Wesley Chapel wraps up municipal accounting conversion; council extends auditor contract to Feb. 28, 2026

A representative of the municipal accounting program told Wesley Chapel’s council the town has completed a multi-month conversion to a new fund-accounting software and the uniform chart of accounts, and staff have been trained to use the system to process payroll, reconciliations and reporting.

"We've been working with the town for just over a year and a half on prepping for a software conversion...the town went live in February," said Chase, who identified himself in the transcript as Chase Mwood and described the program as funded with state-dispersed American Rescue Plan funds intended to improve financial capacity in small towns. He said the statewide program aims to convert 40–60 towns by the program’s end in December 2026 and that Wesley Chapel is the 25th to convert.

Chase and staff highlighted new features available to the town — the uniform chart of accounts, an in-house payroll module, bank positive-pay files to reduce check fraud, and a help desk and annual user conference to sustain knowledge sharing among municipalities.

Separately, the finance officer (referred to in the meeting as Lori) requested council approval to extend the auditing contract to Feb. 28, 2026, citing the auditor’s illness and an overload of work that made the auditor a bottleneck. A council member moved, another seconded, and the council approved the extension unanimously so the mayor could sign the contract extension.

Council members praised the contractor and town staff for their work during the conversion and accepted a plaque and brief remarks from the program representative. Staff said they remain available for follow-up training and technical assistance as the town fully adopts the new procedures and reporting.