Transcript Electronic Travel Overview - University of Texas System

Electronic Travel
Overview
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Electronic Travel
Overview
Welcome: Tonya Brown
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Electronic Travel
Overview
Agenda:
Travel Policy
Reimbursement Process
*Define Overview
Helpful Resources
What’s Next?
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Electronic Travel
Overview
Travel Policy
Nancy Sutherland
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Travel Policy
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Purpose and intent
Who makes the rules?
Compliance
Conservation of funds
Authorization and notice
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Travel Policy
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U. T. System Travel Policy is intended to:
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Provide for the reasonable needs of travelers
Control travel expenditures
Maximize negotiated rates with preferred vendors
Facilitate reporting and compliance
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Who Makes The Rules?
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Travel rules come from a variety of sources
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State of Texas Travel Regulations Act
State of Texas Travel Allowance Guide
State Comptroller of Public Accounts
Internal Revenue Code
Regents’ Rules & Regulations
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Policy and Compliance
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Travelers and authorized signers must be in
compliance with the Travel Policy
Lack of knowledge does not excuse or justify the
employee’s failure to comply with applicable laws
or rules
A department may adopt stricter guidelines than
those stated in the Travel Policy
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Travelers must be notified in writing before stricter
guidelines are implemented
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Conservation of Funds
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Travel must be planned and conducted to achieve
maximum economy and efficiency within the
guidelines of the Travel Policy
Travel expenses must be reasonable,
appropriately documented and properly
authorized
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Authorization and Notice
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Each trip requires advance approval from:
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a supervisor, and/or
Executive Vice Chancellor, or
Vice Chancellor
A travel approval form is required for out-of-state
and foreign travel
A travel approval form may be required for in-state
travel based on departmental rules
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Authorization and Notice
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The Office of State and Federal Relations and
U.T. System Vice Chancellor for Federal Relations
must be notified in advance of travel to
Washington, D.C.
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Electronic Travel
Overview
Reimbursement Process
Jenny Murphy
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Reimbursement Agenda
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Relationships:
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System Departments
U.T. Austin
Travel Services, and
APS
VE5, VE6, and VP5 Documents
Travel Reimbursement Checklist “walk through”
Limits and how to handle “excess”
In-house Experts & Resources
“Must knows” about electronic travel
Authorized Approver’s Review
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Relationship
Travel Services
available for
policy ?s
Department
(i.e., Health Affairs)
Creates & Approves
Electronic
Travel Voucher
APS available for
reimbursement ?s
**Supporting doc. for the electronic voucher is sent to:
U.T. Austin
Marcia Boling, Office of Accounting
Campus Mail Code K5300
U.T. Austin reviews and returns the
voucher if corrections are needed
or approves and pays the recipient.
** Supporting documentation includes *DEFINE cover pages, the original, signed travel approval form,
when applicable, and original receipts for everything except actual meals equal to or less than per diem,
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parking meters, and public transportation within a city.
Documents
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VE5 – Approval
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VE6 – Correction
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Completed before the reimbursement (VP5) is created.
Purpose: approves the employee being away from the office and
the use of departmental funds.
If a correction is needed, the VE6 is created after the VE5 and
before the VP5.
VP5 - Reimbursement
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Created to reimburse an employee for travel.
VE5
VE6
VP5
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Travel Reimbursement
Checklist
Use the Travel Reimbursement Checklist
to assist in creating your Electronic Travel
Voucher.
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Excess Travel Costs – State Funds
In-state
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When State Funds are used for travel, excess to state limits can be
reimbursed through creation of a second VP5 using official occasions or
institutional money. Note: The VE5 will include both sources of funds.
State Funds:
$85/night – Hotel
Actual cost up to $36/day - Meals
1st VP5
Approved
Official Occasions
or Institutional Funds:
• Tips
• Hotel Overage
• Meal Overage (receipts are
required)
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Excess Travel Costs – State Funds
Out-of-State
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When State Funds are used for travel, excess to state limits can be
reimbursed through creation of a second VP5 using official occasions or
institutional money. Note: The VE5 will include both sources of funds.
State Funds:
Actual costs for hotel and meals
are limited to the
Comptroller of
Public Accounts
locality-based rates.
1st VP5
Approved
Official Occasions
or Institutional Funds:
• Tips
• Hotel Overage
• Meal Overage (receipts are
required)
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Excess Travel Costs –
Institutional Funds: In-State
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When Institutional Funds are used for travel, excess to limits can be
reimbursed through the original VP5 document.
Inst./Official
Occasions Funds:
Maximum $220/ per day
Combination of Hotel & *Actual
Meal Costs
* Detailed Receipts are required when Actual Meal Costs >$41/day.
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Excess Travel Costs –
Institutional Funds: Out-of-State
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When Institutional Funds are used for travel, excess to limits can be
reimbursed through the original VP5 document.
Inst./Official
Occasions Funds:
Combination of Hotel &
*Actual Meal Costs
* Actual Costs for Hotel and Meals are limited to the locality-based rates published
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by the Comptroller of Public Accounts.
Resources & Experts Among Us
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Questions about electronic travel procedures?
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Call Becky Mendez
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APS x4570
Departmental Experts
Janet Carpenter, OFPC
Teresa Garza, OFPC
Chrissy Haas, Audit
Irma Zavaleta, OTT&R
Chandra Renteria, RTT
Jana Pankratz, OA
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“Must Knows”
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What you cannot do…
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One person cannot create and approve a VE5, VE6, or VP5.
No one can approve their own travel voucher, not even a
department head.
Alcohol & “No show” charges are non-reimbursable travel
expenses, regardless of fund source.
If actual meal expenditures are equal to or less than limits in the
Travel Policy, do not attach itemized receipts to the VP5.
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This does not prevent an approver from requiring a traveler to
provide him/her receipts prior to approving a voucher for
payment.
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“Must Knows”
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What you can do…
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Accepted practice: a department can adopt internal procedures
for a person with signature authority to manually sign approval on
the travel voucher, and the person whom he/she has delegated
*DEFINE signature authority can then release/approve the
document in *DEFINE.
Example: Javier Garcia’s, ORM, travel voucher is reviewed and
manually approved with a signature by Phil Dendy. Brenda
Chambers releases/approves the document in *DEFINE based
on Phil’s signature approval on the paper document.
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“Must Knows”
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Miscellaneous
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VE5, VE6, and VP5s are created and approved in component “0”
Reimbursement requests must be timely.
 Receipts older than 60 days from the day the expense
was incurred or paid could either be denied or added to
the traveler’s W-2 and taxed as income, according to IRS
Rules (Publication 463).
 A justification statement must be included to explain why
the request is untimely.
Allowable mileage can be claimed at 48.5 cents per mile.
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Authorized Approver’s Review
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Review should include verification that:
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Expenses were incurred while conducting business
Expenses comply with restrictions on the use of funds
Expenses are charged to proper account
Business purpose and travel dates are documented
Documentation is attached and matches request
For out-of-state travel, the traveler and approver have
signed and attached the request form.
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Electronic Travel
Overview
*DEFINE
How do I make it work?
Becky Franklin
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Getting Started – A Quick
Hands-on Demonstration
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Access to *DEFINE
VE5, VP5 and other unfamiliar language
Creating documents (VE5, VP5)
Printing documents
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Electronic Travel Overview
Summary
Nancy Sutherland
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Helpful Resources
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Travel Services web site
Accounting and Purchasing Services web site
State Travel Allowance Guide
Travel Policy
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Overnight travel in Texas
Overnight travel outside of Texas
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Electronic Travel Overview
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What’s Next?
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Packet of information
One-on-one training for departmental contacts
with Becky Mendez
System-wide training complete by 9/1/05
Ongoing support via Accounting and Purchasing
Services
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Questions?
Thank you for taking time to attend training!
Have a good day!
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