Small Purchase Charge Card - Financial Management Policy - 30910

The purpose of this policy is to describe the guidelines for making Small Purchase Charge Card purchases at Germanna Community College.

Purchasing charge cards (small purchase charge card program) are intended to streamline procedures for procuring and paying for small dollar goods and services and to simplify payment to vendors. The program permits individuals to make small purchases for their departments. The program also reduces the number of accounts payable transactions by consolidating multiple vendor invoices into one monthly invoice from the charge card vendor. Vendors are paid directly from the purchasing card contractor. The purchasing card contract provides a variety of management information reports to assist agencies in maintaining control over purchases and payments.

3.1 Transaction limits: The maximum single transaction limit, allowable by DOA policy, is $5,000 and the maximum monthly limit is $100,000. The Program Administrator may assign the lower transaction limits and impose lower monthly limits.

3.2 Card issuance: Cards will be issued to those persons with appropriate purchasing authority as determined by the Program Administrator and whose supervisor has submitted to the Program Administrator a Purchasing Card Request Cards are issued in the name of the designated individual and Germanna Community College. Cardholders must sign an Employee Agreement Form and complete the online training prior to obtaining the purchasing card. The Program Administrator shall establish limits for each cardholder at the College that shall not exceed the state limit. All forms are located on Germanna Central using the link at the end of this document.

3.3 Restrictions: All Cards shall have six industry restrictions tables on them unless there is written documentation to support the need for removal either on a temporary or permanent basis.

3.4 Purchasing card security: Authorized use of the purchasing card is limited to the person whose name appears on the face of the card. The card or its number must not be shared with another person who is not a vendor. The card should be kept in an accessible, but secure location. The full 16 digit account number must not be mailed, emailed (including attachments) or faxed to vendors. The account number on the purchasing card should not be posted, left in a conspicuous place, nor repeated aloud carelessly.

3.5 Card usage: P-Cards shall be used for official Commonwealth of Virginia purchases only. Small purchase charge cards will be used only for limited, unscheduled, over the counter (point-of-sale) purchases, as well as emergencies in accordance with state procurement regulations.   Over-the-counter / point-of-sale purchases are set aside for small businesses; justification is required to purchase from a vendor other than a small business.   Use of the card for personal items, cash advances, lodging and business travel expenses is not permitted. There must be strict internal controls to ensure that Procurement guidelines are adhered to, especially those detailing the use of eVA and state contracts. The P-Card is an efficient means of payment, not a substitute for proper procurement procedures.

3.6 Food procurements: Small purchase charges cards may be used to pay for pre-approved meals that are documented in eVA and made in accordance with the Non-Travel Related Meals (Business Meals) section 20335 (State Travel Regulations) of the CAPP manual.

3.7 Method of purchase:   Cardholders may make point of sale (POS) purchases in person, via telephone, or on the Internet. All orders must be entered into eVA (Electronic Virginia) as a confirming order.

3.8 Gift card/certificate purchases: The purchase of gift cards is allowed only for the sole purpose of employee recognition as defined in DHRM’s Policy 1.20.

3.9 Sales tax: Employees are not to pay sales tax.  The College is tax exempt.

3.10 Past due invoices: Cardholders are prohibited from using P-Cards to pay a vendor invoice that is past due unless prior approval from DOA’s Charge Card Administration Team is received in advance of the charge.

3.11 Card logs: Cardholders must enter all purchases onto the P-Card Log required for use by the Shared Service Center which can be found in the SSC Forms Library.  Purchases must be entered on the day that the transaction occurred. Confirming orders must be entered into eVA no later than two (2) business days after payment is made.

3.12 Statement/log reviews: Supervisors must review all logs against the credit card statements for accuracy and compliance within a week of statement close date. The Supervisor Reviewer Checklist is a useful tool for this purpose and is found on Germanna Central.

3.13 Monthly submission: P-Card holders are responsible for providing the log, credit card statement, and the receipts to the SSC within five (5) days after the monthly period closes.   Documentation must be neatly organized in the following order:

• Approved P-Card Log (on top)
• Bank Statement (note: If the Account/Routing#s are displayed, redact the information prior to sending
• Receipts, labeled to match the corresponding line # on the P-Card Log

The documentation shall be scanned into one PDF file and emailed to:  invoice @ssc.vccs.edu.

3.14 Program administrator: The Shared Service Center shall be the College’s Purchasing Card Program Administrator. The Business Office shall designate a backup Program Administrator at the College.

3.15 Program administrator training: The Purchasing Card Program Administrator and Backup Administrator must complete the online Program Administrator training annually.

3.16 Supervisor training: All supervisors requesting cards for their employees must complete the online supervisor reviewer training annually.

3.17 Cardholder training: Each employee receiving a card must complete the online cardholder training prior to being issued a P-Card. All cardholders must participate in the online training annually.

3.18 Annual assessment: Supervisors of cardholders are required to examine the purchasing activities and spending limits of each cardholder at least annual to access that the restrictions and limits are set at the appropriate levels and provide supporting written documentation to the Program Administrator.

3.19 Cancellations: The Card shall be returned immediately to the Program Administrator upon request by the College and/or upon separation of employment, retirement, change of job duties, etc. If a card has no activity for a 12 month period the card will be cancelled.

3.20 Suspensions: Cards may be suspended for non-compliance or when a cardholder is on an extended period of leave (more than 10 days) such as disability, medical, etc. It is the responsibility of the supervisor or the cardholder to notify the Program Administrator prior to leaving. If the cardholder is going to be absent from work for an extended period of time, a separate card may be issued to a different person, which shall permit procurement authority for the duration of the absence.

3.21 Disciplinary actions: If a cardholder does not comply with the Germanna P-Card policy their privileges shall be revoked for a minimum of three months.

3.22 Changes in card status: The Program Administrator must be contacted when changes need to be made to existing purchasing cards. If a new purchasing card needs to be issued, the cardholder should receive the replacement card seven (7) to ten (10) business days after the Program Administrator transmits the request to the charge card vendor.

3.23 Lost or stolen card: If the purchasing card is lost or stolen, the cardholder must immediately notify the small purchase card issuer and then the Program Administrator.

• DOA CAPP manual, topic number 20355 purchasing charge card
• APSPM (Agency Procurement and Surplus Property Manual)
• Forms, Logs, Training Documents, FAQs, and links are located on Germanna Central

Forms, logs, training documents, FAQs, and links are located at the Shared Service Center forms library

Director of Finance

President’s Council: May 4, 2007, June 19, 2017