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APPENDICES

APPENDIX A-Purchasing Card

Purchasing Card One-Stop Page for Reconcilers (printable pdf format)

Purchasing Card Support Form (printable pdf format)

PURCHASING CARD RECONCILATION

ALLOWABLE RECEIPTS

Receipts are required for Purchasing Card transactions under University policy. Receipts generally provide an itemized listing of the items purchased which is essential for audit purposes. Receipts are used to verify the following:

• The purchase complies with University policies and was for the conduct of University business
• The purchase is allowable on the Purchasing Card
• Listing of items assists in determining correct coding of transactions within the accounting records (correct object code)
• The amount of the purchase and the vendor information transmitted from PNC Bank agrees to the original purchase (verification of electronic transmission)

ACCEPTABLE RECEIPTS:

• Credit card or cash register receipt (the one which details items purchased)
• For group meals, detailed receipt and completed/signed Group Meal Form
• For phone or mail orders, credit card receipt or invoice/statement from vendor
• For goods ordered, invoice/statement or priced packing slip, signed by cardholder to indicate receipt of goods

For phone, fax, web, and mail orders, the following should be done to assure that a receipt is received:

• For phone orders: Cardholder should request a receipt when order is placed and should verify that the receipt will be sent to the cardholder's address, NOT Purchasing. In addition, the cardholder should verify the total cost (including shipping and handling) when the order is placed. This should be noted for future reference in the event that a receipt is not received. It is recommended that order forms be completed and retained for use as a receipt if the packing slip is not priced.
• For fax and mail orders: Include a statement to the vendor that a receipt or priced packing slip is required. Retain a copy of the order form sent to the vendor for use as a receipt if one is not received or the packing slip is not priced.
• For web orders: If possible, include a statement that a receipt or priced packing slip is required. Print the order form or order confirmation from the web to use as a receipt if none is received from the vendor - be sure that the information printed includes the pricing information as well as a description of what was purchased. Email confirmations with pricing information are acceptable.

If receipts are not available because a vendor cannot or will not provide a receipt, the following support will be accepted on an exception basis:

• For conference registrations or subscriptions: Completed order form (price(s) should be on the order form), indication of how order placed (phone, mail, fax) and signature of cardholder
• For non-priced packing slips: A record of the total cost must be included, signed by the cardholder. This could be a completed order form with prices indicated. For phone orders, cardholders should always request verification of the total cost for the order - this should be noted on the order form in the event a priced packing slip or invoice/statement indicating price and amount paid is not received (see above).
• Purchases from the Web: Print the order form or other acknowledgement of the purchase from the web. Documentation should include the price paid as well as a description of the item purchased.

NOTE: If the price is not indicated on the order form, but is noted by the cardholder, the documentation must be reviewed and approved by the Financial Officer prior to reconciliation and posting by the reconciler. The Financial Officer will indicate approval by signing the supporting documentation. Acceptance of supporting receipts and/or documentation is at the discretion of the Financial Officer.

CREDIT TRANSACTIONS:
Receipts are not required for credit transactions, such as for the return of items or correction of duplicate charges, IF the amount agrees to the total purchase or can be derived from the original receipt (i.e. credit for sales tax charged). However, the cardholder or reconciler should photocopy the original receipt, indicate that a credit was received, and the reconciler should note the P-number of the original transaction on the documentation. In addition, the RPCC should indicate the P-number of the original charge.

DUPLICATE TRANSACTIONS:
From time to time, vendors inadvertently process duplicate charges. Receipts are not required for these, but the same procedure used for credit transactions should be used. The original receipt should be photocopied and the documentation should indicate that this is a duplicate charge and the reconciler should note the original P-number both on the documentation as well as on the RPCC. Once a credit is received, the P-number of the credit should also be noted on the duplicate documentation.

RECEIPTS FOR RETURNED ITEMS:

• If a vendor requires a receipt to process return, provide a photocopy. If this is not acceptable, return original receipt and keep photocopy in file (note that original returned to vendor with returned item).

IF A RECEIPT IS LOST, THE FOLLOWING STEPS SHOULD BE TAKEN:

• Contact the vendor for a replacement receipt
• If a receipt cannot be obtained from the vendor, the cardholder should complete the Support Form for Lost or Unobtainable Receipts which is available as a fill and print form in GURU. This form must be completed, signed by the cardholder, and approved as noted on the form BEFORE the transaction can be reconciled.

PURCHASING CARD SUPPORT FORM:
It is recommended that a Purchasing Card Support Form be used for credit card receipts, to allow adequate space for providing data on the purchase, as well as providing a standard size to make filing and retrieving receipts easier. A sample Purchasing Card Support Form is available through your Financial Officer or in GURU . {top}

APPENDIX B- Fly America Act:

http://www.tvlon.com/resources/FlyAct.html

APPENDIX C- Fabrication Guidelines

Guidelines for Object Class Code 705
Fabrication of Capital Equipment

Requires prior approval from the Property Inventory Department

1. Criteria for using 705 - The fabricated piece of equipment when completed must have a value of $5,000 or more and title must be with Penn State.
2. A written request must be sent to Property Inventory asking to use object class 705 and should include the following:
   • Principal Investigator (Custodian)
   • Description of equipment being built
   • Budget being used
   • Fund being used
   • Approximate cost
   • Approximate length of time to build
3. When funding is changed, notify Property Inventory in writing providing:
   • Old budget and fund
   • New budget and fund
4. If adding a new funding, notify Property Inventory in writing providing:
   • Present budget and fund
   • Additional budget and fund
5. All expenses for fabrication or development of the equipment can be used in object class 705 except :
   • Any piece of equipment costing $5,000 or more which can be used independently should be coded 710.
6. The Penn State purchasing card CANNOT be used for 705 purchases.
7. Upon completion of the fabricated equipment, notify Property Inventory in order that:
   • Property Inventory can review your accumulated purchases for this equipment
   • After the review, the equipment will be tagged.
8. Please include the reference number provided to you by Property Inventory on all correspondence.

NOTE: If the guidelines above are not followed, the funding is in jeopardy of losing the overhead charge exemption. {top}

APPENDIX D- FIT (Financial Information Tool)

Explanation of ECOS FIT Report

Section A:
This information is referred to as the "Header" and is downloaded from the electronic account set up.

1. Includes the Account Number (department number), Account Name (abbreviated agency and title) and the Grant or Award Number.
2. Project Correspondence (Principal Investigator), Award Amount and Amount Allocated (cumulative).
3. Account Begin and Account End Dates are the dates of the agency award.
4. Fringe Rates: These are the fringe benefit rates that are applied to the four salary categories. Acad (Cat I), Non-Acad (Cat I), Grad (Cat II), Wage (Cat III), and student (Cat IV). Also on this line is the current F&A Rate (Facilities and Administration Fee) and Cost Sharing.

Section B:

1. "Line Description" - These line items mimic the format of the proposed budget categories.
2. "Perm Budget" - Breakdown of award by category based on the proposed budget.
3. "Temp Budget" - Internal use for Research Office budget reallocations (net should be zero).
4. "Total Budget" - The sum of "Perm Budget" and "Temp Budget."
5. "Total Encm" - All IBIS financial transactions, such as, electronic forms (Purchase Orders, Travel Expenses, General Stores, etc.) and manual encumbrances remain here until paid.
6. "Actual" - When encumbrances are paid, they shift to the "Actual" column. P-card (purchasing card) or direct bill transactions do not encumber but flow directly to the "Actual."
7. "Balance" - What is remaining in each line description or category.

KEEP IN MIND

• All appointed salaries are encumbered either to the end of the award period of the end of the fiscal year (June 30), whichever comes first.
• Wage payroll is processed bi-weekly but is NOT encumbered by most departments.
• DBAFs (electronic airline ticket requests) are NOT encumbered until the travel expense has been processed.
• Other charges that are directly billed and are NOT encumbered include postage, copy center, office of telecommunications, gas, departmental stockroom billings, Nittany Lion Inn charges and purchasing card transactions.
• Tuition for graduate assistants is encumbered at the same time as the salary. The encumbrance is from the beginning of the semester until the end of the appointment, grant end date or end of the fiscal year (June 30), whichever comes first.

FIT Report Example (printable pdf format) {top}