How to Simplify Municipality Payment Processing

Government finance teams have many responsibilities – perhaps the most important (and challenging) being payment processing. It may sound simple, but payment processing includes strict regulatory compliance, a high volume of diverse transactions from multiple departments, security concerns and more. 

If government agencies operated with state-of-the-art technology and processes, it would be one thing. But that’s rarely the case. 

As you can attest, payment processing in the public sector often relies on multiple outdated and disparate systems. The lack of integration and automation can lead to inefficiencies and errors. 

Fortunately, there’s a solution. In this article, we’ll explore your most common challenges with payment processing and how the right technology can help.

Challenges With Municipality Payment Processing

Lack of Integration

Government agencies often use multiple payment vendors and systems. In most cases, there’s a good reason for the payment system that was developed or purchased. But overtime the lack of integration leads to inefficiencies and wasted time.

Without a single integrated system, reconciling financial data across platforms becomes a time-consuming task. Data must be manually reentered or transferred, which increases the risk of human error and inaccurate reporting. Disparate systems complicate workflows, which delays the exchange of information needed for informed decision-making.

Disparate Data Sources

Lack of integration creates data silos. Data silos make it difficult to get a comprehensive view of financial activities. 

Each department might use different systems or databases, leading to inconsistent data collection and analysis methods. This disparity can cause significant challenges in reconciling accounts and generating accurate financial reports. Without a central system to aggregate data, extracting meaningful insights becomes a tedious and error-prone process.

Reporting

Accurate and timely reporting is important for finance teams. Unfortunately, it becomes a challenge with inadequate payment processing systems. 

As mentioned above, disparate systems can lead to incomplete data capture, which makes comprehensive reporting difficult. It takes a lot of manual effort to consolidate data from various sources for reporting. And manual effort increases the likelihood of errors. 

Not only that, with non-flexible or end-of-day cut-off times, daily reporting and settlements are harder to manage. Many third party providers only offer limited end-of-day cutoff times and don’t have the ability to synchronize with your software solution. This lack of functionality makes your job more difficult.

Maintaining Compliance

Multiple payment vendors and systems can complicate your annual PCI compliance process. 

Many third party providers introduce additional and needless payment components that only end up increasing your compliance scope and complexity.

Not only that, disparate payment systems may require separate updates to maintain compliance with new laws or standards. The inability to monitor all transactions consistently increases the risk of non-compliance. And as you know, non-compliance can lead to fines and damage your credibility.

Security Risks

Outdated and unintegrated payment systems increase vulnerability to breaches and fraud. Each system may have varying levels of security measures, and weaker points could be exploited by cybercriminals. Managing security protocols across multiple platforms is both challenging and resource-intensive. 

You and your finance team have probably experienced these challenges firsthand. Keep reading to learn how the right payment solution can help.

How New Technology Solves Payment Problems

Modern technology solves many of the payment challenges facing government finance teams. By integrating advanced software solutions, you can automate processes, speed up transactions, and reduce the risk of human errors.

Reduced Administrative Workload

Does your team have too much to do and too little time? The right payment software can reduce your administrative workload. Automated systems can handle tasks such as data entry, calculation, and even compliance checks, which significantly cut down the time and labor usually required. This automation minimizes human error and streamlines operations, allowing staff to focus on more strategic tasks that require human oversight. 

Faster Payments

Modern payment technologies let you process and reconcile payments instantly with secure, real-time data transmission. This allows you to meet financial obligations promptly, improve cashflow management and accurately plan budgets.

Better Citizen Experience

Payment software makes it easier for citizens to make payments and view their financial records. By equipping citizens to interact with government payment systems from any digital device, you foster transparency and improve public trust.

Simpler Compliance

New technology can also improve compliance management. By adhering to the latest regulatory requirements, it ensures all transactions comply with current laws and standards.

Key Features of Modern Payment Solutions

The integration of new technology in government payment systems is transforming how agencies manage finances. It offers more secure, efficient, and user-friendly processes that benefit both the government and its citizens. 

Unfortunately, not all payment technologies are created equal. It’s important to make sure your solution is equipped with the right features and functionality.

Online Payments

This feature allows for instant, secure transfers of funds. It’s a convenient solution for citizens too. Not only does it encourage timely payments, but it increases overall satisfaction with government services. 

For example, with outdated or disparate systems, citizens may not receive timely payment processing notifications. But modern solutions should provide timely e-notifications and receipts to keep citizens updated on the status of their payment transactions.

It’s also important to find a solution with flexible payment models and options. The right solution will let you use different fee-based payment models for each department, such as absorbed and service fee processing. It will drive all of your online, in-person, phone-in, autopay and IVR payment processing.

Automated Reconciliation

For many finance teams, daily payment reconciliation is a manual process that requires accessing multiple data sources. In short, it takes a lot of time and is prone to human error.

With an automated reconciliations feature, your payment solution will ensure accurate transaction and settlement data so daily reconciliation is easily achieved. It will provide flexible, end-of-day cutoff times in your local time zone so your team can reconcile financial data every day with less stress – from payroll to expenditures and beyond.

Reporting and Analysis

Reporting and analysis features allow you to track, monitor, and report on financial data, which facilitates better decision-making and strategic planning. 

With enhanced reporting capabilities, you can maintain compliance more easily and offer clear financial overviews to stakeholders and the public. Analysis tools help you identify trends, allocate funds more strategically and optimize budget planning.

Compliance

The features above will help your team adhere to daily and annual compliance standards. To simplify your annual compliance process, try to find a cloud-based payment solution that is Level 1 PCI compliant and reduces your overall PCI scope.

One Stop Shop

Look for solutions that can be your single source for all payment needs:

• Utility Bills
• Property Taxes
• Tax Payments
• Licensing and Permit Fees
• Miscellaneous Payments

Single Point of Support

With multiple payment systems and vendors, it can be difficult receiving proper support and resolving issues quickly. By choosing a solution that acts as your one-stop shop, you also get a dedicated support team for all your payment needs. By eliminating all third party payment providers, solutions like CentralSquare Payments give you more timely and accurate payment processing support.

How CentralSquare Solves Your Challenges

CentralSquare Payments provides all the features and benefits listed above. It solves your most common and frustrating payment challenges so your finance team can operate efficiently, maintain compliance and increase public trust.

CentralSquare Payments is a cloud-based platform that lets you manage payments in real-time across multiple transactional systems. Citizens get the benefit of using a solution that is convenient and reliable, while your team saves time by eliminating manual back-office processes.

Schedule a discovery call today to learn how CentralSquare Payments was built for the specific needs of your public sector department.