SHARS Cost Report: STAIRS Information

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Upload Center in STAIRS

The Upload Center in STAIRS allows districts to upload documentation that support claimed costs in SHARS Cost Report. Districts are encouraged to upload any and all supporting documentation preparation of the Cost Report or soon  after submission. To assist in more expeditious audit reviews, HHSC SHARS encourages all districts to upload  a copy of the following in their cost report’s Upload Center if possible:

  • Scanned Transportation Logs
  • Detailed Payroll, Benefits & Taxes (previously done in Section 3.a. and Section 4.a. of the cost report)
  • Detailed Transportation Costs (previously done in Section 4.d. of the cost report
  • Cooperative or Special Services Agreement (SSA)
  • Invoices or Ledgers with line item descriptions that support claimed Appendix A costs
  • Medicaid Eligibility Lists

State of Texas Automated Information Reporting System (STAIRS) Contact Definitions

Below are the definitions for the different types of entity contacts in the new STAIRS platform. Please review them to better understand the roles available for cost reporting.

Entity Contact (Primary or Secondary)

  •  Superintendent — Added to STAIRS by HHSC. Superintendents are always the PRIMARY Entity Contact
  • ONLY district employees
  • Can assign other entity contacts (secondary), financial contacts, and preparers
  • Can assign themselves as the preparer
  • Cannot fill out the cost report unless they have assigned themselves the preparer role
  • Cannot certify Step 10 Preparer Certification unless they have assigned themselves the preparer role
  • Can certify Step 11 Entity Contact Certification

Financial Contact (Primary or Secondary)

  • Assigned by the Entity Contact
  • Must be a district employee
  • There must be one PRIMARY Financial Contact, and there can be multiple secondary Financial Contacts
  • Has the same access to the cost report as the Entity Contact
  • Cannot add the preparer
  • Cannot fill the cost report
  • Cannot certify Step 10 Preparer Certification
  •  Can certify Step 11 Entity Contact Certification

Preparer (Primary or Secondary)

  • Assigned by the Entity Contact
  • There must be one PRIMARY Preparer, and there can be multiple secondary Preparers
  • Prepares the cost report
  • REQUIRED to complete SHARS Cost Report Training
  • Must be assigned ANNUALLY by the Entity Contact
  • Can be a district employee, a cooperative employee, or a contracted vendor
  • Has access to Steps 1 through 10 of the cost report
  • Must certify Step 10 Preparer Certification
  • Cannot certify Step 11 Entity Contact Certification.
  • Can print Entity Contact Certification so the Preparer and the Entity Contact can sign the form, and have it notarized at the same time.