Small Agency Services Bulletin - March 2026
The small agency services March 2026 bulletin provides useful information for Washington state agencies, boards, and commissions.
| Important Dates | Important Messages | Small Agency Financial Services News | Travel Tips | Contact Us |
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Important Dates
April 2
- Payroll timesheets Due. Have questions? Email despayroll@des.wa.gov or submit a Payroll Request form.
April 7
- To reflect in your agency's March monthly financial statements, all invoices and travel reimbursement requests are due to Accounts Payable.
April 15
- IRS tax deadline – If any vendors have questions about their 2025 1099 forms, please call Accounts Payable at (360) 407-8183 before the filing deadline.
April 16
- Payroll timesheets due
April 28
- SAFS AP presents: Quarterly Travel Training
May 1
- Payroll timesheets due
May 4-8
May 14
- Payroll timesheets due
Important Messages
State Agencies Encouraged to Strengthen Continuity of Operations Planning
Continuity of Operations Planning isn't just a procedural requirement—it's a cornerstone of effective, resilient government operations. To support this effort, the state maintains a comprehensive continuity program designed to assist all agencies, boards, and commissions in building and advancing their continuity capabilities.
All organizations are encouraged to review the Governor's Directive on Continuity to ensure compliance with current expectations and deliverables.
For agencies seeking guidance or support, Annie Merritt, the Advisor for the Interagency Continuity Committee, is available to assist with continuity planning needs.
The Interagency Continuity Meeting meets quarterly.
- The next quarterly meeting is May 21, 2026 at 10:00 A.M, virtually. Please follow this link to connect via MS Teams.
- To be added to the distribution list email, Annie Merritt.
Correctional Industries (CI) - end of year cut-off dates
CI has identified the following cutoff dates for FY26 furniture orders requiring delivery by June 30, 2026.
- Standard gross orders less than $100,000 – April 3, 2026
- Sit-to-stand riser orders – May 15, 2026
- Fast Fulfillment orders* – June 1, 2026
Time to think about the end of the fiscal year
- Be sure to get all fiscal year 2026 invoices so they can be paid promptly. Belated claims will apply against your fiscal year 2027 spending authority.
- Does your agency bill for its services or send out interagency billings? Create a plan to ensure that June's billings are processed promptly and mailed by mid-July.
Time to think about capital assets
DES encourages small agencies to evaluate internal policies and procedures around capital assets and be sure they include the following:
- An internal written policy for managing small and attractive assets, timely removal of capital assets from inventory, and proper approval of disposal requests.
- A revolving schedule to perform physical inventories every other year. Inventories can be performed anytime - there is no need to wait until June.
- Procedures to follow if a capital asset is lost or stolen.
Visit these websites to find out more about capital assets:
- State Administrative and Accounting Manual Chapter 30.10 – capital assets
- Office of Financial Management capital asset resources
Fund 03K industrial insurance premium refund account
DES wants to remind agencies that they may have a balance remaining in Fund 03K Industrial Insurance Premium Refund Account — a fund used to account for all industrial insurance refunds earned by state agencies under the state fund retrospective rating program. Preference on expenditures shall be given to programs that provide incentives for employee safety and appropriate early return-to-work incentives for injured employees.
Below are some ideas about where you can request these funds be used:
- Electronics — such as loaner cell phones for personal safety while in travel status, and/or security cameras.
- Emergency planning and first aid — such as first aid kits and emergency evacuation supplies.
- Ergonomics — such as adjustable work surfaces, padded or gel wrist rests and keyboard trays.
- Facilities-related items — such as warning signs, ice/snow supplies to prevent surface slips and card key entries.
- Indoor air quality — such as HEPA filter air cleaners and CO2 monitoring equipment
- Lifting/materials handling devices — such as forklifts and portable carts.
- Lighting — such as blinds to minimize glare and task lighting.
- Personal protective equipment — such as hard hats and back belts.
- Training/education — such as safety videos.
Small Agency Financial Services News
DES SAFS AP Quarterly Travel Training – Tuesday, April. 28 from 1-2:30 p.m.
Our SAFS AP team will host the Travel Training virtually over Microsoft Teams. ASL Interpretation will be provided.
This training will cover:
- SAAM Travel Policy overview
- Meals with Meetings & Light Refreshments
- TEMS Live Tutorial
- Telework & Travel
- Interactive Q&A section
Please email travel.safs@des.wa.gov with any questions or if you have not received an invitation and would like one sent to you.
Two separate DES SAFS workshops are coming soon: "Year-End Close" and "2027-2029 Budget Build"
Watch for your invites!
Our workshops will cover all you need to know about the fiscal year-end close, capital assets, disclosure forms, and your 2027-2029 budget build.
A question and answer period will follow. If you have specific questions or topics you would like to see covered, please email gwen.mcclanahan@des.wa.gov.
Payroll information
- Molly Guinan has returned from leave!
- We recommend that all correspondence and forms are sent using the Payroll Request form or to the despayroll@des.wa.gov inbox. Items sent via these methods are ticketed and monitored for completion.
- Reminder that Payroll Journals need to be signed prior to payday per SAAM 25.20.30 & RCW 41.06.270 and returned by the due date mentioned in the email that is sent with the journal.
- Once the payroll journals are signed, they should be sent back to DES Payroll for retention.
SAFS (Small Agency Financial Services) team updates
Did you know? Your DES financial support team consists of ALL of our SAFS team members. Even though you may work with specific SAFS members regularly, other SAFS members often step in to assist and provide continuity of services. We would like you to know about our whole SAFS team. Below is a list of each work group within SAFS, the members you may hear from, and recent news or a message from each team.
Accounts payable
Team members:
- Diana Huynh - Supervisor
- Riley Hyland - Sr. Lead
- Kaler Pearson - Sr. Lead
- Bryn Parker - Lead
- Forest Pope - Accounting Analyst
- Kyler Oblad - Accounting Analyst
- Amber Roberts - Accounting Analyst
Accounts receivable
Team members:
- Betti Bartoldo - Supervisor
- Stacey Millsap - Sr. Lead
- Jenifer Mobley - Accounting Analyst
- Brandy Leitgeb - Accounting Analyst
- Sarah Palazzo - Cash Receipts Specialist
- Sean Garcia - Cash Receipts Specialist
Budget
Team members:
- Diann Lewallen
- Seth Flory
- Ian Shelley
- Christina Shearer
- Annis Jones
Team message: Legislative session is over! We thank you all for your input and collaboration throughout the legislative session. Your efforts made a real difference, and we appreciate the teamwork.
Payroll
Team members:
- Rachel Rodgers – Manager
- Molly Guinan – Supervisor
- Kayla Preble – Lead
- Nichole Dahlin – Processor
- Vanno Non - Garnishments
- Adam Oskvig – Processor/Out of State Taxes
- Treyson Ramos – Retirement Specialist
- Brandy Butterfield – Benefits Specialist
Team message: Thank you for assisting us by turning your payroll items in promptly! We have had four perfect payrolls this year!
Administrative Assistance
Team members:
- Makaila Barbella
DES accounts payable statistics for Feb. 2026 (34 agencies served)
| Invoices received from agency | 1,596 | 73.58% | $17,754,642 |
| Invoices paid on delegated authority | 488 | 22.50% | $1,344,015 |
| Travel requests paid through TEMS | 83 | 3.83% | $34,311 |
| Payments reissued (SOL, Lost Warrant) | 2 | 0.09% | $6,680 |
| Total payments processed | 2,169 | 100% | $19,139,648 |
DES payroll statistics for Feb. 2026 (42 agencies served)
| Total employees paid | 1,222 |
| Appointment changes | 4 |
| New hires/rehires | 7 |
| Separations | 9 |
| Supplemental payments/walk throughs | 0 |
| Overpayments | 4 |
Travel Tips
Airfare
When booking airfare, use these statewide contracts:
As always, if you have any questions regarding travel: call SAFS AP at 360-407-8183 or email travel.safs@des.wa.gov.
Contact Us
If you would like to know what budget analyst, payroll analyst and HR business partner is assigned to your agency, see our Agency Assignments webpage.
If you would like to get contact information for DES SAFS and HR staff, see our Contacts webpage.
If you have suggestions or feedback about the Small Agency Services Bulletin, please send your comments to SmallAgencyBulletin@des.wa.gov.