School Finance: Charter Schools

Memorandum

In accordance with M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, each Massachusetts Charter School shall have its independent audit filed annually on or before January first following the fiscal year end. As described in the revised Massachusetts Charter School Audit Guide. June 2005 (http://finance1.doe.mass.edu/charter/charter_audit.html), as part of the new submission requirements taking effect as of FY2006, charter schools are required to electronically file the FY2007 Charter School End of Year Financial Report (CSEOYFR). An individualized spreadsheet template is available for download in the Charter School File Exchange Drop Box Outbox in the DOE Security Portal. Complete audit and CSEOYFR submission requirements for FY2007, due by January 1, 2008, unless otherwise noted are outlined below:

Electronic submission to the Department of Education, via the Charter School File Exchange Drop Box in the DOE Security Portal (Instructions :  )

• One (1) electronic copy of the completed audit report (including management letter, if applicable) in PDF format.

• One (1) electronic copy of the FY07 Charter School Year End Financial Report

Hard Copy submission to the Department of Education, mailed to:

Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education - Charter School Office
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-4906

Attention: Coordinator of Research & Finance

• One (1) bound copy of the complete audit package, including management letter and signed Board Acceptance Letter.

• One (1) signed 07CSEOYFR Certification Statement.

  Note: This year, there will be 2-month correction period from January 1 through February 29, 2008. The Department will do an initial data entry check on each file after submission and communicate any potential data entry errors that the school should address. The signed Certification Statement should be mailed after corrections are made but no later than March 3, 2008.

Electronic submission to the Office of the State Auditor, emailed to Anthony.Rufo@SAO.state.ma.us:

• One (1) electronic copy of the completed audit report (including management letter, if applicable) in PDF format.

As a reminder, single audits, if applicable, performed in accordance with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-133 must also be filed with the Federal Audit Clearinghouse. Please refer to OMB Circular A-133 for the federal filing requirements.

If you anticipate or experience problems with timely, accurate completion of your CSEOYFR, please contact Cliff Chuang of the Charter School Office at 781-338-3228 or cchuang@doe.mass.edu. Thank you for your cooperation and assistance in providing this very important financial data.