Do you frequently use expense account code 142900 (Contractual Services Not Elsewhere Classified – Payment to Vendor) when recording your various financial transactions?
If so, keep in mind that this expense account code should only be used for contractual services paid directly to a vendor which cannot be better classified under a more specific expense account code. Before using the 142900 expense account code on one of your transactions, efforts should be made to find a more accurate expense account code which better classifies the true nature of your expense.
For example, if you are paying a vendor for professional services, you would need to use expense account code 153900 (Professional and Artistic Services – Payment to Vendor) to ensure compliance with state reporting requirements (rather than 142900).
Also, to ensure compliance with State of Illinois reporting requirements and fund accounting guidelines, the 142900 expense account code cannot be used for:
- Purchases of tangible items (such as consumable supplies or equipment)
- Employee reimbursements
- Funding transfers between units
- Deposits of sales proceeds
However, if you are paying a vendor for a unique type of service which really does not fit in any other existing contractual service expense account code, then it would be allowable to use the 142900 expense account code in those situations.
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For questions related to this topic, refer to the Who to Ask list and search on “Account Codes”.
