year 16. Sole Custody Reporting and Agency Financial Reporting Package B. Sole Custody Reporting

4. Banking Services Accounting Procedures

   New York State provides an internal service fund appropriation to cover the cost of banking services incurred by the University. The billing type is determined during the contract negotiations between the vendor and the specific campus. Three payment methods are available to the banking services vendor. The payment methods are:

   • Fee based;
   • Compensating balance; and
   • Payment to vendors without a current contract.

   However, the common practice at this time is fee based, which are processed through standard vouchers, from associated SUNY contracts. For further information regarding standard voucher processing see the job aid (link to voucher job aid).

Form A - Monthly Statement of Balances in State Depositories

There are no related procedures relevant to this procedure.

OSC Bureau of State Accounting Operations Cash Management Unit (BSAO CMU)

Guide to Financial Operations sections XIV.4.A, B, and C

Thefollowing links to FindLaw's New York State Laws are provided for users' convenience; it is not the official site for the State of New York laws.

NYS Finance Law §98-a (Investment of general funds).

NYS Finance Law §105 (Deposits in banks).

NYS Finance Law §106 (Deposit of monies by state officers).

NYS Finance Law §107 (Monthly statement of balances).

In case of questions, readers are advised to refer to the New York State Legislature site for the menu of New York State Consolidated.

Volume XI, §4.0110, 4.0210, and 4.0220 of the Office of State Comptroller New York State Accounting System User Procedures Manual

Amended April 25, 2023 to make various technical updates.

Prior to November 17, 1999, the costs of banking services were paid for by compensating balance arrangements that the Office of the State Comptroller had with the various banking institutions utilized by University campuses.  Beginning with the 1999-2000 state fiscal year, an appropriation, made to an Internal Service Fund of New York State, is used to pay the monthly banking service costs. Therefore, as in the past, these costs are not borne by the University. 

Designation of Bank Depositories
Amended - August 11, 1980

• Sets forth the procedures to be observed in establishing, maintaining and closing bank accounts.

Monthly Reports of Bank Balances
Amended - August 11, 1980

• Revised to reflect the amended Article 7, §107 of the New York State Finance Law and adds the format to be observed in monthly reporting of bank balances.

Amended - February 28, 1977

• Due to the new procedure whereby the state Comptroller’s office is drawing funds from each campuses major fee account, provides for central office to report the balances in the major account.  However, each campus is to report to central office the balances in the other accounts maintained in local depositories. 

Amended - March 17, 1969

• Provides that all bank balances are to be reported monthly.  It also provides that the amounts to be reported are the balances which appear on the books of account regardless whether they have cleared the bank and that campuses are to send the reports on or before the 5th calendar day of each month. 

Amended - January 27, 1959

• Puts into procedure form the requirements for the Monthly Report of Bank Balances. 

Amended - August 11, 1980

• Provides the procedure to be used to ensure that depository banks have sufficient collateral on deposit with the state Comptroller.

There are no appendices relevant to this procedure.