HomeMy WebLinkAbout20143105.tiff RESOLUTION
RE: APPROVE REVISIONS TO OPERATIONS MANUAL, SECTION 8.100, EXPENSE
REPORT AND TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT
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WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners of Weld County, Colorado, pursuant to
Colorado statute and the Weld County Home Rule Charter, is vested with the authority of
administering the affairs of Weld County, Colorado, and
WHEREAS,the Board has been presented with Revisions to Section 8.100,Expense Report
and Travel Reimbursement, for the Department of Human Services Operations Manual, and
WHEREAS, after review,the Board deems it advisable to approve said revisions,a copy of
which is attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of County Commissioners of Weld
County, Colorado, on behalf of the Department of Human Services, that the Revisions to Section
8.100, Expense Report and Travel Reimbursement, for the Department of Human Services
Operations Manual, be, and hereby is, approved.
The above and foregoing Resolution was, on motion duly made and seconded, adopted by
the following vote on the 13th day of October, A.D., 2014.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
WELD COUNTY, COLORADO
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Weld County Clerk to the Board
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Mike Freeman
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2014-3105
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�861 MEMORANDUM
�EDATE: October 9, 2014
a O Li N z ? "fO: Douglas Rademacher, Chair, Board �f fCoounttyy m� issioners
FROM: Judy A. Griego, Director, Huma Gicgi6eYYaSt e Li
RE: Revisions to Section 8.100, Expense Report and Travel
Reimbursement, Weld County Department of human
Services Operations Manual
Enclosed for Board approval arc Revisions to Section 8.100, Expense Report and Travel
Reimbursement, Human Services Operations Manual. These Revisions were reviewed under the
Board's Pass-Around Memorandum dated September 12, 2014,and approved for placement on the
Board's Agenda.
This is the policy and procedure Human Services staff follows to request reimbursement for
travel-related costs incurred while on county business.
Significant changes incorporated in this revision include requiring submission of the form to
one's supervisor within 60 days of the earliest expense for which reimbursement is
requested, clarification of procedure for calculating mileage from a point of origin other than the
primary worksite, a reminder to minimize travel whenever possible, the addition of a section
(8.100.7) concerning Lodging, Car Rental and Airfare, and clean-up of existing policy.
Section Citation Title of Section
8.100 Expense Report and Travel Reimbursement
If you have questions, please give me a call at extension 6510.
2014-3105
8.100 Expense Report and Travel Reimbursement
Revised 10/1311 This section 8.100, and each of its subsections arc written in conformance with,
and as a supplement to, Section 5-5-190 of the Weld County Code. As a general
rule, each of the Division Heads, Managers and Supervisors directly under the
supervision of the Director is delegated approval authority and the responsibility
to monitor compliance with applicable State and County statutes, rules,
regulations. and policies, and to review for reasonableness in using taxpayer
resources.
Personal expenditures which may be reimbursed may include mileage, training
costs, meal, and other appropriate expenses. All expenses claimed must be for
official business of the County.
Employee Reimbursement represents a significant percentage of the Department's
expenditures each year. The dollars spent are drawn from the same limited
allocations as are staff salaries, building maintenance costs, computer
maintenance costs and other vital resources. Therefore, all requests for
reimbursement should be scrutinized carefully to ensure that reimbursable
activities are:
A. a necessary business activity,
B. approached in the most cost-effective manner possible, and
C. reported accurately and honestly.
8.100.1 Process
County Expense Account Sheets (Form 5315) must be completed, authorized, and
submitted by the employee to his or her Supervisor within 60 days of the earliest
expense for which reimbursement is being requested. All signatures on the form
must be in non-Black, scanner-readable ink (No Black; No Green). The
Supervisor and Manager/Division I lead, if required, will review the
reimbursement request for completeness, accuracy, conformance to policy, and
reasonableness, then forward the form to the Fiscal Office within 90 days of the
earliest expense for which reimbursement is being requested. [Note: The form
should NOT be returned to the employee to forward to the Fiscal Office. It should
be forwarded directly from the Supervisor or Manager/Division I lead to the Fiscal
Office.] Form 5315 is to be used by all Divisions of the Department. Other
deadlines may be announced by the Fiscal Office in order to meet Year-end
processing requirements. Such deadlines will be announced to all staff.
PLEASE NOTE: Staff members arc strongly encouraged to submit requests
for reimbursement well in advance of the 90-day deadline. If the Fiscal Office
receives the request very close to the 90-day deadline, but experiences
subsequent delays in processing, such as the need for clarification of items on
the form, staff shortages, or other delays, which cause the final processing of
the reimbursement to exceed the 90-day deadline, the Central Accounting
Department may deny the processing of the reimbursement.
All Employee Expense Account Sheets must indicate the printed name of the
employee to be reimbursed and signed by that employee, must indicate the printed
name of the employee's immediate supervisor and be signed by that supervisor. If
the Expense Account Sheet represents a request for reimbursement which exceeds
$300 or if the Expense Account Sheet, when combined with previously submitted
Expense Account Sheets for the same month of travel, exceeds $300 per month,
the form must also indicate the printed name of the employee's Manager/Division
Head and be signed by that Manager/Division Head. By signing the form, the
Supervisor and Manager/Division Head are authorizing the appropriateness of the
request for reimbursement and arc confirming that all requests for reimbursement
have been scrutinized and found to be in compliance with the State and Federal
statutes and regulations, with the County Code, with this Department Policy, and
with the policies specific to the employee's Division. As stated above, all
signatures must be in non-Black ink.
Upon receipt of the reimbursement request, the Fiscal Office will review for
completeness. accuracy, conformity with applicable rules and regulations, and
authorization. Once verified, the request will be processed for reimbursement.
All employee reimbursement is for expenses already incurred. Therefore,
employees are not to submit a reimbursement request for anticipated or advance
expenses.
8.100. 2 Completion of Form 5315 - County Expense Account Sheet
Each Section on the form exists for a purpose. Therefore, the form should be
completed as thoroughly as possible. If the following fields are not completed or
do not sufficiently explain the request for reimbursement, the form may be
returned to the employee for further clarification before reimbursement will be
remitted:
Claim For: Time period covered by request. See Section 8.100.1
Date: Date of specific episodes for which reimbursement is requested
Destination: City and address of destination. This information must be
sufficiently detailed as to allow the employee's supervisor to audit
the trip and verify the reasonableness of the number of miles
driven. Simply identifying the city is not sufficient. The name of a
building which is commonly known by the Supervisor may be
sufficient. If the location is not commonly known by the
Supervisor, the specific address of the destination should be
entered.
Purpose: Brief, yet understandable, explanation of reason for travel. If the
purpose of the travel is to meet with a client or clients, indicate the
case identifying information of the client(s), such as the Trails
Case Number, Household Number, State ID, or other non-HIPAA
data. If the purpose of the travel is to meet with other business
colleagues, attach the agenda and/or minutes associated with that
meeting, training, or conference.
No. of Miles: Actual Mileage only is reimbursed in going to and from field
assignments from the Human Services building. See Sections
8.100.3 and 8.100.8.
Meal Allowance: See Section 8.100.5 This field should only be used for
reimbursement of the purchase of food for the employee on
specific county-business travel. It should not be used for purchase
of food for others. Such reimbursement should be requested in the
"Miscellaneous" section.
Actual Exp. Lodging: Lodging expense incurred and paid for by employee.
• Receipts substantiating expenditure must accompany. Generally,
lodging is paid in advance by the Department whenever possible.
See section 8.100.7
Parking: Actual fee incurred. See section 8.100.4
Total Reimbursement: Total Meal Allowance, Lodging and Parking identified in
columns (8) through (12).
Total Number of Miles: Total of Column (6).
X S per mile: Rate at which mileage indicated on form is to be reimbursed.
NOTE: Mileage at a rate other than the current County
reimbursement rate must be indicated on a separate form. No
mileage should be indicated in the Miscellaneous section.
Miscellaneous: Incidental reimbursement expenditures paid by the employee for
which reimbursement is requested. Receipts must be attached to
the form substantiating payment. This field should not be used for
expenses for which a specific field exists on the form. See Section
8.100.7.
Employee's Name (Typed or Printed): It is imperative that you print your name
here. Many people's signatures are difficult to decipher. If the
name can't be read, you can't be reimbursed.
Signed: Employee's Signature. As stated above, in non-Black ink.
Title: As shown on Personnel records.
Date: Actual date signed.
Approved: Signature of employee's immediate supervisor. As stated above, in
non-Black ink.
Title: Supervisor's title as shown on Personnel records.
Date: Date supervisor signed the form indicating approval.
See examples of blank Form 5315 (Exhibit B) and completed Form 5315 (Exhibit
C) attached.
8.100.3 Mileage Reimbursement
Use of one's personal vehicle for county business purposes is reimbursed at the
rate of two cents ($.02) below the Internal Revenue Service Standard Mileage
Rate. Currently, for 2014, that rate is fifty-four cents ($0.54) per mile ($.02 less
than the IRS Standard Mileage Rate of$0.56 per mile). As stated above, staff
should report the actual number of miles driven on each trip, on county business.
for reimbursement. If exact mileage is not known, it may be estimated using a
mapping tool, such as Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps, etc. The Supervisor and Fiscal
Office will review the number of miles reported to check for reasonableness.
If the point of origin is other than the Human Services building, it needs to be
identified also in the Destination section. In such cases, Internal Revenue Service
rules for mileage calculation in the event of an "alternate work location" should
be used to determine the reimbursable amount. Specifically, staff should calculate
the actual mileage from the alternative starting point (home. etc.) to the actual
destination. From this amount, deduct the actual mileage from the same
alternative starting point to the employee's normal work location. This netted
amount is the number of miles for which reimbursement should be requested.
[Example: Barney lives in Evans and his normal work location is the Greeley
office of WCDHS. He is required to attend a meeting in Denver, which lasts all
day, so he drives directly from home to the meeting in Denver, and returns to
home at the end of the day. Barney calculates that his home is 4.0 miles from his
normal work location and actually drives 52.0 miles to the meeting in Denver.
Therefore, Barney should request reimbursement for two trips (to Denver and
back) of 48 miles each (52—4 =48), or a grand total of 96 miles for the day's
trip, on his Personal Expense Report.] Mileage between home and Human
Services building will not be reimbursed, even if incidental stops, not adding
significantly to driving distance, were made on Department business.
Driving should, at most, represent a nominal portion of any WCDHS employee's
work time. While the Department does not currently set an absolute limit on the
percentage of time any given worker spends driving, the Fiscal Office will be
reviewing Personal Expense Claim forms and reporting to the Department
Director any instances of a worker who appears to be spending in excess of 10%
of his or her standard working hours driving. This will lead to a further analysis of
the staff member's travel with his or her direct supervisor and Division I lead in
order to determine whether or not it is, indeed, excessive and if adjustments which
would lessen that staff member's travel burden are warranted.
Whenever possible, trips should be coordinated to minimize the amount of time
any staff member is away from his or her primary workplace. This can be
accomplished by scheduling what would otherwise be multiple trips to the same
location together, either on the same day or on consecutive days, using available
lodging accommodations, by carpooling with other staff members who also have
county business in the same general location, or by other means. Any evidence of
"padding" the mileage to obtain reimbursement for otherwise non-reimbursable
incidental expenditures may result in disciplinary action up to and including
termination and referral to the appropriate authorities for a criminal investigation.
8.100.24 Parking Fees
Parking fees incurred by Department employees may be reimbursed when the fees
are incurred in the course of Department business. Employees should seek out the
most cost-effective parking arrangement, taking into consideration distance from
ultimate destination, security, and the amount of the parking fee. Reimbursement
may only be requested for the actual amount of the parking fee. Fines for over
parking or illegal parking will not be reimbursed. Any parking episode for
reimbursement of greater than $25.00 must be substantiated by a receipt. All
other requests for parking fees reimbursement must be accompanied by a receipt
or a verification form. If you do not have your receipt(s) you will be required to
submit a verification form (Exhibit A). This form must be signed by a notary
pu
blic. Staff is requested to use the verification form sparingly because it is
expected that receipts will be used for most occasions. The Supervisor and the
Fiscal Office will question costs that seem excessive.
8.100.5 Reimbursement of Meal Expenses
Meal expenses necessitated by travel on Department business are reimbursable at
the actual cost of meals, up to the specified per diem rate. Prior supervisor
authorization, as evidenced by a completed Staff Development Request Form, is
required for any travel, accommodation, or meal expenditures in connection with
Staff Development/Staff Training. See attached blank Staff Development Form
(Exhibit D) and completed Staff Development Form (Exhibit E).
A. Meals included in the registration fee paid by the County or State for Staff
Development/Staff Training activities or as part of the transportation fare
are not eligible for reimbursement separately as meal reimbursement.
B. Meal reimbursement requests, whether for multiple-day travel or one-day
travel for workshops, seminars, conferences, or other related training
programs as required or approved by the Department according to the
Weld County Employee Personnel Policy Handbook, Ordinance 118-P,
must be supported by the original itemized receipts for your meals. The
Guest Copy with only the total and tip listed is not acceptable. If you do
not have your receipt(s), you will be required to submit a verification form
(Exhibit A). This form must be signed by a notary public. Staff is
requested to use the verification form sparingly because it is expected that
receipts will be used for most occasions. The Fiscal Office will question
meal costs that seem excessive, using the per diem rate as its guide.
C. The customary amount for a tip on a food bill is 15% and, if required by
restaurants due to larger parties, 18%. The Department will only
reimburse up to 15% for gratuities, unless the receipt from the restaurant
indicates on the bill that due to a larger party 18% is required. Any
amount in excess of the guideline should not be included on the Expense
Account Sheet. The Fiscal Office will deduct the excess amount from the
Expense Account Sheet.
D. Meal expenses for a child in the physical custody of a Department
employee may be reimbursed for the actual cost of the meal. This must be
pre-approved by the Child Welfare Administrator or his/her designee
before the expenditure can be made. Receipts for these expenditures are
required. Employees can put this expenditure on Form 5315 County
Expense Account Sheet, in the "Miscellaneous" section of the form.
E. Per diem rates are subject to change each year. The current chart can be
accessed at: www.gsa.gov/perdiem
The Department will follow the rates in the Continental US (CONUS) Per
Diem Rate schedule as updated each year. The following table for FFY
2013-14 lists the Standard rate and additional rates for areas designated as
"l ligh Cost". Specific cities that classify as High Cost areas are listed
below under the appropriate County. The per diem reimbursement rates to
other cities in the United States can he obtained from the Fiscal Office.
Colorado Only: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Total
Standard $7.00 $11.00 $23.00 $41.00
High Cost #1 8.00 12.00 26.00 46.00
High Cost #2 9.00 13.00 29.00 51.00
High Cost #3 10.00 15.00 31.00 56.00
High Cost #4 11.00 16.00 34.00 61.00
High Cost #5 12.00 18.00 36.00 66.00
The following are recognized as High Cost areas in Colorado:
Boulder Co., CO (Boulder)- High Cost #3
Broomfield Co., CO (Broomfield)- High Cost #3
Denver Metro Area (Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Jefferson Counties)—
High Cost #4
Douglas Co.- High Cost #3
Eagle Co., CO (Vail) - high Cost #5
El Paso Co., CO (Colorado Springs) - High Cost #4
Garfield Co., CO (Glenwood Springs) - High Cost #1
Gunnison Co., CO (Crested Butte, Gunnison) - High Cost #1
La Plata Co., CO (Durango) - High Cost #3
Larimer, Co., CO (Fort Collins, Loveland)- High Cost #2
Mesa Co., CO (Grand Junction)- High Cost #1
Montezuma, Co., CO (Cortez)- High Cost #1
Montrose Co., CO (Montrose) - High Cost #2
Pitkin Co., CO (Aspen, Snowmass) - High Cost #5
Routt Co., CO (Steamboat Springs) - High Cost #2
San Miguel Co., CO (Telluride) - High Cost #5
Summit Co., CO (Keystone, Silverthorne, Breckenridge, Frisco)—High
Cost #2
8.100.6 Reimbursement for Toll Road Usage
The Department will reimburse employees for toll road usage when it is included
as a Department business expense on Form 5315. The reimbursement for toll
road usage will be based on the requirements of 8.100 and 8.100.3. Effective
January 1, 2013, The Department will no longer have transponders for use on
ExpressToll roads. Staff who use the toll road regularly are encouraged to
establish an ExpressToll account, by logging on to www.expresstoll.com, in order
to take advantage of lower rates as compared to license plate-driven charges. At
its discretion, the Department may reimburse such toll expenses at the lower
ExpressToll rate, which is approximately 80% of the License Plate rate.
8.100.7 Lodging, Car Rental, and Airfare
Staff should research available lodging, when necessary, which is both affordable
and safe. Supervisors and the Fiscal Office will utilize the Continental US
(CONUS) Per Diem Rate schedule, as updated each year, to evaluate the
reasonableness of lodging costs, and may, at the Department's discretion,
reimburse such expenses at the lower of the actual rate paid or the per diem rate.
This information is also available at www.gsa.gov/perdiem.
Staff should, likewise, research car rental, when necessary, which is both
affordable and safe. Vehicle insurance should only be purchased in situations
where the driver's personal automobile insurance and/or homeowner's insurance
does not sufficiently safeguard the individual and the county from liability.
Vehicles should always be returned to the rental agency with sufficient gasoline to
avoid the rental agency's refill charges. Supervisors and the Fiscal Office will use
prudent principles to evaluate the reasonableness of car rental costs, and may, at
the Department's discretion, reduce the amount of reimbursement, accordingly.
Staff should also research airfare, when necessary, to identify affordable and safe
airline tickets. Costs for optional Airline Insurance, Travel Insurance, and Trip
Insurance will not be reimbursed.
Lodging, Car Rental, and Airfare should all be purchased at least two weeks in
advance of the trip, whenever possible, in order to take advantage of the lower
rates commonly assessed for early scheduling. Staff should discuss and arrange
the itinerary of the trip with his or her Supervisor, in order to coordinate these
purchases and to either request a check for payment or to identify available P-
Cards with which to remit payment. If this is not possible, due to an emergency
situation, the employee should include an explanation of the emergency situation
with the reimbursement request. Habitual disregard of stewardship over taxpayer
dollars may lead to disciplinary action.
8.100.8 Division-Specific Policies Regarding Auditing of Expense Report and Travel
Reimbursement
Each Division of the Department is required to have an audit plan that will be
applied monthly and on a random basis to assure conformance to Section 8.100. 1
— 7. These audits will be provided to the Director within 15 working days from
the end of the month being audited.
A. Child Welfare: The manager will compare the destination miles to
MapQucst or Google Maps, and dates on the form to the Trails system to
verify a contact, along with the employee's Outlook calendar, if used. the
duty schedules, and PeopleSoft Time management. Such audit results will
be shared with the Division I lead and Department Director. In addition,
each supervisor will be required to randomly audit employee's mileage
forms for accuracy. Prior to delivering completed and authorized
reimbursement requests to the Fiscal Office, the Supervisor or
Manager/Division Head will notify the employee(s) and the Fiscal Office.
via e-mail, that such forms are being submitted. This notification e-mail
will list each employee's name and the period of the request. For example:
"John Smith. July 1. 2014 through July 31, 2014".The notification e-mail
will be sent to the "HS-BusinessOffice" Outlook group, to the
Supervisor's Manager/Division Head, and to the employee(s) for whom
reimbursement is being requested. The Fiscal Office will, in turn, notify
the Supervisor, the Manager/Division Head, and the employee(s) of the
receipt of the employee's signed mileage reimbursement form. If the
Fiscal Office subsequently identifies issues regarding the reimbursement
request(s) (missing signatures, questioned items, etc.), it will notify the
employee, Supervisor, and Manager/Division I lead, via E-mail, of those
issues and the steps necessary to resolve them.
B. Child Support: The Manager will review documentation and substantiate
need for all claims that are $100 or more.
C. Area Agency on Aging: The Manager will require that the destination
column on the mileage claim form be competed in a manner that clearly
shows where the staff has traveled. This information will he compared to
data in our data system (the Bus), to see if a visit did occur, since all home
visits must he documented.
Employees will group their visits geographically, as much as possible.
The purpose column of the expense claim form should be completed with
enough reasonable information to show why the time out of the office was
necessary. For example, the Ombudsman attended the Resident Counsel
meeting (which is a required visit).
For other staff members who do not do traditional home visits and do not
have a data system that can be as easily audited, it is the supervisors'
responsibility to know why a staff member is leaving the office.
D. Employment Services: Managers will review the form, when completed,
to ensure accuracy, comparing reimbursement request forms to their
knowledge of dates when staff was scheduled to attend meetings and
events. Managers are responsible for auditing and ensuring that out of
office expenses are appropriate and necessary. If there is more than one
staff person attending, they are encouraged to car pool to save on
expenses. The Division Head will review all requests for out-of-county
training, based on the unit manager's recommendation, as described on the
Staff Development Authorization. The Department Director has the final
decision on training or out of area training and costs.
E. Assistance Payments: The Manager will review documentation and
substantiate need for all claims that are $100 or more.
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