SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Travel and Business Expense Report Guidelines (FIN I-E) General Information The Travel and Business Expense Report is used to reimburse SCRRA employees for recurring expenses incurred on behalf the Authority. For one time minor emergency purchases such as supplies or reference materials, a check request or petty cash may be used for reimbursement. The Travel and Business Expense Report is to be submitted for all conferences/seminars attended, regardless of whether the registration fees were prepaid by the Authority or additional expenses were incurred. The following are examples of expenditures that are eligible for reimbursement using the Travel and Business Expense Report: Mileage Per diem Actual cost of meals Airfare Lodging Parking, tolls, shuttles, taxis Registration fees (conferences and seminars) Hosting expenses (must include detailed restaurant receipt, names of individuals, company affiliation and reason for expense). Expenses for alcoholic beverages will not be reimbursed. i. Supplies for training j. Miscellaneous reimbursements such as telephone Travel Related Expenses The SCRRA Travel Policy applies to all travel on behalf of the Authority. When attending a meeting/conference/seminar, the employee is required to attach a short memo highlighting its relevance to SCRRA. Within ten days of returning from travel, a Travel and Business Expense Report should to be submitted for the trip taken in accordance with the SCRRA Travel Policy. A separate expense report is required to be submitted for each trip taken. Only expenses incurred while traveling should be submitted, including expenses prepaid by the Authority such as airfare, registration, and lodging. a. b. c. d. e. f. g. h.
Other Expenses (Including Mileage)
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Travel and Business Expense Report Guidelines (FIN I-E) Non-travel related reimbursable expenses incurred in the normal course of business (including mileage) should be submitted on the Travel and Business Expense Report. These reimbursements should not be combined with travel related expenses when submitting an expense report. Receipts (Documentation) Original receipts (not copies) for all expenditures (except for public transportation or metered parking) are to be attached when submitting a Travel and Business Expense Report. Employees should retain a copy of all receipts for future reference. Timing of Payments Staff should not expect expense reports to be processed immediately or checks to be available within 48 hours. Refer to the Accounts Payable Payment Guidelines for information related to the timing of payments. Check Pickup The Travel and Business Expense Form provides an area for indicting whether a check is to be picked up or mailed. If “M” is checked, Accounting will mail the check directly to the employee’s home address. For employees assigned to a different location, it is recommended checks be mailed. For internal control purposes, checks for employees can only be picked up by the employee or by a previously designated authorized person. Coding It is the responsibility of the requestor to provide the coding information. If this area is not complete, the expense report will be returned to the employee for coding. Refer to the Chart of Accounts and cost center budget to determine where expenses should be coded. To facilitate coding, certain object codes/expenditure types have been identified on the expense report. Any questions regarding coding should be directed to the Budget Office. The total amount in the coding area must include expenses prepaid by the Authority and should agree with the “Total Expended” and “Daily Total.”
Signature Authority
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Travel and Business Expense Report Guidelines (FIN I-E) The SCRRA Signature Authority applies to all Travel and Business Expense Reports. Expense reports for the Executive Director are to be approved by the Chairman of the Board of Directors or his/her designee. Expense reports for Board members are to be approved by either the Executive Director or the Director, Finance. Frequency The Travel and Business Expense Report should be submitted whenever an employee incurs an expense on behalf of the Authority. At a minimum, employees that incur reimbursable expenses should submit an expense report on a monthly basis; however, employees are encouraged to submit an expense report more frequently (weekly or biweekly) if necessary.
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Travel and Business Expense Report Guidelines (FIN I-E) Travel and Business Expense Report Form Instructions Employee Name - Name of employee submitting expense report Ext. No. - Telephone extension where employee can be reached. Period Covered - The period could be a one day, one week or one month. Staff should submit expense reports at a minimum of once a month, but more frequently (weekly or bi-weekly) if reimbursable expenses are regularly incurred. Cost Center - Provide your cost center number. If it is not known, refer to the Chart of Accounts. M or P/U - Indicate whether check should be mailed to the employee’s home address or picked up. Accounting will mail reimbursement checks, if so desired. For internal control purposes, only the employee or a pre-designated authorized person (employee) can pickup the check. Date - Date expense was incurred. Description, Purpose, Destination - Brief description of activity, destination or purpose of expense. Miles - Refers to the number of business miles driven using a personal vehicle. $ Amount - The calculated amount is based on the number of miles driven times the current IRS standard mileage rate. The IRS standard mileage rate is subject to change. Staff will be notified whenever the rate changes. Parking - Parking receipts must be attached, except when using metered parking. Airfare - The cost of air travel. Copy of ticket must be attached. Include the cost even if prepaid by SCRRA. If prepaid, the amount should be deducted under “less prepaids.” Ot Tran - Other transportation costs include public transportation, car rental, taxi, shuttles, tolls, gratuities, etc. Receipts are not required for use of public transportation. Lodging - The cost of staying at a hotel. An itemized room bill must be attached. Include amounts even if prepaid by SCRRA. If prepaid, the amount should be deducted under “less prepaids.”
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Travel and Business Expense Report Guidelines (FIN I-E) Meals - Includes per diem, actual cost of meals and hosting expense. Alcohol will not be reimbursed. Restaurant receipts are required if requesting reimbursement for actual meal expenses. For hosting related expenses, the names of individuals and company affiliation are required. No hosting expense reimbursements will be made for general meetings involving SCRRA staff only (i.e. for donuts). Note: When traveling, an employee may elect either to be reimbursed for meals or to be paid the per diem rate, However, only one method of reimbursement can be used for any one trip. Registration - Cost of registration for conferences, meetings, or seminars, including the amount prepaid by SCRRA. The amount prepaid by SCRRA should be deducted under “less prepaids.” Supplies - Cost of miscellaneous materials and supplies. Other - Expenses not separately identified. Refer to the Chart of Accounts for the correct object code/expenditure type. Daily Total - Total for each line item. Carried Forward Side 2 - Column totals from Side 2. Total Expended - Sum of the columns on Side 1. Note, the total expended before deducting prepaids represents the total expenses incurred and the amount that must be accounted for in the account coding area. Less Prepaids - This number is the total of the prepaids. Prepaids include any items paid by SCRRA directly to a vendor . Examples of prepaids are airfare, hotel, registration fees, and car rental. Subtotal - Total expenses paid by the employee (Daily Total column less prepaids). Less Advance - Any advance taken by the employee for the authorized travel is to be included here and deducted from the subtotal. Amount due Employee (SCRRA) - A subtraction of subtotal less advance line items. A positive amount represents amounts owed to the employee. A negative number represents amounts the employee owes to SCRRA. If an amount is owed to SCRRA, a check or money order must be attached to the expense report at the time it is submitted.
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL RAIL AUTHORITY FINANCIAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Travel and Business Expense Report Guidelines (FIN I-E) Account Coding Area - The following information must be completed by the person submitting the expense report. All expenses (including prepaids) must be accounted for in the coding area. Any questions related to coding should be directed to the Budget Office. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Project - Authorized project where expense is budgeted. Task - Authorized task where expense is budgeted. Expenditure Type - Specific account/object code where expense is budgeted. Cost Center - Should be the same as no. 4 above. Amount - Amount to be charged to the flex field (account). Total - Represents the total of the expenses incurred. This must agree with the “Total Expended” and the “Daily Total.”
Employee Signature - Signature of employee submitting expense report. Signature certifies that expenses were incurred on behalf of SCRRA. Approval - Manager - The SCRRA signature authority should be followed. Approval - Director - The SCRRA signature authority should be followed. Approval - Executive - The SCRRA signature authority should be followed. Expense reports of the Executive Director require the approval of the Chairman of the SCRRA Board of Directors. The Executive Director or the Director, Finance may approve expense reports of the Chairman and other Board members. Accounting Use Only - This area is reserved for Accounting. 1. Vendor No. - Unique number that identifies the employee in Oracle. This number is not the employee number used in the payroll system. 2. Batch No. - Identifies the system batch number. 3. EID Date - Identifies the date the expenditure was incurred. 4. Entered/Date - Initials of person entering the data to Oracle and date entered. 5. Reviewed By - Initials of person reviewing and date. 6. Pickup/Date - Signature of employee picking up check and date.
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