Procurement Cards  

• The university gets a rebate on all purchases.
• Monthly statement reconciliation is fully automated and can be done throughout the month.
• Out-of-pocket reimbursements can be made through the same system, by cardholders and non-cardholders.
• Departments can reduce disbursement requests by using purchasing cards to pay for goods and services.
• More specific controls can be placed on cards, allowing wider distribution as appropriate.
• The procurement card approval system supports compliance with IRS accountable plan rules, which prevent payments such as travel and entertainment expenses from being treated as taxable income.

To apply for a procurement card, you first fill out a cardholder application. Note that ASUPS has a special cardholder application. Contact the ASUPS Director of Business Services to obtain this application. As part of the p-card training process, we will go over the terms of the cardholder agreement, so that you will know what you are committing to as a cardholder. Once your application has been approved, your card will arrive within two weeks. Upon card arrival, an individual cardholder training session will be scheduled.

Procurement cards are accepted wherever VISA cards are accepted, and we encourage cardholders to use their cards whenever possible for university purchases. One feature of the procurement card is the ability to block certain types of purchases. A limited number of merchant types have been blocked on all cards. If you attempt to make a purchase from one of these merchants, your charge may be declined. If that happens, please contact a Program Administrator who can help facilitate appropriate purchases.

Restrictions include:
Wire transfers, money orders, gift cards or certificates, cell phone/mobile device expenditures, direct marketing – insurance services, tax payments, freezer locker meat provisioners, direct marketing – inbound tele-services merchants, babysitting services, motorcycle shops and dealers, cash advances, health and beauty spas, motor home dealers, snowmobile dealers, betting, and political organizations.

Review the full P-Card Policies and Procedures document. This is your most thorough resource for the policies and procedures associated with having a card. However, a few key points are listed below.

• Most importantly, you are the only person entitled to use the card, and the card is not to be used for personal use, except for incidental use associated with travel.
• Unlike personal credit cards, the WellsOne Commercial Card Program is handled as a corporate liability. Your personal credit history has not been taken into account when a card has been issued in your name and is not affected by any of the university’s card activity.
• The WellsOne Commercial Card can be used at any merchant that accepts Visa, except as Puget Sound otherwise directs. It may be used for in-store purchases as well as phone, fax or mail orders. There is no special terminal or equipment needed by the merchant to process a P-Card transaction.
• As a cardholder, you are responsible for retaining detailed receipts for all items purchased with your P-Card and for out-of-pocket expenses. All the receipts will be imaged into CCER and attached to the appropriate monthly statement.
• Washington State Department of Revenue requires certain purchases used in-state to have sales tax and use tax collected and paid to the state (regardless of location or means of payment). Please use the Y/N indicators in the sales or use tax fields on your P-Card transaction to report the following:

• Cardholders cannot approve their own expenses. Each card will be assigned two approvals, a primary and a backup.
• The University of Puget Sound is responsible for paying P-Card statements in full each month. You are not responsible for direct payment under the account.
• You are responsible for identifying personal charges in CCER so reimbursement is made from your bank account to the university’s account via electronic funds transfer (direct deposit).

In August 2015, Puget Sound p-cards were upgraded to chip and PIN technology. However, not all merchants required use of a PIN at the time of upgrade. To create or reset the PIN associated with your p-card, call Wells Fargo at 1-800-932-0036, then select option 2, option 1, then option 2 again, as prompted, to enter the Cardholder menu and customize a PIN. You will then be prompted to enter your 16-digit card number and Unique ID (generally the last four digits of your Puget Sound ID).

Verified by VISA is a service offered by VISA that allows cardholders to create a password as an added layer of protection while purchasing online. While not all online merchants use this service, examples include frequently-used sites like Delta and United Air. When you shop at participating online merchants, you will be prompted to create your password during checkout, as well as enter your Unique ID and monthly credit limit. Please contact the Office of Finance at x3224 for assistance with these questions. Once you enroll in Verified by Visa, you’ll have a single password to use when you make purchases at participating online stores with your commercial card.

Every cardholder with the University of Puget Sound is assigned a unique ID as part of the p-card application process. Generally, your Unique ID is the last four digits of your Puget Sound ID number. This ID is used by Wells Fargo in combination with other identifying information to access your account, activate new cards, and during the Verified by VISA enrollment process.

Our current P-Card Administrators are:

A P-Card Administrator should be contacted for any questions you have regarding limits, usage and other issues. Only the P-Card Administrator has the authority to change any existing information or restrictions to a cardholder’s account.

The Wells Fargo Commercial Card Expense Reporting (CCER) is a Web-based system where cardholders, reconcilers, and approvers can easily view their accounts and perform regular card maintenance. Some actions available through CCER include monthly statement viewing, reconciling and approving, entering out-of-pocket expenses for direct reimbursement to your bank account, and document imaging receipts. Each user has one user account to switch between their roles in CCER (including cardholder, approval, and reconciler). CCER can be accessed by logging into CEO, the Wells Fargo banking portal, and choosing Commercial Card Expense Reporting on the left side of the screen.

If you forget your password, call or email a P-Card Administrator to have your password reset.

When CCER is unavailable because of periodic system maintenance or other system issues, a notice will be posted on the home page of the CEO.

Through CCER, you can reconcile your charges throughout the month and all at the end of each month. At the beginning of the month, you will receive an email notification from CCER reminding you to reconcile your statement. You have seven days to review and ‘sign off' on your statement. After this time expires, your statement is forwarded to your P-Card Approver.

After opening CCER, choose the applicable role (cardholder or reconciler) located on the top bar of CCER. "Open Review Statements” shows transactions from the previous month ready for review. "View-Cycle-to-Date" shows transactions in the current statement cycle. The “Receipt Attached” box helps you keep track of submitting a receipt for each purchase. Verify that all expense coding is correct, enter a description that adequately describes the business purpose, marks the sales tax, and uses tax fields as appropriate. Number each receipt in the order listed on the online statement. View Receipt Imaging Guide for steps to process receipts. When you have ensured that everything is in order, select the "Statement Reviewed" button at the bottom of the screen. Once you click "Statement Reviewed," you cannot make any further changes to transactions.

Your P-Card Approver receives a copy of your statement electronically as well and has five days to review and approve it. After that time has expired, your statement will be automatically sent to the program administrator to download expenses and reimbursements for any ‘Out-of-Pocket’ expenses.

By the 12^thof the month, send your original receipts in the envelope provided to the Office of Finance CMB 1075.

See the Cardholder Quick Reference Guide for step-by-step reconciliation instructions.

The approval process takes place through CCER. After the 7-day cardholder review period, the approver has five days to review and approve the statement. Before approval, the cardholder must review transactions, confirm the expense account to be used and provide an appropriate description of the business purpose for the purchase with sales tax and use tax marked appropriately. The cardholder then compiles and images all receipts supporting the transactions, a process called receipt imaging. The approver can then review and approve transactions online, confirming that allocations are accurate, receipts exist, descriptions are complete, and sales tax and use tax fields are marked appropriately. By approving P-Card (those not observed personal) and out-of-pocket transactions, you affirm:

• they are legitimate university business transactions;
• appropriate receipts and documentation are provided, including documentation of university business purpose;
• transactions are accounted for correctly (correct fiscal year, speed chart, and account are provided); and
• personal use of the P-Card is incidental and identified explicitly in CCER

See the Approver Quick Reference Guide for step-by-step approval instructions.

Cardholders are encouraged to use P-Cards whenever possible, even for small transactions. For approved university expenditures that you cannot make with your P-Card and use personal funds, enter this information in the ‘Out-of-Pocket’ expense section of CCER, marking sales tax and using tax fields appropriately. You will receive an automatic reimbursement deposited directly into your bank account once a month after each review and approval period.

If you find that you need access to another 5-digit account code to record your out-of-pocket expenses correctly, contact a Program Administrator.

See the Out-of-Pocket Quick Reference Guide for step-by-step reporting instructions.

While traveling, we encourage you to use your card as you would while on-campus. However, you may incur more out-of-pocket expenses while traveling. When entering out-of-pocket expenses into CCER, you are given three categories: mileage, ground transportation, and other travel.

Mileage: When using a personal vehicle for approved university business, keep trip mileage records substantiated by trip beginning and ending odometer readings or a screen print from www.mapquest.com/directions that shows estimated miles. CCER allows you to enter the miles driven and calculate the dollar amount to be reimbursed in the out-of-pocket expense reporting section. In the description, be sure to include the reason for the trip, to and from city/location, miles traveled, and the source of mileage data (odometer reading, MapQuest, Google Maps, etc.). If you include the source of mileage data in the description field, you do not need to have a screen print in the imaged receipts packet.

Ground transportation and Other Travel: Ground transportation includes taxis, tolls, bus fares, and parking meters. Other travel includes expenses such as tips. Be sure to obtain a receipt whenever possible. Enter these expenses through the out-of-pocket reporting section in CCER.

When viewing your transactions in CCER, you have the option to check ‘personal’ if the charge is not a university expense. You will also need to change the General Ledger Code to reflect Personal Charges to Wells Card (12040). If only a portion of the charge is personal, select split and reclassify to specify that portion as personal. After the statement reconciliation and approval period, your personal bank account will be debited the personal charge total. This eliminates the need for you to write a check to the university.

If your card is declined, we suggest stepping out of line and calling one of the P-Card Administrators­ if it is during business hours. If it is after business hours, email finance@pugetsound.edu and we will address your decline as soon as possible. Administrators can temporarily increase your credit limit or un-block a restricted vendor. If you know in advance, you will be making purchases at a restricted vendor, and don't hesitate to get in touch with a P-Card Administrator.

You are responsible for the security of your card and any purchases made on your account. If you believe you have lost your card or that it has been stolen, immediately report this information to Wells Fargo Bank Customer Service at 1.800.932.0036 (U.S.) or 1.612.332.2224 (outside the U.S.). Immediately after reporting to Customer Service, you must inform your P-Card Administrator. It is imperative to act promptly in the event of a lost or stolen card to avoid department and company liability for fraudulent transactions.

As with a personal charge card, you will no longer be able to use the account number after notifying the bank. A new card should be issued within 48 hours of notice to Wells Fargo Bank, and you should receive it within ten days.

Send the credit limit change request to the Office of Finance (Jones 018 or CMB 1075) and include the Approving Manager and Budget Manager signatures. Administrators can also temporarily increase your limit if you have a one-time purchase to make that exceeds your credit limit using the same form.

No, you do not need a PIN when using the P-Card overseas. Many merchants overseas are under the impression that they cannot accept VISA cards that do not have the new chip technology, requiring a PIN. The cards we offer are accepted. If cardholders must provide a PIN, they can supply any 4-digit number, and the card will be approved. However, the card cannot be used in ticketing machines, such as those used to get train or subway tickets. Cardholders will have to go to the ticket office.

P-Cards do not utilize phone numbers as part of the verification process. If a cardholder is asked for a phone number in an online entry form or otherwise at the time of order, the number that would be best for contacting the cardholder regarding the order can be supplied.