FILE:  DIC

Cf:  DFM

INVENTORIES

Rapides Parish School Board owns land, buildings, furniture and equipment with an estimated Fair Market Value in excess of $300 million.  Because of the vast number and value of fixed assets in the school system, it is extremely important that each principal and department head assume an active role in maintaining the accuracy of the fixed assets system in order to demonstrate stewardship responsibility to the taxpayers.  Fixed assets shall be accounted for in the following manner:

DEFINITION OF FIXED ASSETS

General Fixed Assets are land, buildings, machinery, equipment and furniture that have a cost of $5,000 or more and have a useful life of more than one year.  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.  Fixed assets may be purchased by the School Board or they may be donated by individuals or organizations.  The central office maintains records of land and buildings.

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 nonexpendable; 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 rather 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 the Rapides Parish School Board's possessions, an annual physical inventory of general fixed assets is to be taken at the school building level.  Principals are the designated custodians of fixed assets at the school level and shall be ultimately responsible for the safeguarding and record maintenance of all fixed assets 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.

DISPOSAL OF FIXED ASSETS

Items declared surplus or unfit for further use by the Board should be stored at the school until an auction or other plan of disposition is approved by the Central Office.  Surplus and/or obsolete fixed assets can only be sold through public auction or public bid process.  They cannot be sold or given to School Board employees or anyone else.  Any act of sale shall be conducted in accordance with Board policy.  Surplus land and buildings will be sold by bids approved by the Board.  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:

1. Conduct a thorough search of the premises for the missing assets.
   
   

2. Review any sign-out/sign-in logs on equipment and interview the person to whom each item was assigned regarding the asset's whereabouts.
   
   

3. Complete the "Property Incident Report" and submit it to the Property Control Officer.  Retain a copy for school records.  These reports should be submitted within twenty-four hours after discovery of the theft.
   
   

4. The stolen items listed on the report will 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 RPSB Procedure To Tag School Equipment 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.

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 notify the Property Control Officer in writing.  The Property Control Officer shall then update the fixed asset master file to record the transfer.

USE OF RPSB ASSETS AT SITES OTHER THAN ASSIGNED LOCATION

Under no circumstances may Rapides Parish School Board assets be removed or taken home for personal use.  In the event that an employee needs to use an asset for school-related purposes at home or at a site other than the assigned work location of the asset, the employee shall obtain written permission from the principal or department head.  When completed and approved, a copy of the form, "Off-Site Usage of Fixed Assets," shall be submitted to the appropriate assistant superintendent.  The original must be maintained on file at the school.  This regulation applies to all Rapides Parish School Board employees.

GUIDELINES FOR ADDITIONS TO FIXED ASSETS

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.

TEXTBOOK INVENTORIES

The School Board and each school shall keep an inventory record of textbooks on hand at the beginning of the session, as well as records of those textbooks added and deleted.  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 the school for lost or damaged books must be recorded and deposited into the school account:  subaccount, “Textbooks.”

Revised:  June, 2008

Ref:    La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:81, 24:515

Louisiana Accounting and Uniform Governmental Handbook, Bulletin 1929, Louisiana Department of Education

Board minutes, 2-3-98, 12-12-00, 4-16-02, 12-2-08

Rapides Parish School Board