Title 9 Part 1640

This Subchapter is provided for the use of public housing agencies in the development and operation of New York State-aided projects, and has for its prime objectives the establishment of a uniform system of keeping the books of account, the furnishing of uniform financial reports and associated statements as required by the Public Housing Law and in the loan and subsidy contract, the furnishing of evidence of compliance with the provisions of the Public Housing Law of the State of New York, and the providing of a means for the effective control of development and operating funds of State-aided projects.

Basic instructions for setting up and operating the books of account and certain procedures, such as tenant accounting and payrolls, applicable to several or all phases of a local agency's activities are contained in Part 1642. Financing is similarly treated in Part 1643, debt service in Part 1644, and investments in Part 1645. Instructions and procedures more uniquely identified with the development period will be found in Part 1646 and those for use during the operating period in Part 1647. Subsidies are treated in Part 1648. The chart of accounts is set forth in Part 1641, followed by the account definitions. Terms referred to throughout this Subchapter are defined in this Part, which also contains matters for the general information and guidance of local agencies.

The double-entry system of bookkeeping is prescribed, the accounts being kept on an accrual basis. This Subchapter is written for a manually operated system and the specimen forms are designed for such a system. However, the performance of certain operations by bookkeeping and accounting machines may be found advisable on account of the volume of work or for other reasons. In such cases, it will be necessary to modify the prescribed instructions and forms. The books of account, as prescribed, are those customarily maintained in accounting practice. In order to properly maintain the records, the person designated by the local agency to keep its books should be thoroughly familiar with general accounting practice and should be capable of performing the accounting prescribed. For the most part, the instructions and procedures incorporate the methods and practices followed by most local agencies at the present time. Changes from the existing accounting manual for public housing agencies, issued in 1949, have been made in the interests of clarification and simplification, to reflect changing conditions, amendments to the Public Housing Law, and to reduce the accounting burden on those local agencies operating under Federal, State and municipal aided programs.

Mandatory procedures are indicated by the word shall. Efforts have been made to limit mandatory procedures to those necessary to insure adequate control, or for the proper and uniform maintenance of accounts, or for the preparation of reports and financial data on a uniformly consistent and comparable basis, or to assure evidence of compliance with statutory requirements and the regulations of the Division of Housing. With respect to non-mandatory procedures, local agencies may adopt alternate methods to those recommended or described in this Subchapter provided the information requested or required is furnished in essentially the same form. However, the cost of performing any specific operation under a method other than that proposed in this Subchapter shall not exceed the cost of operation under the recommended plan.

The accounting procedures set forth in this Subchapter are designed to be as flexible as possible to fit a State-wide program participated in by local agencies, some of which represent extremes in size and organization. Under the circumstances, modifications of or supplements to this Subchapter will be inevitable and will follow from time to time. Until such modification or supplements are issued, however, it is requested that no deviation be made from the mandatory procedures prescribed without the prior written approval of the Division of Housing. With respect to non-mandatory procedures, modifications may be made by the local agency as described in section 1640-1.4, above. Refinements in this Subchapter can come only in the light of the experience gained in the application to the operations of the various local agencies. Comments and suggestions intended to clarify and simplify the material and procedures are solicited from the local agencies and others who have occasion to use or refer to this Subchapter in their work.

The Division of Housing is at all times desirous of extending any necessary assistance, and, if requested by the local agency, an auditor will be made available to assist in the opening of the books of account and to render such advice or assistance thereafter as may be required. It is the responsibility of the local agency, however, to engage personnel sufficiently well-trained in general accounting practice to operate a double-entry set of books. The division's assistance does not contemplate the keeping of the accounts for the local agency or instruction in elementary bookkeeping. Questions regarding the interpretation and application of the Subchapter provisions may be addressed at any time to the Division of Housing, Bureau of Finance, at 270 Broadway, New York 7, New York.

The terms used throughout this Subchapter are defined in this Part. The Part also contains matters of general information for the guidance of local agencies in connection with procedures, the fiscal year, bonding, reporting, budgeting, tax exemptions, regulations governing traveling expenses, ineligible expenditures, etc.

Procedures to be employed by local agencies in connection with the application for State aid, acquisition of property, design and construction of the project, letting of contracts, financing, insurance, operation of the project, etc., are set forth in the Division of Housing manuals of procedure or bulletins^*, as amended from time to time, which should be consulted for guidance.

Section 75 of the Public Housing Law prohibits the mingling or commingling of State moneys (i.e. loans or subsidies) allocated to a local agency with financial aid or assistance from the Federal government or any agency thereof except, with the approval of the commissioner, in connection with the execution of contracts between a local agency and the Federal government for the carrying out of a Federal program of urban renewal and/or redevelopment.

The statutory requirement for the segregation of State moneys from Federal financial aid or assistance has been extended, by regulation of the commissioner and the terms of the various contracts for State aid, to require the segregation, both by project and by purpose, of all funds received or held by local agencies in connection with State-aided projects. The segregation, by project and by purpose, reflects the fact that funds advanced or to be advanced by the State, in the form of loans or subsidies, are earmarked for specific purposes and may not be used for other purposes. Such use would represent a mingling of funds, actual or constructive. This means, for example, that funds for the development or operation of a State-aided project must be set aside from all other funds and may not be used to pay development costs or operating expenses of another project. Similarly, with respect to a given State-aided project, funds representing revenues (rents and subsidies) of the project during the operating period must be segregated from funds received for the development of the project and may not be used to pay development costs, etc. The commissioner may, however, waive these requirements, and permit the mingling of funds (other than Federal funds) under certain circumstances. No mingling of funds, under any circumstances, shall, however, take place without the prior approval and authorization of the commissioner.

All expenditures made by a local agency are subject to audit and review by the division before being admitted as charges to project revenue or to funds (in the form of loans or subsidies) advanced or to be advanced by the State. Expenditures not admitted are termed ineligible expenditures. Before incurring expenditures, local agencies should predetermine, as far as possible, their eligibility as development costs or operation expenses, in order to avoid the necessity of making adjustments at a later date.

Ordinarily, such adjustments for ineligible expenditures as are found necessary will result from a periodic audit of the local agency by the division's field auditors. The latter will cause to be transferred to account 1620, Ineligible Expenditures, items deemed to be ineligible, to be held in suspense pending review by the home office of the division. Upon such review, the local agency will be advised, by letter from the division, which expenditures are definitively declared ineligible. The local agency shall thereupon reimburse the appropriate funds, not later than the last day of the month in which the letter of ineligibility from the division is dated, for the expenditures declared ineligible therein. The division may, however, at any time declare an expenditure ineligible and direct that the appropriate funds be reimbursed. In this connection, local agencies are cautioned that the funds used to make the reimbursement must, of course, be other than the project revenue or funds advanced or to be advanced by the State. Financing and other problems raised by the declaration of expenditures as ineligible can be largely avoided, as previously indicated, by the local agency acting to predetermine the eligibility of expenditures, as far as possible.

The term indeterminate expenditure refers to those expenditures made by a local agency with respect to a planned or proposed project prior to the date of the duly executed and approved contract for State aid for that project. This date has previously been defined as marking the beginning of the development period. Funds advanced or to be advanced by the State may not be used to meet indeterminate expenditures, and the local agency must look to other sources for its funds. Such other sources may, however, upon execution and approval of the contract for State aid and after audit, review, and approval of the expenditures by the division, be reimbursed, out of loan funds advanced or to be advanced by the State, for such expenditures as are approved by the division as being eligible charges to the development cost of the project.

The standards applied to the determination of the eligibility, as development costs, of indeterminate expenditures are much narrower than those applied to expenditures made subsequent to the date of the contract for State aid. Such expenditures are not only limited to certain classes, but the maximum amount which may be charged to development cost, whether or not the expenditures are otherwise eligible, may also be limited. Generally speaking, within the maximum limitation set by the division, only indeterminate expenditures directly connected with the preparation and submission of the application for financial assistance, or with a housing survey to establish the need for and scope of a project will be admitted as development costs eligible to be reimbursed out of loan funds advanced or to be advanced by the State. Generally speaking, salaries of an executive director or staff, office rent, and most other expenses or costs incurred by a local agency prior to the beginning of the development period will not be admitted. Local agencies are therefore advised to consult with the division before incurring indeterminate expenditures in order to predetermine, as far as possible, their eligibility and to avoid the necessity of making adjustments at a later date.

The obligation of the local agency to keep formal books of account with respect to a State-aided project becomes operative, technically speaking, only with the date of the contract for State aid. The local agency should, nevertheless, as a practical matter keep some formal records of expenditures made prior to that date, in order to support claims for their subsequent admission as eligible development costs and to facilitate the audit and review by the division. Such records may be in memorandum form, if the expenditures are being made on behalf of the local agency by some other agency, or they may be part of other accounting records of the local agency or they may be separate records, maintained on a cash basis, if the expenditures are being made by the local agency. Funds received by a local agency for indeterminate expenditures should be deposited in a bank account and disbursements made by check. All expenditures should be supported by vouchers or other evidence of authorization, in readily available form. Separate records, if maintained, should consist of, as a minimum, cash receipts and cash disbursements registers. If desired, a general ledger may also be set up. The use of the applicable general ledger accounts of the division's uniform system of accounts, in this event, is recommended, as follows:

This is a cash account recording the receipt and disbursement of funds for the indeterminate expenditures.

The indeterminate expenditures are charged to this account as made, to be held in suspense for audit, review, and approval by the division.

This account is credited with the funds received by the local agency for the payment of indeterminate expenditures, if such funds represent a loan to the local agency.

This account is credited with the funds received by the local agency for the payment of indeterminate expenditures, if such funds represent a donation, gift, appropriation, or advance which, it is not expected or intended, that the local agency will be required to repay.

As has been previously pointed out, the local agency must look to sources other than advances made or to be made by the State for funds to pay indeterminate expenditures. The local agency may use any funds it has available for the purpose. A common source is a loan or appropriation by the municipality. Upon audit, review, and written approval by the division, the local agency may use loan funds advanced or to be advanced by the State to reimburse itself or its creditors to the extent that the indeterminate expenditures, within the maximum limitation set in advance by the division, have been declared by the division to be eligible to be charged to development costs. Funds of other State-aided projects shall not be used to pay indeterminate expenditures of another project or to reimburse such expenditures. No reimbursement shall be made from loan funds advanced or to be advanced by the State for a specific project under a given contract for State aid until an auditor of the division has examined the expenditures and reported his findings to the division for ruling, and the local agency shall have received written approval of the division as to admitted development costs. Indeterminate expenditures which have been reimbursed out of funds advanced or to be advanced by the State without the prior written authorization or approval of the division will be declared ineligible. The accounting entries reflecting the division's letter of approval are described in Part 1646, Development Period Accounting. See also the definition of account 1610, Indeterminate Expenditures, in Part 1641.

Section 96 of the Public Housing Law states that no administrative expenses of an authority shall be paid from any State loan or subsidy or from the rental income of any State project. It follows that items of expenses of an authority deemed to be administrative expenses are ineligible to be charged to development costs or operating expenses of a State-aided project. The division will determine which items of expense constitute administrative expense of an authority. In such determination, a direct connection with the planning, construction, or management of a State-aided project will be an important, but not conclusive factor. In the absence of explicit rulings with respect to a given expense, an authority should consult with the division and secure a ruling before incurring that expense.

Generally speaking, the following expenses [see also Exhibits 9 and 9-NYCHA of Appendix S-6] will be deemed administrative expenses within the prohibition of the statute:

Generally speaking, the following expenses, if incurred in connection with the planning, construction or operation of a State-aided project may be allowed, in whole or in part. In many cases, with respect to a given State-aided project, only part of the expense may be allowed either because some of the expense is deemed an administrative expense within the prohibition of the statute, or because some of the expense is attributable to the planning, construction or operation of other projects. In such events, a proration will be necessary. Admissible expenses are:

Subdivision 1 of section 52 of the Public Housing Law, as amended, states that “an authority shall be exempt from the payment of (a) any taxes or fees to the state or any subdivision thereof and (b) any fees to any officer or employee of the State or any subdivision thereof, except where it is provided by or pursuant to law that such officer or employee is personally entitled to such fees as compensation for services rendered or performed by him in his official capacity.” With the exception of the State tax on gasoline (see subdivision [c] of this section), the exemption appears to be automatic and neither the statute nor the regulations prescribe procedures for local agencies to follow with respect to the exemptions.

Certain officials of the State or its subdivisions, such as city marshals, do not draw salaries from the State or subdivision, but depend on fees, as fixed by statute, for their compensation. Local agencies are not exempt from the payment of fees to such officials. Other officials of the State or its subdivisions, such as sheriffs, are salaried officials in some localities and are non-salaried officials, depending on fees fixed by statute for their compensation, in other localities. Salaried officials are not, ordinarily, personally entitled by law to the fees and the local agency is therefore exempt from the payment of fees to such officials. The local agency should establish the status of the officials it deals with and should pay fees only to such employees of the State or its subdivisions as are personally entitled by law to the fees as compensation for services rendered or performed by them. An opinion of the State Attorney-General holds that it is proper for a local agency to pay a sheriff for “unpredictable disbursements which may arise, such as labor employed to make an eviction” even though the local agency would otherwise be exempt from the payment of fees to such official. The “unpredictable” in this opinion refers to the total amount of the charge to be made for the services to be rendered or performed.

To obtain the exemption from the State gasoline tax of four cents per gallon, local agencies must furnish their suppliers with an exemption certificate at the end of each month. The exemption certificate is not supplied by State, but is made out by the local agency, preferably on its letterhead. A specimen exemption certificate is shown as Exhibit 4 of Appendix S-6. This certificate must be typewritten or prepared by using ink or indelible pencil. Changes or erasures may void the certification.

Local agencies must register their motor vehicles and secure license plates the same as any other user of public streets and roads. The local agency is however, exempt from the payment of any fees in connection with the registration of motor vehicles owned or operated by the local authority under subdivision 1 of section 52 of the Public Housing Law. The Bureau of Motor Vehicles^* should stamp the registration “exempt” so that license plates may be issued to the local authority without charge.

Subdivision 1 of section 52 of the Public Housing Law exempts a local agency from the payment of the taxes or fees to any subdivision of the State or to any officer or employee thereof, except where such officer or employee is personally entitled by law to such fees as compensation for services rendered or performed by him in his official capacity. Subdivisions of the State include counties, cities, villages, towns, and special districts, as well as departments and agencies of the State itself. Property of a local agency is, however, only partly tax exempt, as explained in subdivision (b) of this section. As with State taxes, the exemption from local taxes appears to be automatic and the law does not prescribe any particular procedure to be followed by a local agency in connection with such exemption. Members, officers, and employees of a local agency traveling on official business in connection with the affairs of the local agency are exempt from payment of the New York City tax on occupancy of hotel rooms. To obtain the exemption, a separate exemption certificate for each occupancy and for each person registered is furnished to the hotel, upon registering. A specimen exemption certificate is shown as Exhibit 5 of Appendix S-6. Copies may be obtained from the Comptroller of the City of New York, 50 Pine Street, New York, New York or they may be prepared by the local agency on its own stationery.

The fiscal year for State-aided projects shall be from April 1st to March 31st.

Local agencies shall submit financial reports to the Division of Housing, 270 Broadway, New York 7, NY as follows:

A system of monthly and quarterly financial reports is prescribed during the development period. Reports are required to be submitted within 15 days after the end of the respective calendar month or calendar quarter. The first monthly report shall be made as of the end of the month in which the first advance of loan funds, whether by State or sources other than the State, has been made. The first quarterly report shall, similarly, be made as of the end of the calendar quarter in which the first advance of loan funds has been made. The requirement to submit monthly reports shall cease when the project has been declared substantially completed, unless the division shall request the local agency to continue to submit monthly reports beyond the date of substantial completion. For detailed instructions with respect to the preparation of financial reports during the development period, see Subpart 1646-7.

Quarterly reports are required to be submitted during the operating period within 15 days after the close of each calendar quarter included in that period. Monthly reports are required to be submitted only if specifically requested by the division. For detailed instructions with respect to the preparation of financial reports during the operating period, see Subpart 1647-8.

In addition to the monthly and quarterly financial reports, local agencies may be required to submit to the division, within 15 days after the close of the fiscal year, annual statements giving information of a statistical and historical nature, as well as financial information. Such annual statements shall be in such form as the division, by separate instructions, shall prescribe.

The local housing authority must file by February 28 of each year, form 1099, U.S. Information Return for the Calendar Year, with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Processing Branch, Kansas City, Missouri, for each person to whom a payment for salaries, wages, fees, commissions, compensation for personal service, and any other fixed income totaling $600 or more. The local agency need not file form 1099 in the following cases: (1) wages were reported on form W-2; (2) payments of any type to a corporation. Form 1099 and form 1096 (summary of forms 1099 filed) may be obtained from the District Director of Internal Revenue.

The New York State Income Tax Law and regulations [see 20 NYCRR Chapter II] provide for the filing of information returns of payments of taxable income to residents of New York State.

Local agencies may secure retirement benefits for their employees by adopting the New York State Employees Retirement System, pursuant to sections 55 and 56 of the State Civil Service Law. A municipality may adopt the system by filing a certified copy of an appropriate resolution approved by the local legislative body, with the State Comptroller. A local housing authority may adopt the system by passage of an appropriate resolution, a certified copy of which is filed with the Comptroller, but the acceptance of the employees of the authority for membership in the system is optional with the State Comptroller. Full information as to the adoption and operation of the system, payroll procedures, rates of contribution, etc., may be had by writing to the State Comptroller, Albany, New York. The general comments which follow are intended to be informative, rather than exhaustive, and are based on information supplied by the Comptroller:

The charges to the local agency for employees retirement benefits are eligible development costs and operating expenses of a State-aided project. Such charges shall be made as follows:

Subdivision 1 of section 32 of the Public Housing Law states a local housing authority may employ a general manager, a secretary, technical experts and such other officers, agents and employees as it may require and that employment shall be subject to the provisions of the Civil Service Law applicable to the municipality in which it is established. The compensation of such employees is, further, subject to the approval of the local legislative body. The authority's table of organization and the rates of compensation it pays are further subject to the limitations imposed by the development cost and operating budgets which must have division approval. Division approval of the employment of specific individuals is required. The positions to be filled must have been provided for in an approved budget in order for the compensation to be charged to State-aided projects and no compensation in excess of those provided for the respective positions in the approved budgets shall be charged to development costs or operating expenses of State-aided projects. In its periodic examinations, the division will therefore look for the certification of the local civil service commission with respect to appointments, the approval of the local legislative body with respect to compensation, and conformity with the approved development cost and operating budgets. Division policy is that employees must take vacations. They may not be paid for accrued vacation time in lieu of taking vacation.

No work is to be done by an authority other than by contract or by maintenance personnel regularly employed in accordance with the law, without specific authorization thereof in advance by the division. When prior approval has been received and the work is to be done by per diem employees, the following procedures shall be strictly observed:

Prior division approval is required for all contracts entered into with respect to personal services.

The attention of local agencies is called to the standard provision in contracts for State aid requiring local agencies to obtain fidelity bonds covering its officers, agents or employees. The division's requirements for fidelity bond coverage are contained in Part 1630 of this Chapter.