[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6584776,"mediaKeyId","5558896-e9c627c7d093f3e9f4eeb8711e64589d","parentId",5558896,"title","City purchasing staff outlines encumbrance rules and credit-card visibility; council presses for contract controls","audioSeconds",2388,"startMs",2098000,"endMs",4486000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5558896-e9c627c7d093f3e9f4eeb8711e64589d&start=2098&end=4486","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5558896-e9c627c7d093f3e9f4eeb8711e64589d/thumbnail_2098000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6584776/Edmond/Oklahoma-County/Oklahoma/City-purchasing-staff-outlines-encumbrance-rules-and-credit-card-visibility-council-presses-for-contract-controls","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6584776-56d1be36b1999f1ebfae1a43c978d0c0/orig.mp4?Expires=1770923473&Signature=eB3KJTSahXfTP8R18roMs-x4TmQNqX~NAdzAiqk-BorjprOa6sgT9zCpx50n9nMTOAAW14atnPqq2fRAORBAzb~CbgMHNfXBoyDOuRtvPhd5Rmw5Ugu8I1ax-vC8r4BAnybM7HqwWkiObhiLtZT5Ixz8h5VMqB2OPIwm7pJPl6K5HhZy4x1bc0gRNj~9k4u6ZijRuwHF58GnadoGB-HIsmC9pvypo-ifYUdG8M2zZ868VxatiVwGBgCoWYMAkF0t9LH6V2KH0cJeDNMbBcVAigoFuEI~oWGVkn4jEyIQk5ky8vs89NnXQwDYTwBcBj1Yl-tT3YIuO0yO51m4RwXKCQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Edmond","date","2025-08-11T00:00:00Z","article","Brenda, purchasing agent for the city, explained the encumbrance process and approval workflow used to reserve funds before orders are issued. \"An encumbrance is a commitment of funds set aside for future expenses ensuring that you have the proper budget allocation,\" Brenda said, summarizing the pre-encumbrance (purchase request) and full-encumbrance (purchase order) steps in the Finance Enterprise system.

Brenda described how departments enter purchase requests that pre-encumber funds and then route the requests to supervisors and purchasing for verification. \"When that approval process is in place ... once the department head approves it, then it passes on to the final approver, which would be me,\" she said, and only after final approval are funds fully encumbered.

Staff and council discussed how the city handles credit-card charges. Brenda said the city maintains a large blanket purchase order (BPO) that includes each department’s account numbers and several object codes to act as an encumbrance placeholder for credit-card cycles. She explained the practical tradeoffs from earlier manual approaches and why the city imports credit-card transactions as journal entries: the current import reduces manual AP work but can limit a department’s visibility into a running encumbrance if the BPO is configured only for a single cycle. \"It was easier to reduce a PO to free up some money than it is to go to council to ask for more money,\" she said, describing why staff sometimes over-encumber or maintain large placeholders.

Council members raised a specific concern about elevated credit-card processing costs tied to increased customer use of card payments for utility accounts and internal card-charge monitoring. Andy (staff) and other finance staff explained that customer-side processing fees post automatically and that increased use of card payments can push budgeted amounts past historical estimates before a manager notices.

The workshop also addressed an oversight in the procurement-to-agenda process: council members identified an item that appeared in an earlier Public Works Committee packet and on the city council agenda with a scope and price but without an executed contract. Council members pressed staff on why the item moved forward; staff acknowledged a process lapse and said a full contract with protections appears on that evening’s agenda to correct the omission. \"That was a mistake that was made,\" one staff member said; council asked staff to review and fix the process so that contracts are vetted before items are posted for committee or council approval.

Council and purchasing staff agreed to these next steps: revisit purchasing manual and policy updates (Madison Smith in staff is working on updates), consider policy language to standardize how departments encumber recurring or annual charges, and explore giving department managers clearer visibility of encumbrance draws so they can track credit-card spending in near real time.

Ending: Staff committed to revise purchasing procedures and to return updated purchasing policy and encumbrance practices for council approval; council asked staff to investigate the contract-approval lapse and to take steps so future agenda items include fully vetted contracts when required.

Votes at a glance: No purchasing or contracting actions were finalized in the workshop; adjournment motion carried at the end of the session.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Edmond - City Council Workshop - Budget Management & Year-End Closing Aug 11, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Purchasing staff explained encumbrance and requisition workflows in the city’s Finance Enterprise system, described single blanket POs for credit-card cycles and identified visibility gaps that contributed to large credit-card fees and a contract that reached council before a signed agreement was ready.","taxTitle","Edmond, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma","taxId",2681,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6584781,"Edmond council reviews budget creation, year-end closing and state deadlines",4842,250000,5092000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5558896-e9c627c7d093f3e9f4eeb8711e64589d&start=250&end=5092","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5558896-e9c627c7d093f3e9f4eeb8711e64589d/thumbnail_250000.jpg","/articles/6584781/Edmond/Oklahoma-County/Oklahoma/Edmond-council-reviews-budget-creation-year-end-closing-and-state-deadlines","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6584781-b16bfe2ab18ab769bd9ac8fa4d6bf04d/orig.mp4?Expires=1770923473&Signature=bt5-mZ4sntcqw9ZJskBPaRRZFAy27Dbp-vfi6MlWOdKDFj5BJqGydvdW6GGWP9KD~vDbw-5jSxaewONOjwZxF~0IjAVSq-lOhusJYf-79L5IdZNpxShjhTQrC5wMqVPe-YZYu-dm~ll0cKyJ5CfpwCcAN4e8WT01uV5ykspPH9eQBcYscwHTMDulOEBlg4-vJD6yVIsu8YpiaV2vgv2RK2OgSsfBIHrqwIwUGEQEBnML7llVJl05GhZpDyLJqltCLDC8U~6hguL2d1JTZmUfubdhCtr0lS-1zyLSiTGVSDnrnFcnHSmVaSjcPrJgMoWCUD-fbUo92YIn1BbbHmSUVg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Mayor (name not specified) opened a special Edmond City Council budget workshop by saying the city is \"not in trouble financially\" and that the meeting was meant to tighten budget management and year-end processes. Kathy Panas, a finance staff member, led a presentation describing the city’s timeline for creating and adopting its annual budget and the steps taken during the year to manage appropriations.

Panas summarized the calendar the council follows: a November strategic planning input, a December overhead allocation study, a January kickoff for council priorities and reserve targets, department budget entries in January–February, department review meetings in March, workshops through the spring and a final evaluation in May. \"Budget workshops occur throughout the budget cycle,\" Panas said, and staff compile a preliminary budget from department entries before producing a final version for public hearing and adoption.

The workshop emphasized legal timing and publication requirements. Panas said the city must hold a public budget hearing no later than 15 days before July 1, publish the budget at least five days before that hearing (typically in The Oklahoman), adopt the budget at least seven days before July 1, and transmit the adopted budget to the Oklahoma State Auditor within 30 days after July 1 (effectively by July 30). She also explained that the fiscal year ends June 30 and that \"invoices are currently accepted through September 30,\" a statutory practice that allows the city to honor claims for work performed before the fiscal-year end.

Council members and staff discussed how year-end timing and the statute about accepting post-June invoices affect closing the books. One council member noted a desire to close the year faster but staff said the September 30 window for prior-year claims limits how quickly the final numbers can be certified. Anne DeCarnas, assistant city manager of administration, and other staff said the city will continue monitoring budget-to-actual reports through the year and that departments can view their own financials in the city’s system.

Panas outlined the internal budget adjustment process: changes to appropriations are approved by city council and reported to the state, and the finance committee recently proposed clarified language to replace vague terms in a 1980 policy. She said the finance committee’s temporary recommendation will appear to council in about two weeks. Panas described budget amendments as transfers of appropriation or supplemental appropriations that increase revenues and expenditures; staff and the city attorney clarified that the legal term under state law is “budget amendment.”

The council directed staff to develop improved visibility and recurring checks on budget-versus-actuals; a council member said quarterly budget reports are being considered or reinstated so managers and council can see early whether a line or category is running over prior to year end.

Ending: The session closed with council and staff agreeing to form task- and finance-committee work on clearer budget amendment language, improved reporting cadence (quarterly reviews), and other process reforms aimed at ensuring compliance with state statutes and giving department managers better tools to monitor spending.

Votes at a glance: The only formal vote recorded in the workshop transcript was to adjourn; the motion carried.","Council and staff outlined the city’s annual budget cycle, statutory deadlines, and year-end practices including the 90-day invoice acceptance period that affects finalizing fiscal-year accounts.","actionData","errors"]

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City purchasing staff outlines encumbrance rules and credit-card visibility; council presses for contract controls

Edmond council reviews budget creation, year-end closing and state deadlines