Finance & I.S. Departments Functions Payroll The Masterton District Council employs 65 full-time and 18 part-time staff as at June 2007. The payroll is processed fortnightly and funds are direct credited into staff bank accounts. A number of community groups also have their payroll paid by the Council on an agency basis. Creditors The payment of all external purchases are processed via the computer system, with payments generally by way of cheque. A monthly cheque run is produced around the 15th of each month with prompt cheques produced twice weekly (Tuesdays and Thursdays). All payments must have a general ledger coding and the correct authorisation and documentation attached before they can be processed for payment. Debtors All externally charged income is processed via the computerised debtors system. The Treasury Officer issues invoices and statements to debtors based on the documentation supplied by the person authorised to generate the charge. Invoices are issued for things such as hall hire, landfill charges and water by meter. Rates The Council's income is derived largely from the rating of properties in the district. The computer system caters for the levying of rates on each property using a mixture of charges, land values and capital values and then records the financial transactions against each property. The rates department is responsible for up-keep of the property and rating records, the sending out of instalment notices, the collection of rates arrears and the answering of queries from ratepayers. Front Office This is the Council's public face for most ratepayers. Staff at the Treasury counter process payments of rates, sundry debtors, dog registrations, parking tickets and handle general enquires. The computer screens are linked to the main system and takings are reconciled to the amount banked each day. These staff also look after rental debtors. I.S. (Information Systems) Department This department supports all Council's computer systems, excluding the library. Work stations generally consist of a PC connected to the networks. Staff can access their files in Microsoft Office applications or the NCS financial system or the Council's intranet. All hardware, operating systems and networks are supported by the I.S. department. A Geographic Information System (GIS) has been developed to provide map and aerial photography information on screens and in hard copy format for incorporation into Council reports and information to the public. General Ledger/Accounting & Finance The product of the other financial systems is the general ledger. All income, expenditure assets and liabilities are recorded, reconciled, summarised and reported through to Managers and Council. Council's investment portfolio and debt are managed, bank reconciliations done regularly, insurance claims managed and statutory returns (GST, FBT, PAYE etc) prepared by staff with the above section. The financial aspects of the Council's Annual Plan and Annual Report are key outputs of this department, as are the preparation of the Long Term Financial Strategy, Funding Policy and Investment and Borrowing Policies. Treasury Staff Manager Finance - David Paris Revenue Accountant - John Wynne Financial Accountant - Julie Shakespeare Rates Clerk - Neil McEwen Treasury Clerk - Dianna Hosnell Accounting/Payroll Clerk - Vanessa Herrick Cashier - Liz Nicholson I.S. Staff Systems Administrator - Wendy Stevenson GIS Consultant - Alan Flynn