525 N. Main, #823  Wichita, KS.  67203, Tel: (316) 660-7591, Fax: (316) 383-7729

Accounting Department
 Shawn Henning, Controller

The Accounting Department works to prudently manage County financial resources, assure compliance with applicable laws and policies governing financial transactions, and provide timely and 
accurate information about Sedgwick County’s financial position 
to those who need or request such information.

The Accounting Department is responsible for five main 
functions for Sedgwick County.  Those include:

Payroll

  • Process, prepare and balance bi-weekly and semi-monthly payrolls for about 60 departments and 2,500 employees;
  • Help plan and implement Sedgwick County Premier, the County's flex benefit plan;
  • Process, analyze, enter and maintain employee records for earnings and deductions;
  • Process new employees by explaining benefits and policies, insurance enrollment and other deductions. Instruct and train departments with payroll input responsibilities.

Accounts Payable

  • Interpret division and county policies;
  • Audit invoices for accuracy and compliance with policy and procedures;
  • Approve expenditures for the issuance of checks;
  • Prepare and reconcile various financial reports;
  • Prepare and record journal entries;
  • Maintain supporting records for all general ledger accounts; 
  • Provide consulting services to county departments;
  • Provide support and information to external auditors and consultants.

Grants Management

  • Search for new funding opportunities for county departments and programs through new grants and contracts;
  • Assist various county departments in developing grant applications to a variety of potential grantors; 
  • Review grant applications prior to submission to the grantor agencies, checking for accuracy, completeness, and appropriateness; 
  • Develop grant fund budgets for new and continuing programs based on grant awards and approved applications;
  • Prepare, review, and submit grant financial reports to various grantor agencies;
  •  Request cash advances and reimbursements from the grantor agencies on behalf of the county programs;
  • Assist independent auditors with development and preparation of the A-133, Single Audit Report, which covers all federal grant funds expended during each calendar year by the County through its various departments;
  • Review audit findings and reports on grant programs and monitor compliance with such findings. Assist County officials and staff in developing responses to audit findings, including needed corrective measures;
  • Attend site visits conducted by grantor agencies and their representatives to review grant-related records and activities of the County; 
  • Act as liaison between County departments and independent consultant in the development of the Annual Cost Allocation Plan.

Revenue Collection

  • Establish revenue codes in various budgets to track new or special income items;
  • Complete ACH bank forms for programs receiving payments from federal and state agencies via ACH deposits;
  • Code and post ACH deposits from the holding account each month;
  • Send copies of payment advises received by Finance to departments for which the payments were intended;
  • Develop revenue data reports for various grant, special revenue, and general funds; present information at meetings, and distribute information to appropriate parties;
  • Monitor and coordinate EMS accounts receivable function including current billing activity and bad debt collection activity. Provide support to EMS management and staff as liaison with both the current services billing company and the bad debt collections company;
  • Process refunds for overpayments of EMS patient accounts; 
  • Submit old unpaid account balances from various departments to the Kansas Set Off Program for collection activities. Receive and distribute to departments payments received through the Kansas Set Off Program;
  • Create bill from Emergency Management Incident Forms and send bill to responsible party. Upon receipt of payment, distribute to various emergency governmental agencies involved in incident and post payments to proper County revenue accounts;
  • Receive mortgage origination fees from buyers and deposit them to special clearing fund to be distributed to various agencies involved in the Kansas Mortgage Savers Program. Update statistical data and prepare monthly reports;
  • Provide consulting services to all County departments in regard to accounts receivable, billing, revenue collections, and cash management activities.

Cash Management

  • Orchestrate sales of County bonds and notes (long-term and short-term borrowing to finance infrastructure improvements);
  • Monitor daily cash balances in the County’s main checking account; 
  • Ensure that the County has enough money on hand at all times to pay bills as they come due;
  • Invest "idle funds" in secure investments until that money is needed to pay for expenses. This is particularly important for Sedgwick County since we issue checks to pay bills on a weekly basis but only get our "paycheck" (collection of property taxes, our largest source of income) twice a year.