!!TRUNC (Date usage)
!Functionality: 
This Oracle function will remove a portion of the date, and return a valid date back to you.

Also see the numeric usage of the [TRUNC] function.
 
!Parameters:
|Date/Time        |The date that you want truncated
|Format           |(optional) An indication of what you want truncated to

!Returns:
Date

!Errors:
None

!Operations: 
All Oracle date format fields are actually a Date/Time stamp with a date portion and a time portion.  The application does not normally make use of the Time portion of a date variable and so the time is always defaulted as midnight (00:00:00.00)

Without a FORMAT parameter, this will return the date as a date at midnight.  __It is strongly recommended  that you use this function when referencing the [SYSDATE] construct in relation to [EXPIRY] and [EFFECTIVE] dates.__

With a FORMAT parameter, it will selectively remove part of the date information:

!Examples:

{{TRUNC(~)}} will return the date passed (but with a time stamp of midnight)

{{TRUNC(~,’MM’)}} will return the first day of the month 

{{TRUNC(~,’YYYY’)}} will return the first day of the year