Post Issuance Bond Compliance- Phase I and II

Treasury Services led a cross-functional team from PFD, Grants, General Accounting and the Investment Office in two projects related to post-issuance bond compliance. In phase 1, the team developed a database of relevant information for post-issuance bond compliance while in phase 2 they developed an efficient process for understanding and documenting the activities that are taking place in every bond-financed building on campus and at regional sites. The end result of phase 1 was the purchase of software to store project financing data that replaced the current state of tracking bonds issued to Miami manually on an Excel spreadsheet.

In phase 2, the team developed a building survey to be completed annually during building walk-throughs. Once activities are uncovered and documented, calculations can be performed using the third-party software in order to create reports acceptable to IRS standards. The dataset will store the information for the life of the bond (up to 25 years) and ensure that any changes in use are recognized providing compliance with IRS guidelines.

Stale Checks Process

Stale checks occur when a check has not been deposited within 180 days of issuance. The stale check process in Accounts Payable recently received a much needed review especially given the fact that stale check reporting is required by the State of Ohio with penalties for delayed or incorrect reporting. This one process has an effect on several departments including Accounts Payable, General Accounting, Treasury Services and the General Counsel’s office.

Team leader, Christy Whalen, and members Irena Chushak and Joyce Looby along with resource members Ben Taylor and Vickie Rude reviewed the current state of the process and evaluated each step for necessity, cost, and potential time savings. The team identified patterns of stale checks and researched ways to prevent this from occurring. Upon a review of the applicable guidelines, several changes were able to be made to the process. Checks held for pickup will be mailed if not picked up within 7 days, stale check notices now contain direct deposit forms to encourage a faster and more efficient payment method, and the lengthy notification process with 3 attempts and 30 days between each notice was modified to comply with the Ohio Department of Commerce standards.

Certification News

The Lean Certification Application project was tasked with finding a replacement for the HireTouch application that had been utilized by the program since 2015. This application process treated the Lean Certification program as a position which led applicants to attach resumes and cover letters unnecessarily. Since applicants were admitted into a program, not into a position, the system was only being used for tracking applications.

Team members Monica Baxter, Emma Lester, and Scott Rouse worked with team leader Andrea Crane-Coyle to review the information needed on the Lean Certification Application. The team was on a strict deadline because the HireTouch application process would not be available after May 31, 2019

The team began by a review of the current process and a list of requirements for the replacement. After considering other options that would be a feasible replacement for HireTouch, the team chose to create the application in Form Stack which would comply with web site accessibility and give the Lean Initiatives Office the information necessary to fully vet the applicants. The team was also able to combine the volunteer form with the application, which created one less separate form for participants in the program to complete and one less form to track and maintain by the Lean Initiatives Office.

The new process became effective June 1, 2019.