File Import Specification for SAMS:

• SAMS will require that the import file contain a header line in which the first six characters contain the districts code and that columns 14-17 must be the form year XXYY (example 1516 for the 2015-16 school year). Columns 7-13 are not edited;

• The import file must end with a line containing only 6 capital letter Xs. XXXXXX The files produced by the DEA always had this as an end of file marker so that incompletely transmitted files could be rejected;

• Each data record is coded in the following fixed width column format:

Five spaces, the digit one, two digit form number, three digit item number (right justified space filled on the left), the symbols #= followed by the value to be loaded. For the ST-3 all values are whole numbers (no decimals).

The form and item numbers are NOT the printed line numbers on the ST-3 but rather the internal "legacy" item numbers (please contact SED for the current year crosswalk file and more information).

Columns 7-8 - two digit form number
Columns 9-11 - three digit item number right justified
Columns 12-13 - #=
Columns 14 to end - data value

• SAMS will reject any file containing a form and item data record unknown to SAMS (such as deleted accounts) or data records containing invalid numeric data or data which otherwise violates hard edit rules in SAMS (such as project numbers must be at least 6 characters etc.). This is unlike the DEA so vendors must be certain to remove any extraneous records.
  
  
• SAMS will display an appropriate message if the file is rejected.

For example for the upcoming year a sample file would look like:

123456SAMS   1314
     148  1#=1342948
     148  6#=3357
     148  7#=551849
     148  9#=1797
     148 11#=1797
     148 13#=7849
     148 15#=1435
XXXXXX