The Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy - The University of Texas Medical School at Houston
Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy
The Department ofNeurobiology

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Procurement Card Usage and Restrictions


Hours & Contact Info | Meet The Staff

Using A Procurement Card | Improper Card Use | Restricted Purchase Listing | Card Management
P-Card Software Roles/Procedures | Dept vs Cardholder Responsibilities | Recordkeeping | Lost or Stolen Cards
Disputing Card Transactions | Card Termination | More Information

Using the UTHSCH Procurement Card

We encourage you to use Auxiliary Enterprises when making purchases for your department. When going outside the University, the Procurement Card is an available method of payment for suppliers not on the eProcurement catalogs.

The Procurement Card is issued to you as an individual, not to your department. Therefore, only the cardholder is authorized to use the Mastercard. You should not let anyone else use your card. Disciplinary action will be taken for fraudulent or willful misuse of your Procurement Card.

We are pleased to announce that you can now purchase all non-radioactive laboratory chemicals on the Procurement Card. Here is what we need for you to do to ensure compliance:

  • When using the Point of Sale requisition, be very specific in the item description as to what you are ordering.
  • You must use the correct item category when ordering chemicals.
  • You must enter the person to whom the order is being delivered, along with the Bldg. and Room Number where the item is being shipped to. This will allow Environmental Health and Safety to continue sending the correct (MSDS) Material Data Safety Sheet to ensure proper usage of the product and to meet our compliance standards.

Improper Use of Procurement Cards

The Procurement Card CANNOT be used for these items:

  • Animals
  • Cab and Limousine Service ( no exceptions)
  • Cash advances, cash instruments, or cash refunds
  • College tuition
  • Consulting or personal services (unless under contract through Procurement Process)
  • Contract Parking
  • Deposits for retreats, conventions, etc
  • eBay or any online auction
  • Entertainment
  • All Food (including alcohol and beverages)
  • Gasoline (except for official UT vehicles)
  • Gift Cards
  • Gifts - going away gift, anniversary, birthday, holiday, etc
  • Hotel Fees
  • Memberships
  • Notary Public Fees
  • Prescription drug/controlled substances
  • Radioactive material
  • Travel (out-of- town transportation and seminar/conference registration fees) and any other out-of-town charges. However, you may use your Procurement Card for in-town seminar/conference registration fees
  • US Postage Stamps

Restricted Purchase Listing

  • Single purchase limit per transaction, per supplier, per day is a maximum of $5000.00
  • The Procurement Card cannot be used for any personal purchases under any circumstances.
  • Also, see the list at the top right grey box for a list of other restrictions.

Card Management

Within each monthly cycle, there are several key steps in the PeopleSoft software
(Point of Sale Requisitions and Reconciliation functions) and Record Keeping (credit card statements/support documentation) that should be taking place with each credit card. The key steps are listed below:

P-Card Software Roles/Procedures

All P-Card transactions must be entered as Point of Sale (POS) transactions in the eProcurement module of PeopleSoft. These POS requisition will pre-encumber and the Purchase Order will encumber the funds for your purchases. (See eProcurement Goods and Services).

Reconciliation - An individual cardholder can be responsible for performing the reconciliation process in the PeopleSoft software, or another designated staff member can perform these tasks. Whoever is responsible for these duties is known as the "reconciler" for that card. The decision on whether the cardholder or another staff member should perform these duties is decided at the department management level. In many cases, it is easier and more productive for the cardholder to reconcile their own charges since they are familiar with their charges.

The reconciler will be notified via e-mail that they have a statement to reconcile. We load files from the bank on a daily basis so you may or may not receive notification due to your individual card activity. (See P-Card Reconciliation). All statements should be reconciled within three days of notification. On the 10th of every month, all outstanding charges will be automatically be reconciled with the cardholders default account. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT DUE TO THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE PURCHASE ORDERS THAT HAVE ENCUMBERED FUNDS AND MATCHING THESE ORDERS TO YOUR STATEMENT DURING THE RECONCILIATION PROCESS WILL DIS-ENCUMBER THE FUNDS AND CLOSE THE PURCHASE ORDER.

Delegated to "Act as a Proxy": This is an ability that the PeopleSoft software has where a cardholder is relieved of having to enter his/her own POS requisitions and reconcile their statements. Another person is "delegated" or given permission to enter all of the cardholders POS requisitions and reconcile their statements for them. After the cardholder makes a purchase, all they have to do is turn in the receipts (and other support documentation) to the delegated individual. This function is especially useful for physicians, researchers and other non-administrative personnel.

Department and Cardholder Responsibilities

Cardholder:
  • The cardholder is the ONLY individual authorized to use their card.
    I understand the responsibilities I will be assuming by having a card issued in my name and I agree to accept them. I understand that I will be held responsible for charges that I personally have made on the card. I understand it is my responsibility to immediately contact the Procurement Card Team to dispute any fraudulent charges or charges that were inadvertently applied to my card. I also understand, that if my card is lost or stolen, it is my responsibility to immediately contact Bank One to cancel my card and notify the Procurement Card team of cancellation.
  • The cardholder must attach the sales receipt to the monthly statement from Bank One.
  • It is the responsibility of the cardholder to attempt to resolve any disputes with a supplier. If resolution is not possible the cardholder should report the problem to Bank One, the Procurement Card Program Coordinator, and the department's Chief Business Manager.
  • The Procurement Card must be signed by the named cardholder.
  • The cardholder is responsible for reporting the loss/theft or his/her card immediately to the Bank One, the Procurement card Program Coordinator and his/her department's business manager.
Department Administration:
  • Program administration is the responsibility of each department's chief business manager. The chief business manager is responsible for seeing that all statements are reconciled and delivery of cardholder activity statements to the cardholder.

Recordkeeping

In an effort to ensure proper card usage, certain support documentation for each cardholder is required. A credit card statement will be mailed to each cardholder during the months that they make charges. If no charges are made during a billing cycle, no statement is mailed. The following items should be attached to each Bank One monthly statement.

  • Sales receipts w/pricing
  • Packing slips
  • Transactions slips

The above documentation should be maintained in the department. The cardholder and another approving official within the department should sign each statement. At the end of the fiscal year, the support documentation should be maintained within the department and be kept on file for period of seven years plus the current year.

Lost or Stolen Procurement Cards

You should notify Bank One immediately if your Procurement Card is lost or stolen by calling 1 (800) 890-0669. You should also notify your department's chief business manager and the Procurement Card Program Coordinator.

Upon your telephone call, the bank will immediately suspend your procurement card and issue a new card. The new card will be sent to the Procurement Card Program Coordinator.

IMPORTANT: It is imperative that you contact the bank immediately for suspension of your card. You are responsible for all charges made on the card until it has been canceled at Bank One.

Disputing a Transaction

You may dispute any charge that appears on your monthly statement. If there is a charge that is not recognized, or it appears to be incorrect, you should first contact the supplier and try to resolve the dispute. If an agreement can not be reached, simply complete the "Charge Dispute Form" located in the "Forms" section.

Fax the completed form to the Procurement Card team at 713-500-4710. They will contact the bank with the disputed information. A charge may be disputed up to 60 days from the bank billing date.

Documentation of the dispute should also go to the department's chief business manager, and a copy should be kept with the monthly credit card statement. Please remember Procurement Services is your partner in this venture and is also willing to assist in any dispute resolution.

Card Termination

If it is found that a cardholder has not used the procurement card for three consecutive accounting periods, (months), this card may be revoked at the discretion of the Program Coordinator. The Procurement Services Department will solicit from the cardholder any reasonable explanation for non-use of this privilege.

When a cardholder terminates employment with the University, the department has the specific obligation to reclaim the procurement card and return it to the Program Administrator, prior to the employee termination date. Failure to do so may result in revocation of all departmental card privileges.

Additional Procurement Card Information

Pamela H. Butler, CAPP
Procurement Process - BuyCard
Phone: 713 500-8182
Fax: 713 500-4710
Email: Pamela.H.Butler@uth.tmc.edu