November/December 2023

October and November GEARS run results

GEARS has correctly processed the expenses and adjustments reported September 16 through October 15, 2023, and October 16 through November 15 of 2023. The resulting payments were reviewed, determined to be accurate, and issued November 1 and December 1, respectively. Reports were reviewed, determined to be accurate and complete, and were posted on-line with an Expense Processing Job (EPJ) dates of 2023-10-20 and 2023-11-22.

Updates on GEARS Reports - Special, Off-Cycle Run

When looking on-line for your GEARS-603 or -620 report please be sure to select the correct Expense Processing Date. The regularly scheduled monthly GEARS Expense Processing dates are found at GEARS Processing and Payment Schedule | Wisconsin Department of Health Services and fall between the 20^th and 25^th of a month.

From time to time, it is necessary for us to process special, off-cycle GEARS runs.  Agencies included in an off-cycle run are notified prior to the run.  As with the regularly scheduled GEARS runs, the dates of off-cycle runs are listed when selecting reports. Only agencies which had transactions processed during an off-cycle run will see updated GEARS-603 and -620 reports when selecting the off-cycle run date. 

A new email just for GEARS-related questions 

Retiring CARS brings with it a bit of housekeeping. Over the next few months, you will see us updating the GEARS website.

One of the first changes we need to make is to update mailbox names. When you have questions on your GEARS expenditure report, your GEARS payment or other GEARS related questions, please email them to: DHSDESBFSGEARS@dhs.wisconsin.gov

Please note - GEARS expenditure reports should continue to be sent to the 600RCARS mailbox: DHS600RCARS@dhs.wisconsin.gov

We've got you covered with email forwarding

Accidentally send a GEARS question to the DHS DES BFS CARS mailbox? No worries! Emails sent to the DHS DES BFS CARS mailbox will be automatically forwarded to the DHS DES BFS GEARS mailbox.

We have an updated GEARS Expenditure Reporting form!

We have updated the GEARS Expenditure Reporting Form to:

• Clarify that the Report Month is the month in which the costs reported were incurred. When reporting more than one month’s expenses, agencies must submit a SEPARATE report for each month for which costs are REPORTED. Report period must fall within the contract period. This is important to assure that we comply with federal reporting and reimbursement requirements.
• Limit cost reporting to full dollars only. We understand that the costs on agency records are in dollars and cents. If the cents would be 49 cents or less, round down. When the cents are 50 cents or more, round up. The updated GEARS Expenditure Reporting form now prevents entering cents.

Get it online on our GEARS website

The updated GEARS Expenditure Report is available on our website: Grant Enrollment, Application and Reporting System (GEARS) | Wisconsin Department of Health Services.

GEARS Expenditure Report reminders The GEARS Team processes 400 – 600 expenditure reports each month. Since most reports are received around the monthly due date, this means a lot of keying in a very short period of time. Your attention to detail when filling out the reports helps make sure your resulting payment is correct and paid timely. All the tips for successful reporting To help with the monthly GEARS reporting, we have enhanced the CARS/GEARS Expenditure Reporting page. By making sure all needed expenditure information is provided and accurate, you help us issue accurate and timely payments. Our goal is 100% accurate GEARS payments, on time, every month. Help us make that happen by using this page as your guide to fill out reports.

Making a list, checking it twice ... When submitting reports - here's what you can do to make it as efficient as possible When submitting GEARS Expenditure Reports, formatting the subject line properly is critical. Equally critical is verifying agreement between the information on the subject line and within the report submitted. The proper formats are shown below and are listed in the CARS/GEARS: Manual | Wisconsin Department of Health Services. For Original Expenditure Reports, format the subject line as— Agency #-Agency Type-Contract Year-Month Costs Incurred-Agency name. For Additional/Adjustment Expenditure Reports, format the subject line as— Agency #-Agency Type-Contract Year-ADDITIONAL-Month Costs Incurred-Agency Name. For Final Expenditure Reports format the subject line as— Agency #-Agency Type-Contract Year-FINAL-Final Month of Contract Period-Agency name. When formatting the subject line, spelling out the month in which costs were incurred and providing the 4-digit year helps us find your report quickly when questions arise. For example, if you are reporting costs incurred during November 2023 list the Month Costs Incurred as “Nov 2023” or “November 2023”, rather than 11/2023.

Thank you!

We couldn't have made the shift to GEARS without you

Our team here at DHS truly appreciates your patience and excellent questions during the whole transition. With your help, we will continue to improve your experience to the best of our abilities. 

Remember to visit the GEARS homepage for everything GEARS. Consider bookmarking it as a favorite, too. 

Please do not reply directly to this email message.  Please direct questions to DHS DES BFS CARS.