accounting

name	accounting
description	Process receipts, track expenses in Google Sheets, reconcile records, and generate entertainment supplement tables for Field Museum procurement card accounting

Accounting Skill

Use this skill when the user wants to:

• Process new receipts and add expense records
• Reconcile receipts against spreadsheet records
• Generate entertainment supplement tables
• Check budget or fund balances
• Organize procurement card accounting

Keywords: receipt, expense, accounting, budget, fund, supplement, p-card, procurement, GL code, reconcile

Available Resources

• references/gl_codes.md — GL code reference table with entertainment flags
• references/supplement_guide.md — Supplement form layout and filing rules

Session Start

1. Detect year: Determine the current year from today's date. Confirm with the user: "Working on {year} expenses — correct?"

2. Get spreadsheet link: Check for spreadsheet_links.yaml in the working folder (/Users/bruno/Documents/docs_macbookair2015/lab/Field Museum/accounts_and_receipts).

   • If a link for this year already exists in the YAML, show it and ask: "Using this spreadsheet — correct? {url}"
   • If the file is missing or has no entry for this year, ask the user for the Google Sheet link. Save/update the link:

   {year}:
     spreadsheet_id: "{extracted_id}"
     url: "{full_url}"
   

3. Read current expenses: Detect the environment by checking whether the working folder exists at the Mac path (use Bash to test). Then:

   • On cowork (local Mac — working folder exists): Open the spreadsheet in Chrome so the user can interact with it:

     open -a "Google Chrome" "{full_url}"
     

     Also fetch the expenses tab via WebFetch CSV export:

     https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/{SPREADSHEET_ID}/gviz/tq?tqx=out:csv&sheet=expenses
     

     If the WebFetch CSV export fails or returns an auth/login page, note this and ask the user to manually export the sheet as CSV and provide the file path.

   • Not on cowork (cloud/remote — working folder absent): Fetch directly via WebFetch CSV export:

     https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/{SPREADSHEET_ID}/gviz/tq?tqx=out:csv&sheet=expenses
     

     If this fails, ask the user to paste the spreadsheet data or provide a downloaded CSV file.

   Parse the expenses data to understand existing records and the receipt numbers already used. Analyze patterns in existing records to learn Fund and GL code assignment conventions — e.g., which vendors consistently map to which funds and GL codes. Use these precedents when proposing values for new receipts rather than defaulting to a single fund.

4. Read past supplements: List and read existing supplement PDFs in {working_folder}/{year}/supplements/ to learn default patterns for entertainment supplement fields (Persons Involved, Business Purpose). For example, grocery store purchases may consistently use a standard lab group description while restaurant meals may list named attendees. Use these patterns as defaults when proposing supplement data for new entertainment expenses.

5. Scan receipts folder: List files in {working_folder}/{year}/receipts/. Identify:

   • Highest existing receipt number (pattern: YYXXX_...)
   • Any unnumbered files (those not matching the YYXXX_ prefix pattern)

6. Read all unnumbered files: Proactively read the contents of every unnumbered file before presenting anything to the user. Files may have misleading names (e.g., receipts_2026.pdf, Pcard Missing Receipt Form.pdf). Classify each file by inspection:

   • Normal receipt: proceed with processing
   • Duplicate: matches an already-numbered receipt — flag for user but don't process
   • Non-receipt: forms, summaries, statements — flag for user, skip processing
   • Unreadable: image too low-resolution or corrupted — flag and ask user for details

7. Report status:

   Year: {year}
   Spreadsheet: {url}
   Existing expense records: {count}
   Numbered receipts: {count} (highest: {number})
   Unnumbered files to process: {count}
   {list unnumbered filenames}
   

8. Ask the user what they'd like to do: process new receipts, reconcile, check budgets, or generate a supplement.

Phase 1: Receipt Processing

For each unnumbered file in the receipts folder:

Step 1.1 — Read the receipt

The file was already read during session start (step 6). Use the extracted contents. If the file was an image too low-resolution to read, acknowledge this immediately and ask the user for: vendor name, amount, date, and description. Do not guess from unreadable images.

From the receipt contents, extract:

• Vendor name
• Date of purchase
• Total amount (including tax)
• Description of items purchased
• Payment method if visible

Step 1.2 — Propose filename

Generate the next receipt number continuing from the highest existing number:

• Format: YYXXX_short_description.ext (keep original file extension)
• Short description: lowercase, underscores, 2-4 words describing the purchase
• Example: 26025_amazon_labsupplies.pdf

Step 1.3 — Propose expense record

Fill in all 10 columns of the expenses tab:

Field	How to determine
Expense	Brief description of what was purchased. For refunds/credits, match the original expense name from the spreadsheet followed by "(refund)" — e.g., "Claude subscription for students (refund)", not a generic description
Vendor	Vendor/merchant name from receipt
Cost	Total amount as $X.XX (negative for returns/credits)
date	Purchase date in D-Mon-YYYY format (e.g., 15-Mar-2026)
method	Default p-card unless user says otherwise
Fund	Propose based on patterns learned from existing spreadsheet records for the same vendor or expense type. Only ask the user if no clear precedent exists
GL code	Propose based on references/gl_codes.md (consult ALL codes, not just commonly used ones) AND patterns from existing spreadsheet records. Only ask the user if no clear precedent exists
receipt_number	The YYXXX number assigned in Step 1.2
notes	Leave empty unless something notable
request reimbursement	Leave empty unless user specifies

Step 1.4 — Entertainment check

If the GL code is an entertainment code (6455, 6460, 6470, 6475), collect supplement form fields. Use patterns learned from past supplements (read during session start, step 4) to propose defaults:

• Location: venue name and city (often derivable from receipt)
• Persons Involved: propose based on patterns from past supplements for similar expense types — e.g., grocery/snack purchases may consistently use a standard lab group description, while restaurant meals list named attendees. Only ask the user to confirm or correct, not to provide from scratch
• Business Purpose: propose based on past supplement patterns for the same venue or expense type. Only ask to confirm
• Alcohol: ask if alcohol was purchased (affects VP approval requirement)

Store this supplement data for Phase 4.

Step 1.5 — Confirm with user

Present all proposed data clearly and ask for confirmation before proceeding. Show:

• Proposed filename
• All expense record fields
• Entertainment supplement fields (if applicable)

Only after user confirms:

• Rename the file using mv
• Add the expense record to the accumulator for Phase 2

Step 1.6 — Repeat

Move to the next unnumbered file. After all files are processed, proceed to Phase 2.

Phase 2: Spreadsheet Update

After all receipts are processed:

1. Compile all new expense records using pipe | as separator, matching the column order:

   Expense|Vendor|Cost|date|method|Fund|GL code|receipt_number|notes|request reimbursement
   

2. Print the pipe-separated rows directly (do NOT write to a file). Instruct the user:

   • Click on the first empty cell in column A
   • Paste the text
   • Click the small paste icon that appears at the bottom-left
   • Select Split text to columns
   • Choose Custom separator and type |

3. Remind the user to sort the sheet by date after pasting if desired.

Phase 3: Reconciliation

Compare receipts folder against spreadsheet records:

1. Read current expenses from the spreadsheet (re-fetch via CSV export).
2. List receipt files in {year}/receipts/ matching the YYXXX_ pattern.
3. Compare:
   • Orphaned receipts: files in folder with no matching receipt_number in the spreadsheet
   • Missing files: spreadsheet records whose receipt_number has no matching file
   • Note: some receipt numbers may cover multiple expense rows (same receipt, multiple items) — this is expected
4. Report findings clearly, listing any discrepancies.

Phase 4: Entertainment Supplement

Generate the supplement table for a given month:

1. Ask which month to generate (default: current or most recent month with entertainment expenses).

2. Filter entertainment expenses (GL 6455/6460/6470/6475) for that month from the spreadsheet.

3. Combine with the supplement data collected during Phase 1 (if in the same session) or ask the user for missing fields.

4. Format as a table matching the supplement form layout:

   Date | Location | Persons Involved (Name, Title, Company) | Business Purpose | Total
   -----|----------|------------------------------------------|-----------------|------
   {rows}
                                                                          Total: ${sum}
   

5. Output the table as copyable text.

6. Note if any expenses involved alcohol (VP approval required).

7. Remind: save as supplement_BASM_{YYYY}_{MM}.pdf in {year}/supplements/.

Phase 5: Budget & Fund Check

On user request:

1. Fetch the funds tab via CSV export — show available balances per fund.
2. Fetch the budget tab via CSV export — show spending by GL category, flag any over-budget items.
3. Present a concise summary with the most relevant information.

Communication Guidelines

• Be concise. Lead with the data, not explanations.
• When proposing expense records, present them in a clear table format.
• When multiple receipts need processing, handle them one at a time — don't batch confirmations.
• For the paste block, use pipe | as separator. Tab-separated text does not survive copy-paste from Claude, and commas conflict with values. Pipe is safe and Google Sheets supports it via custom separator.
• Always confirm before renaming files or finalizing expense records.