February 28, 2021
For users of the Appropriation Maintenance Application (AMA) and Budget Planning and Analysis System (BPAS).
Monty Larson has joined MMB’s Budget Division as the new state budget coordinator. Monty brings a deep knowledge of the state’s Accounting and Procurement systems from his previous positions working in Minnesota Management and Budget’s Accounting Services Division. He was also a member of the joint SWIFT Support and Budget Operations project team that designed and developed the Appropriation Maintenance Application (AMA). As budget coordinator, Monty will work with agencies to provide direction on the state operating budget process.
We're updating AMA so agencies can recall transactions back to the Edit screen before they’re approved for upload into SWIFT.
Now, if an agency catches an error or omission after submitting or approving an entry, it must look up the transaction’s workflow status in AMA Search, then call or e-mail the approver role whose action is pending to deny the transaction, returning it to the Edit screen.
AMA's next release, due out in late April, features a new Recall screen. From this screen, transactions pending approval can be pulled out of workflow and sent back to the Edit screen one at a time by clicking on an icon next to the transaction number.
A pop-up will require a brief description of the reason for recalling the appropriation. Recalled transactions will display in red font with the status "Recalled," along with "Denied" transactions at the top of the agency’s Edit screen. From there, the agency can edit, validate and re-submit the appropriation entry for approval.
The Recall screen will list entries by transaction number, Approp ID, Approp Description and Budget Period. The list will also show which role's approval is pending—the agency approver, EBO or, for capital fund appropriations, the Capital Coordinator. Users can sort or filter the scrollable list by these five fields and click on any transaction number to open an Alternate View pop-up displaying all of the appropriation’s chart fields.
EBOs and Capital Coordinators will also be able to recall transactions they’ve approved up until the appropriation’s approval by SWIFT Module Support. Transactions recalled by these approver roles will likewise be returned to the submitting agency’s Edit screen.
The Recall feature also includes BPAS-Only entries, which aren't loaded to SWIFT, up until they’ve been approved by Budget Operations. The Entry Type field will distinguish SWIFT from BPAS-Only transactions in the Recall list.
MMB Budget Operations has a number of resources available to assist agencies with using AMA and BPAS.
- A library of training videos is available on MMB's website that provide instruction on all system functions and feature in-system demonstrations.
- The system User Guides and glossaries are excellent resources for new and experienced users. Linked in each system's help menu, the guides are also available on MMB's website
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One-on-one assistance with AMA or BPAS is available by appointment. Email budget.finance.mmb@state.mn.us to request a time.
Have a question about or a suggestion for improving the budget systems? Email it to Budget Operations at budget.finance.mmb@state.mn.us, Subject: Budget Systems Newsletter.
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