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Automobile Expense
When multiple individuals are traveling to a common destination an effort should be made to obtain a college vehicle when traveling on the college's business. The use of personal automobiles when used on college business will be reimbursed at the Internal Revenue Service approved rate per mile, plus tolls and parking. Employees are required to have appropriate public liability and property damage coverage for their automobiles before it is used on college business.

If a personal automobile is used in lieu of less expensive transportation, only the cost of the less expensive transportation is reimbursable. An example of this would be a choice to drive to a conference when a less expensive airfare is available.

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Automobile Rental
Automobile rental expense should be incurred only when suitable public transportation is not available. Direct billing of rental charges to the campus is not permissible.   Most car rental companies require the individual renting the automobile to have a credit card in their name. With this in mind, travelers may request a declining balance travel credit card with pre-approval or use his/her own credit card and request reimbursement once the trip is complete. Automobile liability insurance should not be purchased from the rental agency when the rental automobile is requested. The college's comprehensive insurance policy includes this coverage.

Employees are also encouraged to plan in advance, utilizing the services of the travel coordinator in the Purchasing Office for automobile rental. Through a relationship with OSU's Travel Office we are able to obtain rental car rates at a substantial discount that includes insurance coverage.

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Incidental Expenses
Incidental expenses incurred in connection with travel expenses such as cab fares, telephone calls, laundry and dry cleaning are reimbursable expenses. Original receipts for items over $5.00 are required for reimbursement. An effort should be made to keep incidental expenses at a reasonable level.

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Meals
Reasonable meal expenses when incurred in connection with overnight travel are reimbursable as business expense up to the allowable per diem rate. It is the college's policy not to reimburse employees for alcohol consumption. 

• Employees may use either the standard per diem meal rate or submit itemized receipts but not both within one trip. Handwritten restaurant check stubs and non-itemized credit card receipts are not acceptable unless approved by accounting. If standard per diem reimbursement is the option chosen, the IRS listing for meal costs in various cities should be used. You may obtain this information from the travel liaison in the Purchasing Office or from the Federal per diem web site.

• Per Diem reimbursements are based on departure and return times over the entire 24-hour day and prorated accordingly. Listed below is the Per Diem allowance based on departure and arrival time from and to the traveler’s home or primary work site.

  Departure Day 12:00 am – 7:59 am = 100%		Return Day 12:00 am – 7:59 am = 0%
  8:00 am – 11:59 am = 75%		8:00 am – 11:59 am = 25%
  12:00 pm – 5:59 pm = 50%		12:00 pm – 5:59 pm = 50%
  6:00 pm – 11:59 pm = 0%		6:00 pm – 11:59 pm = 100%

• If a meal is served on the plane, included in a conference registration fee, built into the standard, single hotel room rate or replaced by a legitimate business meal, the Per Diem allowance for that meal may not be claimed. The maximum allowable deduction for these meals is based on the percentage of Per Diem: (25% - breakfast; 25% - lunch and 50% - dinner) for the applicable city location.

  Receipts are not required for Per Diem allowances. Per Diem allowances are reimbursed after the trip is completed.

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Hotel Accommodations
Hotel/motel accommodations are made by the traveler.   Traveler may choose to obtain a declining balance credit card with pre-approval or use a personal credit card to guarantee the reservation.

Hotel accommodation expenses are allowable at the conference rate or the state agency pricing rate for a single person. An itemized receipt from the hotel is required for reconciliation.

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Phone Expense
COTC has available an 800 phone number for Ohio. Therefore, if traveling in the state of Ohio employees should utilize this service to contact the college. This number can be obtained from the Purchasing Office. When traveling out of state, the college has available a long distance phone card which can be obtained through the Purchasing Office. This card will provide access to the college's phone system at a substantial long distance discount rate.

Employees should avoid using the hotel's phone system, as the cost is usually very expensive. If a personal phone card is used when traveling, it may delay reimbursement and reconciliation until a personal receipt is obtained and submitted for payment. Therefore, employees are encouraged to make use of the campus's phone card when traveling.

 In general, the college will reimburse for one phone call home for each night of travel. Employees should use sound judgment determining the length of the call each day.

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Travel Insurance
The cost of personal travel insurance is not a reimbursable expense.

Travel Authorization/Reimbursement Form

The Travel Authorization/Reimbursement Request Form is to be used for pre-travel authorization, arranging travel and advances, and reconciling travel expenses involving non-local or overnight accommodations. Overnight travel requires advanced approval by the employee's supervisor. - Form

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Travel Authorization/Estimated Expenses
The first step in completing the Travel Authorization/Reimbursement Request Form is to complete the Estimate Section of Section A of the form. This portion of the form includes a listing of all anticipated expenses and the appropriate signature line for the required pre-approval. Unit Budget Managers have signing authority up to $1,000 so estimates above that amount must have Senior Administrative approval. A Senior Administrator may also have a more restrictive departmental policy, if so the traveler will be required to follow that approval process also. After the estimate is complete and approval obtained, all copies of the original form should be forwarded to the Purchasing Department.

Upon receipt of the approved form, the Purchasing Department travel coordinator will make contact with the traveler to discuss travel arrangements and prepayment options. The employee may choose to do all on a reimbursement basis, have only air and/or registration prepaid or request a declining balance credit card and make all his/her own arrangements after travel number is issued by the travel coordinator.  Prepayments for air travel tickets and seminar/conference registration fees may be provided by the college directly to the vendor only.  After requested arrangement(s) and/or payment(s) have been processed, the Travel Authorization/Reimbursement Request Form will be returned to the employee as confirmation.  The employee will retain the form until travel is complete, fill in appropriate information in section "B", attach itemized receipt(s), obtain authorizing signatures and forward to purchasing for processing.

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Submission Requirements
The Travel Authorization/Reimbursement Request Form must be submitted to the employee's supervisor for review and approval within no more than five business days after returning from the trip. Total expenditures should be entered on the Travel Authorization/Reimbursement Request Form on the appropriate lines of Section B, Actual Travel Expenses. If there are unused travel advance funds, reimbursement to the college is due at the time the form is submitted. Any amount due the traveler will be reimbursed within 5 to 7 working days from receipt of the completed form in Accounts Payable. Expenditures for the travel will then be charged to the appropriate department expense account.

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Supporting Documentation
All receipts as outlined in the section labeled Actual Travel Expenses are to be attached to the approved form when submitted for reimbursement. Documentary evidence in the form of a receipt or a paid bill is required for expenses such as lodging, air transportation, car rental, etc. In addition, a receipt is required for postage and miscellaneous office supplies or service expenditures in excess of $5.00.

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Summary
The college acknowledges that every travel expense cannot be defined and quantified, therefore the college relies on the professional judgment of the employee. Employees who substantially deviate from the policy should be prepared to provide a reasonable explanation to the appropriate Senior Administration.

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COTC and Cost Shared Expenditure Policy

Introduction
As a public institution, the Central Ohio Technical College is held to a high level of accountability for its business practices. Numerous constituencies (including students, taxpayers, alumni, the State of Ohio and the federal government) have an interest in how the College spends its money. Accordingly, every reasonable effort must be made to ensure that funds are used in a responsible and appropriate manner.

The College Expenditure Policy focuses on certain types of expenditures (including those for food, beverages, gifts and employee functions) that require employees to exercise particular caution. To ensure that expenditure decisions are consistent with the College's mission, applicable law and ethical practice, departments must comply with the policies and procedures in this document.

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General Information
DOLLAR LIMITS - The dollar limits set forth in these policies are maximum limits. Administrators may choose to have more restrictive policies within their own areas, as long as such policies are documented within those areas.

APPROVALS - Throughout this policy there are references to "President approval." This approval may be delegated to another individual. The designee must sign his/her own name, followed by "for: NAME, TITLE."

EXCEPTIONS - Any exceptions must be approved by the President.

ACCOUNT NUMBERS - Except for alcohol, these policies apply to all types of departments, including grant funded. Individual account restrictions must always be kept in mind.

PAYMENT METHODS - These policies apply to all payments methods.

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SALES TAX - The College is exempt from paying State of Ohio sales tax. Prior to purchasing items on behalf of the College, contact the Purchasing Office for a Tax Exemption Certificate. The College expends approximately 7% more for the item because of the sales tax. For this reason, personal reimbursements should be minimized, or the employee should provide a tax exemption certificate to the vendor whenever feasible. However, if the sales tax is unavoidable (i.e. business meal), the employee will be reimbursed for the cost of the item as well as the sales tax. Employees are encouraged to use a purchase order when procuring items for the College.

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Alcohol
As a general rule, alcohol should not be charged to the College's accounts. However in certain circumstances, alcohol purchases for business-related purposes (ie., business meals or College events) may be justified. The College has potential liability when alcohol is involved.

These alcohol purchases must be charged to discretionary accounts, and must have the approval of the President. Discretionary accounts are funds which have been donated to a college or administrative area within the College, with only a broad restriction that the funds be used to benefit that particular area. The above approval also certifies that the account listed is an account which has been designated discretionary by a donor.

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Business Meals, Tips and Food Served at Meetings
The College will pay for properly documented meal expenses that fall into one of the following categories:

- Overnight travel meals - Properly documented business meals - Food served at College functions - Food served at non Central Ohio Technical College related functions

The following paragraphs set forth policies for each type of meal. Tips for business meals are allowed. The tip must be reasonable, not to exceed 20%. Alcohol may be reimbursed in accordance with the Alcohol policy. (See section on Alcohol for further details.)

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Business Meals
The College may pay or reimburse properly documented meals where the primary purpose is a business discussion. Business meals generally include at least one non-College employee. However, occasional gatherings of College employees may also be reimbursed as business meals. Expenses may be incurred only for those individuals whose presence is necessary to the business discussion.

In addition to an itemized receipt, IRS rules on substantiation of business expenses require documentation of the date, place, business purpose and attendees at the meal. Please note that the documentation requirements apply to all on-campus or off-campus business meals, regardless of payment method.

The College will deny reimbursement for meal expenses that lack documentation or a clear business purpose. Gatherings that are primarily social in nature do not qualify for payment or reimbursement as business meals. However, occasional meals provided as part of a College function may be permitted (see next page).

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Food Served at College Functions
College funds may be used to provide food at a seminar, retreat, workshop, orientation or other College related functions. Invoices or Payment Requests for these expenditures should include a brief description of the business purpose of the gathering and all attendees.

At the discretion of the President or Senior Administrator, food may be provided at meetings of College employees. For example, it may be appropriate to provide food at a "working" breakfast, lunch or dinner, particularly when employees are giving up personal time to conduct College business. A formal business discussion must be the primary purpose of the gathering.

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Food Served at Non-College Functions
Central Ohio Technical College funds may be used to pay for registration fees for conferences, seminars or other meetings that provide lunch and/or refreshments during the program. However, if a non-overnight program specified that lunch is "on your own", the College generally will not pay for or reimburse that meal. Meals with non-College employees, however, may be reimbursable as business meals if the primary purpose of the gathering is a business discussion.

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Employee Recognition
The College recognizes the contributions of its employees in achieving its overall mission and encourages departments to acknowledge these contributions through programs developed for employee recognition. Such programs include formal award programs, appreciation of service programs and other miscellaneous expenditures. Each of these is described in detail below.

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Award Programs
Award programs may exist at a College-wide level or at the department or unit level. Criteria and amount of the award should be approved by the President's office prior to the selection process. Documentation of each award program should include:

- Purpose
- Eligibility
- Frequency
- Nature of award (cash or non-cash)
- Amount of award
- Related events (luncheons, etc.)

Awards of any value may be given. However, all cash awards regardless of amount and non-cash awards greater than $100 represent taxable income to the individual. Taxable awards must be reported to Payroll for income reporting and withholding. Gift certificates are non-cash awards (non-taxable up to $100) if they cannot be converted into cash.

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Appreciation of Service Programs
Occasionally, it may be appropriate to recognize an individual or group of individuals for extraordinary performance in a certain situation relating to their current position or to "thank" them for their service when departing the College (this includes retirement). Expenditures related to such recognition events should be limited to those which are work related and should not include those events which are of a personal nature such as birthdays, wedding or baby showers, graduation, etc. Expenditures relating to such recognition events may be made at the discretion of the President and should be reasonable in light of the particular situation.

Gifts given in conjunction with appreciation of service programs are subject to the same IRS rules as awards. (See previous description for details.)

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Miscellaneous Expenditures for Employees
The College may offer support to its employees in the event of the birth or adoption of a child, the death of an immediate family member, or to extend get well wishes to the employee. The acknowledgement may include flowers, a fruit basket or other similar items and should be requested by the department to avoid duplication. If so requested by the family, a charitable contribution may be substituted and made to only named, not-for-profit charities with a public service mission.

The above mentioned expressions of support are considered de minimis fringe benefits from an IRS perspective, and therefore do not represent taxable income to the employee. The value of the acknowledgement may not exceed $100. These types of expenditures require the President's approval.

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Entertainment
The College may pay for expenditures relating to entertainment when the purpose is fundraising, promotion of the College or entertainment for guests of the College by designated College officials. Examples of entertainment expenditures include food, beverages, admission charges, flowers, mementos and other miscellaneous expenses. Expenditures must be reasonable, prudent, appropriate to the occasion and consistent with the Central Ohio Technical College's mission.

Expenditures must have the President's or Senior Administrator approval. See also the "Business Meals" and "Alcohol" sections of this policy.

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Payment for Services
If an employee pays another individual to provide services, the College will not reimburse the employee for these expenditures.

All individuals providing services to the College must be paid directly by the College. Payments to individuals classified as independent contractors are processed by Purchasing and/or Accounts Payable. The supervisor of the Payroll department in consultation with the Human Resource Director will make the final determination between independent contractor and employee status. Payments to individuals classified as employees are processed by the Payroll department.

Individuals must provide their complete name, address, and social security number before payment is issued. If payment request is greater than $100, an invoice or signed statement from the individual stating date, time and description of services rendered is required before payment is issued.

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Phone Policy

Long Distance Calls
Employees must reimburse the College for any long distance personal calls made on the College's office telephone

Cell Phones
Newark Campus employees are encouraged to obtain approval of their appropriate president’s cabinet member prior to using personal cell phones for College business purposes. Personal cell phone use for College business should be limited to only necessary and immediate business needs. It is the responsibility of the employee's department to monitor phone use and reimbursements for appropriateness. The College has the right to review, question, and limit reimbursement requests of employees' phone bills.

College business calls on an employee’s personal cell service plan within the plan's service area will be reimbursed at a flat rate of $.15 per minute regardless of the service plan's normal air time rate.  A reimbursement request may be used for reimbursement. Requests should indicate "Business calls on personal - (number of) minutes @ $.15/minute" and the period of time, such as "6/1/03 through 6/30/03”.  Reimbursement requests (100 minutes @ $.15 in a specific month) will require a copy of the cell phone bill which identifies the calls for which reimbursement is requested.  The reimbursement will be limited to the total amount of the cell phone plan for that month.  Long distance and roaming charges incurred outside an employee’s normal service plan area can be reimbursed at actual costs if actual costs are greater than the $.15 per minute rate. Actual costs must be documented with a copy of the cell phone bill which identifies the calls for which reimbursement is requested.