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Erie authority to switch accounting to Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT; board accepts April financials pending audit
Summary
Staff told the board a new consultant will migrate accounting to Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT with a planned June 1 go-live; the board accepted the authority's financial reports, noting reimbursements and a negative year-to-date net driven by project timing.
The Erie County Redevelopment Authority agreed to move its accounting to Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT and accepted the April financial reports pending audit.
Director of finance administration April (last name not specified) told the board the authority had $246,515.78 in its checking account as of April 30 and reported grant revenue of $437,159.73 for January through April. The packet cited a planned ARPA East Bayfront Greenway Trail reimbursement request of about $50,000 and reimbursement claims and service revenue including $69,000 from the Erie County Department of Planning. The packet showed a year-to-date net position of negative $704,333.01, which staff said will be largely offset as outstanding reimbursements are processed.
Staff reported that Matt, the new Blackbaud implementation consultant, met with staff and will reconcile and load the general ledger through April and train staff; June 1 was set as the go-live date for Financial Edge NXT and staff said Blackbaud-generated statements should be available for the July meeting. Until then, QuickBooks statements will be used for the June meeting. The board ratified a motion to accept the financial reports pending audit.
Why it matters: The accounting-system transition aims to address prior reporting gaps and ensure audited, reconciled statements going forward. Staff said the new consultant identified setup issues and will clean the ledger before cutover.
Key details and staff comments
- Cash and revenues: Staff reported $246,515.78 in cash and noted $437,159.73 in grant revenue January–April. April included a $50,000 ARPA request and reimbursements from county planning for Act 137 projects. Staff said some operating shortfall is timing-related and will be addressed when reimbursements are received.
- System migration: Matt will reconcile the general ledger to April or June 1, train staff over multiple sessions, and oversee a June 1 go-live on Financial Edge NXT. Staff expects to provide Blackbaud-generated financial statements to the board in July; QuickBooks statements will cover June.
- Audit and internal controls: Staff and the chair discussed revising a finance resolution to clarify delegation and segregation-of-duties practices; the chair suggested putting a lifespan on the resolution so future boards revisit it regularly.
Board action
- The board voted to accept the April financial reports pending audit by voice vote.
