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Accounts Receivable Policy

TBR Policy Reference: 4:01:03:00

TBR Guideline Reference: B-010

Approved by: Allana Hamilton

Original Date Effective: 2010-02-08

Last Modified: 2019-08-21

Purpose

Jackson State Community College will obtain, whenever practical, payment in advance for all goods and services provided by the College. When it is necessary to establish an accounts receivable, steps will be taken to insure full and prompt payment in accordance with accepted standards of internal control, Tennessee Code Annotated 49-9-108, Chapter 0620-1-9 of the rules of the Department of Finance and Administration, TBR Policy 4:01:03:00, and TBR Guideline B-010.

Fee Payment

TBR Policy 4:01:03:00 requires all assessed fees for students be paid in cash, or the initial minimum payment under the deferred payment plan (TBR Guideline B-070) be paid, or an acceptable commitment from an agency or organization approved by the College to pay all unpaid assessed fees be received before a student is considered enrolled for any academic term.

For students who early register for classes, the deadline for payment of fees or confirmation of classes is approximately two weeks prior to the beginning of each semester.

  1. Unconfirmed or unpaid students are purged from classes the day after the payment/confirmation deadline.
  2. The purge process runs nightly from the last day to pay/confirm through the 14th day of the term.
  3. Exceptions to hold students must be submitted to the President of the College for approval.

Collections

Where fee assessment or the programs and activities of the College generate accounts receivable, the College shall adhere to TBR Guideline B-010 to collect those receivables. No later than 30 days after the last day of each term, the first collection letter will be generated and mailed to each individual with an accounts receivable balance due to JSCC. Second and third notices will be generated and mailed at intervals no less than 30 days from the date of the previous invoice(s). Generated letters mailed to students are tracked on the SUAMAIL form in Banner.

Records Holds

Tennessee Code Annotated 419-9-108 authorizes the College to issue diplomas, certificates of credit or grade reports only after the student involved has satisfied all debts or obligations owed to the university, college or technical institute or to any related institution of state government, including, but not limited to, college or university bookstores, libraries, food service centers, dormitories, infirmaries or hospitals. The limitation of this subsection:

  1. will not apply to debts of less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) that are more than ten (10) years old.
  2. does not apply to debts or obligations evidenced by notes or other written contracts providing for future payment, such as, but not limited to, loans authorized under federal or state education or student assistance acts.

The College will apply holds as needed on an individual basis and run the hold report TGPHOLD prior to early registration for the upcoming semester.

Acknowledgement of Debt/Promise to Pay Agreement for Prior Debt and Obligations

A student who has prior outstanding debt of $100 or more and was not enrolled in the preceding semester (excluding summer semester) may execute an acknowledgement of debt/promise to pay agreement with the institution per Tennessee Board of Regents Policy 4.01.03.00:

  1. The acknowledgement of debt/promise to pay agreement will require that the debt be fully satisfied before a diploma or degree will be issued. However, this does not prohibit the conferring of the degree.
  2. The acknowledgement of debt/promise to pay agreement will require continuous enrollment. If continuous enrollment is not maintained, the institution may continue with immediate collection efforts as prescribed in TBR Guideline B-010 (Collection of Accounts Receivable) or pursuant to the terms of any previously executed repayment agreement.
  3. A student may only ever execute one such agreement with the institution.
  4. "Continuous enrollment" means a student is enrolled in the fall and spring semesters of a single academic year unless granted a medical or personal leave of absence. Allowable medical or personal reasons may include illness of the student; illness or death of an immediate family member; extreme financial hardship of the student or student's immediate family; fulfillment of a religious commitment encouraged of members of that faith; fulfillment of required initial active duty for training as a National Guard or Reserve member or for National Guard or Reserve mobilization.

Acknowledgement of Debt Agreement is established with the student.

  1. 1. Signed/notarized documents are scanned/email to the respective school email distribution list of studentdebt@xxxx.edu.
  2. Accounts receivable hold is cleared on SOAHOLD form in Banner and an XO hold and origination code corresponding with the school attending is established.
  3. Accounts are reviewed at the end of each term to determine if collection efforts need to be established.

Returned Checks

Pursuant to the Board Policy on the Payment of Fees and Enrollment of Students (4:01:03:00), if any student tenders payment of fees by a check or credit card that is subsequently dishonored by the financial institution, and the payment is not redeemed in cash within the time period specified below, the College has the option to not consider that student enrolled at the institution.

  1. At the discretion of the institution, the student may be considered enrolled and will be assessed the applicable returned check fee, the late registration fee, and will be denied grade reports, transcripts and future registration privileges until such dishonored check is redeemed.
  2. Institutions have the discretion to allow enrollment when the outstanding obligation is $200 or less.
  3. Institutions may deny future check writing privileges to students that have paid registration fees with checks that are subsequently dishonored.
  4. While institutions have discretion in how these situations will be handled, all students must be treated the same at that institution.
  5. A student paying enrollment fees with a check that is dishonored must redeem the check within five (5) calendar days from receipt of the notice.
    1. The College de-enrolls the student upon receipt of a dishonored check along with notification.
    2. Notice should be sent by the institution to the student upon receipt of a dishonored check for other fees and services.
    3. Notice by certified mail is optional.
    4. The institution follows the collection policy.
    5. Enrollment fees including returned check fees for students de-enrolled for bad checks should be reversed.

Collection Agencies

The Tennessee Board of Regents shall provide, on a system-wide basis, collection services through one or more companies.

  1. 1. The service should provide for the referral of all types of delinquent accounts and notes from the institutions to the designated company only after campus collection efforts have been exhausted.
  2. 2. Accounts that are still delinquent 30 days after the final collection letter should be turned over to a collection agency. Receivables less than $100 are not required to be turned over to a collection agency.

Write Offs

The College is authorized to write off uncollectible receivables pursuant to policies outlined in Chapter 0620-1-9 of the rules of the Department of Finance and Administration. Receivables which prove to beuncollectible after the prescribed collections efforts of TBR Guideline B-010 have been exhausted should be written off by a charge to the reserve for doubtful accounts after appropriate approvals are obtained.

The approval of the Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance is required for write-offs of single accounts of $5,000 or more and/or accounts aggregating $25,000 or more. Write offs of single accounts of less than $5,000 and/or accounts aggregating less than $25,000 shall be approved by the College President and the Vice President for Financial and Administrative Affairs.

Accounts returned from the collections agencies due to collection efforts exhausted and unpaid accounts under $100 after three billing cycles are deemed uncollectible and written off.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Reserve

An allowance for doubtful accounts is only an estimate of the amount of accounts receivable which are expected to not be collectible. The College's allowance is equal to the balance of student receivables and non-student receivables aged over one year as of the end of the fiscal year.

History:
Approved: February 08, 2010; August 21, 2019

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