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University Departmental Credit Card Program

Purpose

The University Credit Card Program has been established as a service to campus departments. This program allows departments the opportunity to use a University credit card to purchase certain goods costing less than $1,500. The University benefits from the use of the credit card by utilizing a procurement process that allows for the placement and payment of small dollar orders in a more efficient and cost effective manner. This program is entirely voluntary. If a department decides that the University Credit Card Program is right for them, they will be required to follow the established rules and procedures. All cardholders will be held accountable for their actions.

Highlights of Major Changes

·          The per-transaction limit may be raised up to $1,500.

·          Travel and Hospitality items may now be purchased on this program.

·          Credit cardholders and their supervisor will review and approve all purchases on-line. 

·          Receipts must be kept for at least 2 years, plus the current year.

·          Excluded items have been reduced.

Travel and Hospitality Items Now Permitted on Credit Card Program

Travel and hospitality items may now be included on the Departmental Credit Card program.  Cardholders will be allowed to purchase travel items such as airfare, hotel rooms, vehicle rentals, meals (complying with University travel policies), registrations and memberships.  In all cases, the travel and/or hospitality expenses must be pre-approved by the cardholder’s supervisor and the amount must be in line with the established University travel policies.  Please see the Controller’s Web Site at http://www3.uakron.edu/controller for the University’s Travel Policies.  

If meals are charged to the Departmental Credit Card, the cardholder must not exceed the per-meal allowance established by the University Travel Policy. In addition, if the cardholder uses the University Credit Card to pay for meals, he/she will not be allowed to also submit for reimbursement based upon the daily per diem limits.  If the University Credit Card is used to pay for meals, the employee will not be reimbursed for any per diem amounts not used.

·          The cardholder will be expected to know and follow all University travel policies.

·          The per-transaction amount cannot exceed $1,500.

·          The cardholder’s supervisor, or authorized designee, will be expected to review and approve all expenditures.

·          The amount spent for meals cannot exceed the individual per diem limit set by University travel policy.

How Departmental Credit Cards Work

Making a University related purchase with your Departmental Credit Card is as simple as using any credit card.  The following information describes the process:

• Departmental Credit Cards have a per transaction limit of up to $1,500.  No single purchase may exceed $1,500. Combining purchase transactions to circumvent the $1,500 per transaction limit is prohibited. 
• Monthly transaction limits are recommended by the using department and are subject to approval by the Director of Purchasing.
• Cardholders should first determine that the selected item is not on the excluded list and therefore not available for purchase under this program.  If you should have any questions as to what is excluded under this program, please contact the Department of Purchasing at ext. 7340 or visit the Purchasing Web Site at:

http://www3.uakron.edu/purchasing/CreditCardProgram.htm

• Cardholders should then determine if the selected vendor accepts VISA credit card transactions. If they do, the cardholder should then notify the supplier that an order is being placed on behalf of The University of Akron to assure that all applicable discounts are extended and that State of Ohio sales tax is not charged. The Ohio sales tax exemption number is shown on the credit card.

• Orders may be placed with the selected supplier either by mail, phone, fax, Internet or in person. If orders are being placed via the Internet or fax, the department is cautioned to only use known and/or reputable vendors. Cardholders are cautioned to print out receipts for all Internet orders and to keep all receipts with their monthly log.

• The supplier processes the transaction, requesting purchase authorization from the bank.

• The bank verifies that the purchase is within the cardholder’s spending limits. Within seconds, the supplier receives an approval, rejection, or referral to the bank.

• If you are at the supplier location, sign the sales receipt and take the Cardholder’s copy. You can either take your purchase with you or arrange to have it delivered, depending on the supplier and stock availability. Cardholders are reminded to give the supplier their complete address (name, room number, building, street address, city, state, and ZIP code -including your Zip plus four number). This will help to ensure proper delivery.

• If you make the purchase by phone, fax, Internet or mail, the supplier can deliver your purchase and send the sales receipt to you or you can pick up the goods and sales receipt in person.
• Cardholders are required to keep accurate receipts for all of their credit card transactions and to log them on to their monthly log sheet. The log sheet is provided by Purchasing.  
• On a monthly basis, the cardholders are expected to send their credit card logs, which includes all receipts, to their supervisor and/or Department Head. The receipts are to be kept by the department/cardholder for a period of at least two (2) years.  These receipts are subject to audit by the University Auditor, Purchasing, or external auditors and must be centrally available for this inspection process.

• Cardholders will be sent weekly e-mail notices reminding them to review their list of weekly transactions on line at http://www.paymentnet.com. The cardholder will be asked to check the Reviewed box so that their supervisor can see that they have reviewed and agree with the charges. The cardholder’s supervisor is also sent an e-mail notice asking them to review and approve the cardholder’s purchases.
• Cardholders may dispute any charge on-line while they are reviewing their weekly charges or may dispute a charge directly by contacting JP Morgan Chase (also referred to as Paymentnet).  Phone number: 1-800-270-7760.

• Departments should remember these types of transactions are not encumbered against their departmental accounts until the monthly invoice is paid.

• The credit card is the property of The University of Akron and must be returned upon termination of employment.

 EXAMPLES OF UNAUTHORIZED EXPENDITURES:

• Hazardous Chemicals are defined as any chemical with the following information on the label: explosive, flammable, oxidizer, corrosive or poison and with either a flammability, health or reactivity designation factor above one (1).

• To save dollars, departments should strive to use the credit card with vendors that the University may have under contract. An example of this would be office supplies. Departments may contact Purchasing for more information about contracts that may apply to them or visit our web site at:

          http://www3.uakron.edu/purchasing/ContractsandCooperatives.htm.

• Departments should continue to purchase items stocked in Central Stores. These items are normally very competitively priced and offer the convenience of on-campus stock.
• For all off-campus printed materials, departments are expected to work with Institutional Marketing for prior approvals.

To Obtain a Card

The use of the Departmental Credit Card Program is completely voluntary. If an individual is interested in having a credit card assigned to them, the requestor must complete an application, complete with Department Head or supervisors’ approval, and return it to the Department of Purchasing for processing. The application packet will explain the program, the procedures that must be followed and the responsibility that comes with using this credit card program. All cards are issued at the request of the department head or supervisor, and card usage may be audited and/or rescinded at any time. Purchasing will work with the requesting department or individual to establish the appropriate spending limit for each card.

The cardholder is the only person who can authorize a purchase to be made with their credit card! Finally, remember you are committing University funds each time you use the Departmental Credit Card. This is a responsibility that cannot be taken lightly.

Purchasing will offer training for every individual signing up for the Departmental Credit Card Program.

Tracking Your Purchases

The cardholder will be required to keep a log of all credit card transactions. Anyone using the University credit card will be required to return all logs, with receipts, to the responsible individual in their department. The department will be required to keep all credit card receipts with the monthly cardholder log in a central location and should use the log and receipts when reviewing and approving the weekly Internet statement. The department/cardholder will be required to keep the log and receipts for at least the required two (2) year period, plus the current year, for auditing and record retention purposes.

Payment of the Credit Card Statement

Cardholders will be sent weekly e-mail notices reminding them to review their list of weekly transactions on line at http://www.paymentnet.com. The cardholder will be asked to check the Reviewed box so that their supervisor can see that they have reviewed and agree with the charges. The cardholder’s supervisor is also sent an e-mail notice asking them to electronically review and approve each cardholder’s purchases.

If there are no discrepancies, the cardholder will check the Reviewed box.  Next the supervisor will review the transactions and if OK check the Approved box on the JP Morgan Chase (also referred to as Paymentnet) web site.  Purchasing will initiate the monthly direct payment process based upon the system approvals.

After the purchases have been electronically reviewed and approved by the cardholder and the supervisor, neither the cardholder nor the department will need to do anything further to complete the payment process. 

If the cardholder and/or supervisor do not complete the system approval process, Purchasing will use a negative approval process and have the monthly invoice automatically paid.

Departments will be contacted for an explanation if the electronic approval process was not completed. Cardholders and/or supervisors who refuse to use the electronic approval process may have their credit card privileges revoked.

Purchases will be charged against the account number that is originally established for the University Credit Card. If the department wishes to charge any portion of their monthly purchases to a different account code, they only need to change the account code when they review and approve the purchase on-line.  This change needs to be completed by the 10^th of the month.

If there are any questions regarding any expenditure, the department and the cardholder must be willing and able to answer questions pertaining to the purchase. These questions could come from Purchasing, Accounts Payable or our internal/external auditors. The receipts and monthly logs will help departments answer these questions.

Sales Tax

The University of Akron is a tax-exempt organization. Therefore, we are not subject to many federal taxes and are always exempt from State of Ohio Sales Tax. Cardholders should remind all vendors of our tax-exempt status and be sure that Ohio Sales Tax is not added to the invoice. If needed, copies of the University's Tax Exemption Certificate may be obtained from the Department of Purchasing. Should you have any questions regarding whether or not tax should be paid, please contact the Department of Purchasing at ext. 7340.

Some suppliers may require a "Tax Exemption" form before deducting the sales tax from a University purchase. For your reference, the University’s Tax Exemption number is 34-6002924 and is also shown on the Departmental Credit Card.  Blank exemption forms may be seen at the following web address:

http://www3.uakron.edu/purchasing/forms/TaxExemption.PDF

Lost or Stolen Cards

The Departmental Credit Card is University property and should be secured just as you would secure your personal credit cards. If a card is lost or stolen, the cardholder should immediately notify JP Morgan Chase (phone number: 1-800-VISA-911) and also the Department of Purchasing at ext. 7340.  Written confirmation of card loss should also be sent to Purchasing as soon as possible to limit University liability.

Upon receipt of your call, further use of the Credit Card will be blocked.  Prompt action in these circumstances can reduce the University's and your Department's liability for fraudulent charges.

This page is maintained by the Department of Purchasing Web Team. Please send mail to Purchasing with questions or comments about this web site. The University of Akron is an Equal Education and Employment Institution.

Copyright © 1999. Last modified: 11/03/2005