Disbursements is where money goes out. Use Disbursements to pay approved vendor invoices, cover operating expenses (such as buses for a field trip or competition entry fees), reimburse staff, or issue student refunds. Most school districts operate on cash-basis accounting — expenses are officially recorded when the disbursement payment is issued.
Think of Disbursements like writing checks from your school checkbook. You select who you are paying, determine the amount, allocate the expense to the appropriate fund, and issue the payment. Edlio Accounting manages check numbering, batch processing, and physical check printing automatically.
Single payments
To record an immediate, single payment without a prior invoice:
Navigate to Disbursements > New Payment > Single Payment.
Payee / Vendor: Select an approved vendor from your vendor list. (If your district enforces vendor approval workflows, vendors must be approved before payments can be posted). You may also select a Staff member or Student for reimbursements and refunds where configured.
Bank Account: Select the disbursing account (defaults to the primary checking account).
Payment Date: Defaults to the current date.
Amount: Enter the total payment amount.
Check Number: Auto-populates with the next sequential check number from your settings, incrementing by one.
Description: Enter the payment purpose (e.g., "Orchestra Sheet Music").
Fund Allocation: Choose which fund (or funds) the payment is drawn from. The system displays each fund's current available balance. Click + Add Fund to split an expense across multiple funds. A remaining-to-allocate indicator verifies that the distribution matches the check total.
Click Print Check to initiate check generation and post the transaction.
Check printing and error handling
Check printing utilizes your browser's native print dialog to route checks to your local pre-printed check stock printer.
Print Confirmation Workflow:
Before finalizing check records on the ledger, you preview the check and dispatch it to the printer. After the physical printing attempt, the system prompts you with a confirmation modal:
Yes, printed correctly: Officially posts the check to the ledger as Issued. You can then print the companion Payment Voucher detailing invoice items and fund allocations.
Printed to wrong paper / Test page: If the check printed correctly but onto plain paper or the wrong tray, the system allows you to Reprint with the same check number onto physical check stock without spoiling a check record.
Check damaged or printer jam: If physical check stock is torn, jammed, or printed improperly (e.g., printed upside down), select Void and Reissue. The system marks the spoiled physical check number as Void on the check register and generates a new payment record with the next sequential check number.
Paying invoices in batches
When paying multiple vendor bills on regular check-run days, use batch payments:
Ensure bills are recorded under Invoices (status: Posted).
Navigate to Disbursements > New Payment > Pay Invoices.
Select the vendor(s) and specific invoices you wish to pay. You can click Select All to pay all approved invoices in the queue.
The system automatically groups invoices by vendor — generating one check per vendor covering all selected invoices for that payee.
Review the batch verification summary: bank account, payment date, vendor count, total invoice count, and combined dollar amount.
Select Prepare Batch, then select Print Checks.
Complete the check print confirmation. Once confirmed, all included invoices transition from Posted to Paid.
Voiding checks and paid invoices
⚠️ Voiding sequence for invoice payments:
A paid invoice cannot be voided or edited directly while attached to an issued check. You must first void the check under Disbursements. Voiding the check reverses the cash deduction, restores the fund balance, and returns the invoice to Posted status. You can then edit or void the invoice.
Payment methods
Disbursements supports two primary disbursement methods:
Check: The standard method for school activity accounting. Checks are sequentially auto-numbered and printed on your local printer.
EFT / ACH: Electronic funds transfer. Generates a secure electronic bank file for direct upload to your financial institution portal.
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