SACS2021ALL Software: Known Problems/Fixes

2021 Financial Reporting Calendars Updated

Affected Users

All users

Issue

The 2021 financial reporting calendars included with the SACS2021ALL software release are not up to date. There were legislative changes July 9, 2021 and September 23, 2021 to annual audit report due dates that are not reflected in the calendars.

Cause

Sections 18 and 19 of Assembly Bill 130 (Chapter 44, Statutes of 2021) and Section 7 of Assembly Bill 167 (Chapter 252, Statutes of 2021) extended the following due dates contained in Education Code (EC) for the 2020–21 annual audit:

• EC 41020(h)(2) and (3) - 2020-21 audit report filing is extended from December 15, 2021 to January 31, 2022.
• EC 41020.3(b) - LEAs review of their 2020–21 annual audit and corrective action is extended from January 31, 2022 to February 28, 2022.
• EC 41020(j)(2)(B) - LEAs deadline to provide corrective action to COEs for their 2020-21 audit is extended from March 15, 2022 to April 15, 2022.
• EC 41020(k)(2) - COE deadline for the annual certification for 2020–21 audits to SCO and CDE is extended from May 15, 2022 to June 15, 2022

Resolution/Workaround

The updated calendars will be posted to the CDE Fiscal Calendars web page. Note that the SACS2021ALL software will not be updated with the revised calendars.

Problem: Form SEMA – Special Education MOE – Actual vs. Actual Comparison, LEA Exps CY tab, Unduplicated Pupil Count

Users Affected

All local educational agencies (LEAs)

Problem

The Unduplicated Pupil Count cell is locked and cannot be manually entered.

Fix

Save (do not open) the revised sema.vts template file (VTS; Revised 01-Jul-2021) to a temporary folder such as C:\SACS2021ALL\Temporary. Once saved, copy the file from the Temporary folder into your C:\SACS2021ALL\Templates folder. Upon copying the file to the Templates folder, a message may display that the file already exists; select Yes to overwrite the existing template file with the revised file. To verify that you have replaced the old file, the date of the new template file in your C:\SACS2021ALL\Templates folder should be the date downloaded.

Problem: Import, Export, and TRC Menu Options Disabled for Some Windows 7/8/10 Users

Right after installing the Standardized Account Code Structure (SACS) software, some users are unable to import, export, or run the Technical Review Check (TRC) because the File–Import, File–Export, and TRC–Technical Review menu options are disabled.

Fix

Some Windows 7/8/10 users have encountered this problem, and applying one or more of the following solutions has been effective:

• Ensure that the SACS software was installed correctly:
  • Temporarily change the user's level of access to that of the system administrator;
  • Have the user log onto the network;
  • Install the software;
  • Change the user's level of access back to its original setting; and
  • Restart the computer.
• Register the RICHTX32.OCX file. This should be done by information technology staff only.
• Change the SACS software to run in compatibility mode using Windows XP (Service Pack 3). To do this, right-click on the SACS software desktop icon; select Properties; select the Compatibility tab; if not already active, click on the Run this program in compatibility mode: check box; when the drop down menu activates, select Windows XP (Service Pack 3); press the Apply button and then OK.
  

Problem: Known Printing Issues Relating to Windows 7/8/10

After the SACS software was modified to mitigate the worst of its incompatibilities with Windows 7, many software testers encountered a remaining printing problem where a fund form, supplemental form, or report is sent to the printer, and the SACS software print status window freezes. (This is not an issue when printing the Technical Review Checklist (TRC), the import log, or from the User Data Input/Review screen.)

Workaround

Anticipating this problem for all Windows 7/8/10 users, the California Department of Education's (CDE’s) workaround is to print first to Adobe PDF, then send the document to the printer. 

Possible Fix

After extensive testing within CDE’s test environment, we are able to send forms and reports directly to printers by using the following print drivers (which are specific to our model printers), and by changing a particular printer setting specifically for Hewlett-Packard (HP) printers. CDE does not advocate the purchase or use of any specific printer brand or model and provides this information only as a basis for LEAs to test with different print drivers and/or settings if desired.

• For Samsung printers: Samsung Universal Print Driver 2 PS
• For HP printers: HP Universal Printing PS or HP Universal Printing printer command language (PCL) 6 print drivers
• Additional printer settings required for some HP printers:
  • Notes: 
    • For some users, these printer settings must be changed outside of the SACS Software (e.g., changed through the Control Panel) or else the printer settings are lost each time the SACS Software is closed.
    • Some users need to reset these printer settings each time they install the SACS software.
    • Some users need to intermittently change these printer settings within the SACS software (i.e., changed through the print prompt) as well.
  • Specific steps CDE uses for HP printer settings: 
    • Open SACS software form
    • File menu, Print… option
    • Properties [button]
    • Effects [tab]
    • Click on the radial button “Print Document on:”
    • Then it should default to "Letter" right underneath it.
    • It should also add a checkmark next to "Scale to Fit"
    • Click Apply
    • Then OK to print

Problem: Run-time Error 429

Periodically, the required Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) file is not properly installed, causing a run-time error 429 upon opening the SACS software.

Fix

Be sure all other applications are closed, then download this MDAC file: mdactyp (EXE; 7MB). Once downloaded, double-click on the file to begin installation (be sure to read the prompts thoroughly). When the installation is completed, the SACS software should open properly.