College policy allows payment or reimbursement for business-related expenses. The College qualifies as a not-for-profit entity under Section 501 (c) (3) of the IRS guidelines and therefore must ensure expenses qualify as a business expense. Federal and private grants require specific payment and reimbursement terms. The IRS also has strict guidelines for employee reimbursement requirements that the College follows.

Departments needing payments for honoraria, invoices without related purchase orders, or non-travel related reimbursement should complete a Check Request, attach supporting documentation (contract, invoice, or original acceptable receipts/proof of payment), have the request approved by the appropriate vice president or department head, and submit it to the Accounts Payable department in Financial Services, Bresee Hall. The business office requires original signatures for auditing purposes. Please note, you cannot approve reimbursement to yourself or your immediate family.

Departments or individuals needing travel advances should submit a Travel Advance Request at least five business days prior to needing the funds, have the request approved by the appropriate vice president, and submit it to Accounts Payable. Travel advance requests are not to be used as reimbursement requests and should not be used to fund purchases that could otherwise be paid directly by the college such as airline tickets or hotels. Within fifteen days of completion of travel, a completed Travel Expense Report along with original receipts and any unused funds should be returned to the cashier. If a balance is owed to the requester the form and receipts should be returned to Accounts Payable.

All other goods or services purchased for the College require a Purchase Order. Submit a Material Requisition Form with appropriate documentation.

Responsibilities

It is the responsibility of the department initiating the purchase of the product or service to follow the procedure below:

Check the goods or services to verify all items have been received and note any discrepancies on the green copy of the purchase order. Make sure the costs are correct. Clearly mark any errors.

Have an authorized individual in the department sign and date the Purchase order green copy.

If a partial order is received, copy the PO and mark the received items only. Have an authorized individual sign and date the copy. Repeat this procedure as other items are received. When last item/s is/are received send down the green copy of the purchase order noting the items received and the date received.

Forward the approved Purchase Order to AP immediately, allowing AP enough time to process the invoice to take advantage of any offered discounts or to meet the minimum terms.

The College mails AP checks to vendors from the Financial Services office. This policy is to satisfy internal control requirements.

If any paperwork needs to be mailed with the AP check, clearly mark this on the Check Request. The department forwarding the requests to AP needs to send the original and a copy of the document that must accompany payment. The original invoice must remain in AP. All invoices should be sent directly to AP by vendors not to the departments.

Any payments made to an independent contractor or an unincorporated vendor for services require the College to prepare and mail an IRS Form 1099-MISC for individuals and vendors earning $600 or more at the College during the calendar year. Social Security numbers or tax ID numbers are required for all payments to individuals not on the college payroll and to qualifying vendors. Request for Taxpayer ID-Federal form W-9 can be obtained from the Administrative Assistant in Financial Services.

Sales Tax

The College as a not-for-profit corporation is exempt from sales tax in New York State. This exemption applies to hotels, meals, rental cars, and business purchases.
Please request the tax exemption number from the Administrative Assistant in Financial Services, when conducting any business on behalf of the College.

Payment Cycle

Accounts Payable mails checks to the vendors with sufficient time to either take advantage of discounts to comply with the terms noted on the invoice. The AP department schedules payments based on discount opportunities, balance due dates, and fundamental cash management principles.

Per office policy, checks are printed each Tuesday and Friday during a standard week. The check run schedule is modified when necessary for holidays.

The deadline for receipt in our office for eligibility in Tuesday’s check run is the preceding Friday at 4:00 p.m.

The deadline for receipt in our office for eligibility in Friday’s check run is the preceding Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.

Miscellaneous

The current mileage reimbursement rate is 58.5 cents per mile as of January 1, 2021.

Paying students, faculty or staff for work performed must be processed through Payroll.

All new vendors should complete an IRS Form W-9.

Reimbursements for travel and entertainment expenses follow the same general guidelines noted above for payments to vendors. Complete the Travel Expense Report and list the purpose of the trip. In the case of reimbursement for meals, record list of individuals covered with the Expense Voucher.

Generally, meals for partners, spouses, or other guests not affiliated with the College are not allowable requests for reimbursement unless incurred for a valid business purpose. Hartwick College does not reimburse for parking tickets or moving violations. Individuals may not make personal purchases through the college. Reimbursement requests should include detail explaining the total expense incurred. For example, the reimbursement for meals should contain the receipt from the restaurant detailing the items ordered, if possible.

Hartwick’s Purchase Order forms are four-part forms. The copies are distributed as follows:

• White -Vendor
• Yellow -Department (file copy)
• Green – Receiving (to be signed, dated and sent to Accounts Payable when items have been received or service has been completed)
• Pink – Financial Services/Accounts Payable

This procedure is subject to periodic review or modification based on changing business issues and external guidelines or regulations. Any changes to the procedure will be made directly within this online document.

Petty Cash can be administered as per the following guidelines; however, reimbursement of expenses is preferred over petty cash. Whenever possible, please complete transactions and request reimbursements.

Limit = $75.00 per day per department

Petty Cash Request forms must be complete, with full GL number, and approved/signed by department heads and faculty chairs.

Receipts and remaining cash are due back to the cashier by the end of the next business day. The college does not reimburse for sales tax if the purchase is over $10.00. Individuals should request a tax-exempt form if purchasing items subject to sales tax.

No further advances will be disbursed until previous receipts have been collected.

General:
Reasonable meal expenses when interacting with external constituencies (trustees, donors, alumni, parents, vendors, job candidates, professional guests, etc.) conducting the business of the Colleges are reimbursed. Interactions among faculty/staff/students are not reimbursed. Entertainment and alcohol for employees is not reimbursable.

Entertainment of Students:
Entertainment of individual students is not reimbursed.

Entertainment of Faculty/Staff Members:
Institutional funds should not be used to pay for employee meals for regularly scheduled departmental or committee meetings or department social activities such as celebrating holidays, birthdays and showers. The exception is when meetings cannot be scheduled other than over a meal period. Occasions such as parties to celebrate births, marriages, etc. or small in-office functions with purchased food or beverages must be paid for personally by the employees involved. In addition, departmental parties for holidays and similar occasions, not scheduled by and for the institution as a whole, are considered the personal responsibility of those individuals involved in the function. Holiday and year-end gifts for faculty, staff and students are not reimbursable by the College.

Employee-Only Business Meals:
OCCASIONAL EMPLOYEE BANQUETS AND FUNCTIONS
IRS regulations do not allow for the reimbursement of meal charges incurred by employees who are not traveling away from home (i.e., their travel does not require an overnight stay) unless the following criteria are met and there is a clear benefit to the College on a college-wide basis:

1. The primary purpose of the meeting is at the request of the College and has a clearly defined benefit to the mission of College, and;
2. There is a clear and compelling reason to meet outside the office over a meal.

Employee Gifts:
Employee gifts are not a reimbursable expense. Examples include (but are not limited to) employee thank-you gifts, birthday or holiday celebrations/gifts, Administrative Professional Day gifts/meals, gifts for retiring or departing employees, flowers or plants given in acknowledgement of the death or illness of an employee or employee’s family member, and mileage to attend a funeral or visit an ill employee. Employees should use personal funds for non-business matters. Exceptional circumstances should be discussed with the supervisor or department head in advance.

A reasonable gift may be authorized by the area’s vice president for the departure or retirement of an employee. Contact Human Resources for the guidelines for such gifts.

Gift cards are not a reimbursable expense, unless they are to be given as part of a random drawing.

Occasional Employee Banquets and Functions:
Occasional functions for employees are considered reimbursable business expenses when the expenditure is intended to recognize individual or group achievements and are open to a large segment of the campus community

Annual administrative retreats that are for the purpose of staff development should be pre-approved by the reporting level directly supervising the area.

Year-end picnics by academic departments for students should be pre-approved by the Office of Academic Affairs. Detail of those attending and their relationship to the College should be available upon request.