Finance Updates
Campus-Wide Business Managers Meeting
March 21, 2013
Inventory Deadline
Deadline to return Inventory Reports
to Accounts Payable is
March 28
(5 business days)
Contract Issues
Revised Contract Fiscal Policy
KEY CHANGES
• Non-delegation and delegation of contracts has changed significantly.
All contracts in excess of $100,000 will require the review and approval of
UT General Counsel and VP in Knoxville. UT standard agreements and
receivable contracts are no longer excluded.
• Required contract language as stated in Section 18 of UT Fiscal Policy. This
includes language regarding “Safety and Environmental Standards” and
“Audit.”
Accuracy of Contract Review
and Approval Forms
• Sufficient description of services
• Vendor name and address is not sufficient
• When amending contract, along with an adequate description of services, specify
what contract is being amended and clarify what the amendment is doing (i.e.,
extending services, increasing maximum financial liability, adding services, etc.).
• Ensure amendment question on Contract Review Form is answered “Yes.” This
will prompt you to enter the original contract number being amended and will link
the agreements in IRIS.
Accuracy of Contract Review
and Approval Forms
• If mailing address differs from address populated as a result
of the vendor number:
• Provide correct mailing address, include contract name, for both the
mailing of the contract and, if applicable, the mailing of the invoice.
• This should be entered in the Comments area of the Review Form.
Description area does not provide adequate space for this information.
Procurement
Cards
Frequently
Asked Questions
Procurement Card Issues
FAQs
• Can we make purchases from Amazon and use the procurement card?
• Yes, as long as we don’t provide any of our bank information.
• Sometimes some vendors will as that you guarantee purchases by “tying” a bank account to
it. We do not allow this. (Paypal, for instance, will allow certain types of upgraded
transactions if the buyer does this.)
• If we make on-line purchases (from Amazon or other vendors), how do you
avoid paying sales tax?
• When going through the check-out process, you will need to remove the sales tax or see if
there is a box to check to show exempt. (Each vendor will be different.) Unless it has
changed, Amazon will not start adding sales tax until 2014.
Procurement Card Issues
FAQs
• Are we exempt from paying sales tax in other states or just Tennessee?
• Some states offer exemptions. Please see the Comptrollers Office website for a list
(http://controller.tennessee.edu/ Left-hand side – click TAX).
• Would it be possible to receive multiple cards with the same account
number? That would resolve some late night or weekend purchase issues.
• Yes as long as the cards were in different individual’s names.
• Yes, there is still a primary holder who would be responsible for the card, as well as a
verifier and approver who would be associated with each card.
Procurement Card Issues
FAQs
• If this staff person leaves my lab, it is my understanding that Finance
will no longer approve procurement cards for anyone else in my lab.
• No, this is not true. We will assign a card to another appropriate staff person.
• Is it possible address the concerns of BrainBits, NEB, Antibodies,
Inc., and World Procession instruments? Can something be worked
out with Research Diets, Inc. since they don’t accept POs. Also maybe
autoship is a possibility?
• Absolutely. We will get Laboratory Animal Care and Purchasing together to review and
find a solution.
Accounting
for Gift /
Donations