1. Fixed Assets: Capilalizing Equipment Purchases
Since changes to the University policy were implemented in AY01, there has been some confusion as to whether or not equipment purchases should be capitalized.

The equipment decision tree has been developed to help you distinguish capital equipment purchases from noncapital equipment purchases. The decision tree will also help you identify the correct range of object codes to use when acquiring equipment.

Also included for your reference are three equipment decision tree examples. These examples demonstrate the use of the tree to determine the appropriate action for different types of equipment acquisitions.

If you have any questions about the equipment decision tree or Harvard's capital equipment policy, please feel free to contact Beth Doherty in the Office of Fixed Asset Accounting at 617-495-3766.

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2. Accounts Receivable: Payroll Deduction
Harvard's Central Accounts Receivable department offers individuals who are on the Harvard University payroll the option of having their AR charges deducted from their paycheck. You may elect to have all invoices deducted monthly or to have only certain types of charges deducted. You will also retain the ability to review and, if necessary, dispute the charges prior to the payroll deduction. It's an easy, painless way to ensure that invoices are paid in a timely fashion without having to write a check for them.

The process is simple:

1	Navigate to http://able.harvard.edu.
2	Click on Forms under the Resources heading (top-left corner of the page).
3	Scroll down the table and click on Payroll Deduction Authorization.
4	Print out a copy of the Word document.
5	Fill out and sign the form.
6	Forward the original, signed form to: Harvard University Accounts Receivable Holyoke Center 440 1350 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02138 Attention: Payroll Deductions

We encourage all administrators in those local units that bill individuals for goods or services to promote this alternative to your customers.

If you have any questions or concerns about this process, please call Kathy Hallmann, AR Supervisor, at (617) 495-4598.

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3, Accounts Receivable: Change to Outstanding Customer Aging Summary Report
You may notice a change, which was put into effect on July 2, to the aging buckets on the Outstanding Customer Aging Summary report.

Several AR users have told us that the column labeled "91-180 Days" is too wide a range to be meaningful. Therefore, that column has been eliminated; in its place are columns for invoices 91-120 days past due and invoices 121-180 days past due. You will also notice that we have eliminated the column "361 days+."

We hope that these changes provide a more meaningful report for our users.