The Board of County Commissioners

19 O.S. § 178.1

The board of county commissioners' responsibility is to take, or cause to be taken, an inventory of all fixed assets belonging or leased to the county with an original cost of Twenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) and an original cost of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for IT hardware/software. They are to prescribe a uniform identification system and create and administer an inventory system for all fixed assets of a county. The board of county commissioners is responsible for ensuring an annual inventory is taken by all departments.

For equipment of a county used in the construction and maintenance of roads and bridges, the board of county commissioners may designate an employee as the road and bridge inventory officer to be responsible for the identification and inventory system. For equipment of a county other than for road and bridge, the board of county commissioners may designate an employee of that office to administer such an inventory system. A recommended best practice is that each department appoints an inventory officer for their department for proper internal controls. Verification with the signature of a supervisor is recommended as good internal controls.
19 O.S. § 178.2

County Officer or Department Head

19 O.S. § 1502

Each county office, department, or other entity must take, record, maintain, and report a set of inventory records for any equipment with a cost of Twenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) or more that was purchased with county funds and assigned to them. These fixed assets also include any leased and leased purchased equipment items under the control of the officer. An inventory of items with a cost of less than.

Each county office, department, or other entity must take, record, maintain, and report a set of inventory records for any equipment with a cost of Twenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) or more that was purchased with county funds and assigned to them. These fixed assets also include any leased and leased purchased equipment items under the control of the officer. An inventory of items with a cost of less than.
19 O.S. § 1502

Each county office, department, or other entity must take, record, maintain, and report a set of inventory records for information technology (IT) hardware (non-road/bridge) with a cost of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or more that was purchased, leased, or lease-purchased with county funds and assigned to them. An inventory of items with a cost of less than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for IT hardware may also be maintained but is not required by Oklahoma Statutes.

Per SA&I procedures, information technology hardware costing Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or more shall be on the official inventory with individual inventory numbers for each component (e.g., monitor, CPU, laptop, printer, etc.). Internal parts that are replaced (e.g., hard drive) can be noted on the inventory card of the computer.
19 O.S. § 1502

Each county office, department, or other entity must take, record, maintain, and report a set of inventory records for information technology (IT) software (non-road/bridge) with a cost of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or more that was purchased or leased with county funds and assigned to them. An inventory of items with a cost of less Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for IT software may also be maintained but is not required by Oklahoma Statutes.

The following SA&I procedures should be used for tracking IT software:

• SA&I will only look for licenses to be on inventory for those counties preparing GAAP financial statements.
• For all other counties, SA&I will look for evidence that the county monitors to make sure that they are not paying for more licenses than what is needed.
  19 O.S. § 178.3(B)
• Suggested for best business practice: Keep a binder with the license agreement and put the inventory number on it.

A copy of these inventories (fixed asset records) must be filed with the county clerk. The county officer or department head is responsible for creating and maintaining the fixed asset records, and they will be cited in the audit if the records are not complete. Upon disposal of inventory, the records may be destroyed after three or more years and have been subject to a full audit.

19 O.S. § 1503

The county officer or department head must appoint two receiving officers. This designation must be in written form and filed with the county clerk. A recommended best practice is to appoint an inventory officer.

• 19 O.S. § 178.1
• 19 O.S. § 1502

The county officer or department head should ensure that the inventory officer and receiving officer (or other designated employee) perform a physical inventory a minimum of once a year. For internal control, two individuals should initial the physical inventory, and the “working list” should be kept until a full audit is complete. A physical inventory should also be performed upon the change of an elected official.

2002 AG 17

District court clerks are responsible for maintaining an inventory of equipment furnished by the Administrative Director of the Courts for the Oklahoma Court Information System (OCIS). OCIS retains ownership of the equipment; however, since the property is in the court clerk’s custody, they are responsible for including it in the inventory of county property.

County Clerk

The county clerk shall maintain a duplicate set of inventory records, by department, in their office. The responsibility of the inventory lies with each county officer and department. The county clerk is acting only as a repository (central location in which data is stored) of the records.
19 O.S. § 178.3

The county clerk is authorized to destroy all inventory records, files, and reports of any inventory of the county which has been disposed of for three years or more if the inventory account has been subject to a full audit by the State Auditor and Inspector (SA&I).
19 O.S. § 178.3(B)

State Auditor and Inspector

19 O.S. § 178.4

The SA&I office is charged with the responsibility of developing forms and procedures for the fixed assets of counties. All SA&I forms can be stored electronically and must be made accessible for auditors when requested.

• 74 O.S. § 214
• 19 O.S. § 178.1

SA&I recommends that management implement internal controls to ensure compliance with the statutes for county inventory and equipment and that fixed assets are safeguarded against misuse and loss. SA&I additionally recommends that management implement internal controls to ensure compliance with the Oklahoma Statutes to mark equipment properly.

69 O.S. § 645

The Receiving Officer

The receiving officer has the responsibility to receive all items delivered and verify those items with a purchase order. The receiving officer then completes SA&I Form No. 4030, Receiving Report, noting any discrepancies, as well as listing items received. The receiving officer signs the report, then the delivery person signs the report.
19 O.S. § 1504

The receiving report documents the receipt of materials, goods, services, or equipment as requisitioned and ordered on a county purchase order; it is used each time delivery is made of goods and services. The information comes from invoices and accompanying purchase/requisition orders.

The receiving officer has the following responsibilities:

• Identify any items with an initial value of Twenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) or more
• Identify any items with an initial value of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or more (IT hardware/software)
• Include all leased items

Note: Cell phones that are provided through a service provider plan should be tracked as a “leased” asset on the fixed asset inventory. SA&I requires a detailed list of all county employees who have a cell phone checked out to them.
19 O.S. § 178.1

• Determine the identification number from the identification system prescribed by the board of county commissioners
  19 O.S. § 1502(A)(2)
  • Identification should include the department and inventory number assigned.
• Mark each item clearly with its proper county identification in a permanent manner
  • Any county-owned equipment, automobiles, and trucks shall be legibly marked PROPERTY OF (name of county) COUNTY.
    69 O.S. § 645
• Leased automobiles, trucks, road machinery, and equipment shall be legibly marked LEASED BY (name of county) COUNTY.
• Complete form SA&I 1-9005, Fixed Asset Record – Property and Equipment
  • One record for department
  • One record for county clerk
• Forward fixed asset records to the inventory officer

The fixed asset record creates a record showing equipment owned by the county costing Twenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) or more and IT hardware/software costing Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or more. County departments may use the form to track all equipment, not limited to only those items costing Twenty-Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) or more. It is used each time equipment and IT hardware/software is acquired or disposed of in each department. The information comes from purchase orders, receiving reports and accompanying invoices, and warrant activity.

Items purchased with any county funds must be put in the inventory. Some examples are funds from resale property, grant funds, sales tax funds, and donations.

Note: Donated items should be accepted in an open meeting and added to the fixed assets inventory. Donated items must be accepted in resolution form by the board of county commissioners. The fair cash value should be established.

The Inventory Officer

Although not required by law, it is best practice for each elected officer and department head to appoint an inventory officer. The inventory officer will be responsible for verifying the information provided on the inventory records to ensure proper inventory control, preparing an annual summary report of fixed assets, and performing a physical inventory along with another designated employee at least once a year.

• Initial both fixed asset records as provided by the receiving officer
  • Forwards one copy to the county clerk’s office
  • Keeps one copy for department inventory
• Maintain SA&I Form No. 3512, Summary Report
  19 O.S. § 178.1
  • Keeps a running balance showing the total value of equipment owned by each county department
  • Used whenever equipment is acquired or disposed of
  • Use information from inventory records on SA&I Form No. 9005

A recommended best practice is to submit the summary report to the board of county commissioners for documentation in meeting minutes. Each county can set its own date to submit.

The summary report information should be gathered through a physical inventory of all property under the control of the department and cross-checked with the Fixed Asset Record.

• 19 O.S. § 178.1
• Forward annually to the county clerk

The inventory officer and receiving officer (or other designated employee) should perform a physical inventory a minimum of once a year.

For internal control, two individuals should initial the physical inventory, and the “working list” should be kept until a full audit is complete.

A physical inventory should also be performed when a change of official or department head occurs.

• 19 O.S. § 178.1
• 19 O.S. § 1502