FAQs

Contents

FAQs
1. When do I perform the Energy Assistance tasks?
1. When you approve assistance, do you need to uncheck it when assistance is received?
1. When I receive and apply assistance payments, what happens to the general ledger?
1. Can I add an override GL account for assistance?
1. What do I use to print utility bills for assistance?
1. Will it show a credit balance if there is a credit balance on the Enter Assistance screen?
1. Why didn't my water service balance show?
1. If I enter an assistance payment, do I still need to enter the payment in Cash Receipting?
1. How is the assistance payment recorded in General Ledger?
1. How is the assistance applied transaction recorded in General Ledger?
1. What is the GL transaction code for assistance?
1. When I enter an assistance payment in Cash Receipting, would I use an interfaced category?
1. Which Cash Receipting category do I use to record assistance payments?
1. If you're applying assistance to more than one service, how will the application do this?
1. How does assistance affect the delinquent process and shutoffs?
1. What if there's a delay between the time I receive a pledge for assistance and when I receive the actual assistance payment?
1. How do I set up a pledged customer as an assistance customer?

When do I perform the Energy Assistance tasks?

When you receive assistance payments, enter the assistance payments in Cash Receipting using a non-interfaced category and then enter the assistance payments in Utility Management using Energy Assistance > Enter Assistance.

After you calculate billings and before you print utility bills, perform these tasks:

Run the Apply Assistance routine. When you enter the assistance payment, the customer may not have a service balance to apply the assistance payment because the service balance calculates at the end of the month.
Balance assistance payment and assistance applied transactions. Complete this task before you run Checkout.

When you approve assistance, do you need to uncheck it when assistance is received?

No, when the customer's assistance balance is zero, you can set up the system to uncheck the Approve Assistance checkbox in the customer's file (Modify Existing Customers).

You have several options for completing this task:

Change the Options (F12) in Enter Assistance to select the checkbox titled Prompt to Update Approve Assistance Status When Refunding Assistance Balance. If you refund assistance, you'll be asked if you also want to deselect the Approve Assistance checkbox in the customer's file.
Select the checkbox titled Remove Assistance Approved Designation When Assistance Balance is Applied. This checkbox will deselect the Approve Assistance checkbox in the customer's file.
Uncheck the Approve Assistance checkbox manually. You can also use Modify Existing Customer to deselect the Approve Assistance checkbox.

When I receive and apply assistance payments, what happens to the general ledger?

There's an Assistance field on the GL Accounts tab in the Services table (Organization > Services). When you receive and apply assistance payments, the assistance payments will be assigned to the Assistance GL account. That way you can track transactions that receive and apply assistance payments,

Can I add an override GL account for assistance?

Yes, use the General Ledger Account Override tab in the Rates table (Organization > Rates) to add an override GL account for assistance.

What do I use to print utility bills for assistance?

When you select the utility bill form definition, choose the form definition for Utility Bill - Energy Assistance. This form definition includes a field for Energy Assistance Applied and the amount for Current Period Assistance Applied. These variables are also available: Assistance Approved, Assistance Balance, Assistance Message, Assistance Refunded, and Assistance Title.

Will it show a credit balance if there is a credit balance on the Enter Assistance screen?

If there is a credit balance on the actual service, the Enter Assistance screen will show a credit balance on assistance services. It should be noted, that entering an assistance payment will not immediately decrease a customer's service balance. The section titled Assistance Service in the Enter Assistance screen is for information only.

Why didn't my water service balance show?

Only the services that are set up with the Apply Assistance checkbox selected will be included in the list of assistance services. See the help topic titled How do I set up a service that allows energy assistance?

If I enter an assistance payment, do I still need to enter the payment in Cash Receipting?

Yes, you still need to enter the assistance payment in Cash Receipting. Recording the assistance payment in Cash Receipting will update the assistance payment to the General Ledger.

If you do not use Cash Receipting, you would follow the same process that you use to record utility payments in the general ledger.

How is the assistance payment recorded in General Ledger?

The assistance payment is recorded in the liability account that is saved on the assistance service (Utility Management > Organization > Services). When you record an assistance payment in Cash Receipting, the transaction will debit the AR Cash (because you receive cash) and a credit to Liability. If you need assistance, please contact support at (8001) 228-9851.

How is the assistance applied transaction recorded in General Ledger?

When you apply assistance, the transaction will debit the Liability account and credit the AR Cash account.

What is the GL transaction code for assistance?

ASTAPP for assistance applied transactions.

When I enter an assistance payment in Cash Receipting, would I use an interfaced category?

No, you would not use an interfaced category. In Cash Receipting, you would use a non-interfaced category to add the assistance payment. Because you're using a non-interfaced category to enter an assistance payment, nothing will happen when you update payments to Cash Receipting from Utility Management. The assistance payment recorded using Enter Assistance (Utility Management > Energy Assistance) would not be included.

Which Cash Receipting category do I use to record assistance payments?

Any non-interfaced category.

If you're applying assistance to more than one service, how will the application do this?

It depends on the payment allocation method that is selected in the Organization table (Utility Management > Organization > Organization). Energy Assistance will use the payment allocation method to split assistance payments to multiple assistance services.

How does assistance affect the delinquent process and shutoffs?

You can choose to include or exclude assistance customers from delinquent and shutoff notices. Open the Delinquent List/Notices or Shutoff List/Notices and navigate to the Payment Options tab. You're looking for the checkbox titled Include Assistance Customers.

Include Assistance Customers

Select the Include Assistance Customers checkbox to include assistance customers in the delinquent/shutoff process. Or deselect the checkbox to exclude assistance customers from the delinquent/shutoff process so the assistance customers are not subject to the delinquent/shutoff process.

Remember! When you set up this option that energy assistance is only applied to electric or water. If the customer has a yard light or garbage service, for example, that is delinquent, you probably still want the option of sending a delinquent/shutoff notice to that customer.

Check Assistance Service Balance checkbox

Usually, this checkbox is not selected.

Select the Check Assistance Service Balances checkbox, if an assistance customer has a balance on an assistance service, then the assistance customer will be included on the delinquent/shutoff list.

For example, an assistance customer has a zero balance on all of his services except for the electric service. In this scenario, do you want to shut off the assistance customer or include the assistance customer on the delinquent list? Maybe not. If he is an assistance customer and the Approve Assistance checkbox is still selected, then there might be an unapplied assistance payment or the assistance payment is late.

What if there's a delay between the time I receive a pledge for assistance and when I receive the actual assistance payment?

In this case, a pledge refers to a government organization's promise to pay assistance for a customer. If you do not want the customers who have a pledge to be subject to delinquent/shutoff process, then you would set up the Payment Options tab in Delinquent/Shutoff List/Notices. Make sure the Include Assistance Customers is selected and the Check Assistance Service Balances checkbox is NOT selected. That way, even though you've set up the pledged customers as assistance customers, the delinquent/shutoff process will ignore the assistance balance on the pledged customer accounts.

How do I set up a pledged customer as an assistance customer?

Since you may not receive an assistance payment for several weeks, you need to manually select the Approve Assistance checkbox (Modify Existing Customers > Assistance tab). Normally, the Approve Assistance checkbox is automatically selected when you enter an assistance payment, but in this case the assistance payment is delayed and you do not want the customer who is waiting for an assistance payment to be subject to the shutoff/delinquent process. As long as the pledged customer does not have a delinquent balance on a regular service, in other words, a service that does not receive assistance, then the pledged customer will not receive a delinquent/shutoff notice.