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CALSTARS (California State Accounting & Reporting System)

What's New

CALSTARS changes of note are presented here, in reverse chronological order.


JANUARY 2013

Microfiche output no longer available for CALSTARS reports

OTech terminated its microfiche services on December 31, 2012; therefore, CALSTARS reports can no longer be ordered on microfiche. The default output for CALSTARS reports set for microfiche has been changed to data files (D1). Please note that “D1” files are erased from TSO directories after 14 days.

To change a CALSTARS report’s default destination to another destination, departments can send an e-mail to calstars@dof.ca.gov with a subject line of 'Report Routing' that states the following:

For more information regarding CALSTARS reports, please refer to CPM Volume 6 at:

www.dof.ca.gov/html/calstars/calsdocs/manual/VOLUME-6/v6toc.pdf

November 2012

Electronic Report Storage (E1) option available for System Generated Reports

The Electronic Report Storage (E1) option is now available for system generated reports.  Previously, only standard CALSTARS reports could use this option.  The electronic data files created using the E1 option are similar to data files created using a D1 or F1 option; however, the E1 files are only produced in zip-compressed format and their retention periods are much longer.  
System generated reports include:

  • Nightly batch processing reports - Batch transaction inputs and history update, batch control status, system maintenance activity (claim schedule, error correction, CALSTARS tables), etc.
  • Online process reports - Automated checks, check registers, batch prints, CALSTARS Report Request Table Reference (Ref) Card, etc.
  • Subsystem process reports - Labor distribution, cost allocation and fund split, month-end rollover, year-end rollover, year-end close and open, Document File purge, Vendor Edit table purge, Vendor Payment File purge, Schedule 10 transmittal, etc.
  • External reports - Reports produced by another agency and electronically transferred or imported on tape into CALSTARS and printed in the original format (SCO fund reconciliation reports, SCO tab run and transactions, DGS invoices, etc.).
  • Interface reports - Data sets or records produced by another agency and electronically transferred or imported on tape into CALSTARS (SCO payroll interface, CD-102 data, etc.).
  • Upload reports - Reports produced when data is uploaded (external) for CALSTARS batches, tables, or timesheets.

    To learn more about the Electronic Report Storage (E1) option and system generated reports, refer to CALSTARS Procedures Manual Volume 6, Chapters 2-C and  2-D.

  • January 2012

    New Password Requirements

    Beginning on January 19, 2012, all new passwords will require 8 characters, are case sensitive and must contain:

    • At least one alphabetic uppercase letter or one national character (#, @, $) and
    • At least one alphabetic lower case and
    • At least one number

    Current passwords that have not expired or been revoked on January 18, 2012, may be used until it is expired or revoked. 
    A new password is required if it has expired, been revoked, or a change is needed and the temporary password will be “12345”.

  • December 2011

    New Check Message Table

    The new Check Message Table was installed and the Financial Transaction Entry and History Inquiry screens were revised to take advantage of the enhanced message functionality. This table contains agency defined messages that are used to print on checks. For more information refer to the CALSTARS Procedure Manual Volume 2, Chapter IV-CM.

  • Added a new vendor type X for Exempt Corporations.

    Added a new vendor type X for Exempt Corporations. All payments to vendor type X are not reportable. For more information refer to the CALSTARS Procedure Manual Volume 1, Chapter XII or Volume 2, Chapter IV-VE.

  • OCTOBER 2011

    Added a New Chapter to CALSTARS Procedure Manual Volume 1

    Added a new chapter to CALSTARS Procedure Manual Volume 1, outlining the procedures and 4 new Transaction Codes for collecting and remitting State Income Taxes withheld from Out of State Vendors as required in SAM 8422.195 and 8422.196. The new Transaction Codes are W21, W22, W23 and W24 and can be found here.

  • July 2011

    The Pre-Closing Trial Balance Report  

    The Pre-Closing Trial Balance Report (Report 7) and the Post-Closing Trial Balance Report (Report 8) of the CSTARG02 were modified to print an asterisk (*) to the right of the General Ledger Account Number (GLAN) when an abnormal balance is detected. A warning message is also printed at the end of the report for each fund. This reminds users that a footnote is required by the State Controller’s Office when an abnormal balance is encountered.

    The Report of Expenditures of Federal Funds 

    The Report of Expenditures of Federal Funds (Report 13) of the CSTARQ34 has been modified to better fulfill federal reporting requirements. Please note that the submission requirements of this report also have changed.

    Changes in Data Center Practices 

    Due to changes in data center practices, reports ordered on Saturdays between July 1 and August 20 before 1:00 pm with an output destination of ‘L’ are delivered on the following Monday afternoon.

  • April 2011

    Changes to CALSTARS Security Programs 

    Changes were made to CALSTARS Security programs in anticipation of new CTA data center requirements. These changes do not affect current CALSTARS users except that the temporary CALSTARS New User ID or Reset Password has been changed from ‘TEMP’ to ‘12345’.

  • January 2011

    Remittance Advice Message Table

    The new Remittance Advice Message Table (RM) was installed and the Financial Transaction Entry and History Inquiry screens were revised to take advantage of the enhanced message functionality.

    G.2 Request File Copy Screen 

    A feature was added to the G.2 Request File Copy screen that allows CALSTARS users to order electronic copies of their agency’s Warrant Number file.

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