Policy changes announced for Purchasing Card transactions

Purchasing Cards (P-Cards) provide a quick and easy method to purchase goods at UND. However, as the usage of the P-Card has expanded, the risk for disallowance in audit on grant and contract funding has also increased because Grants and Contracts does not have the opportunity to review the charges prior to purchase to ensure goods procured with the P-Card are reasonable, allocable, allowable and are consistently applied in like circumstances. What this means is the expenditures need to fall within the award dates, are reasonable for the work being done, have been allocated if the expenditures are for more than one purpose, are allowable based on the terms and conditions of the award and are treated consistently across the University.

The first step in minimizing risk to UND is that, effective Dec. 17, a grant and contract funding source can no longer be used as the default funding source on a P-Card. To change the default funding source you need to email the new default funding information to Janelle McGarry in Purchasing at janellemcgarry@mail.und.edu. After Dec. 17, Purchasing will temporarily suspend any P-Card that has not been changed to a local or appropriated default funding source by making the allowable charge amount $1.

Departments can still reallocate P-Card charges to a grant or contract funding source through PaymentNet. We ask that you also make the following changes when reallocating:

• Change the account code to properly identify the purchase. Account code 532105 (Purchasing Cards) should not be used.
• Complete the notes in PaymentNet to identify what is being purchased and how the purchase is applicable to the grant or contract funding source.

The second step in minimizing risk to UND is that a pilot project has been established with Biology and Engineering to develop a process for Grants and Contracts administration to review P-Card transactions that will ensure P-Card charges are appropriate on the grant and contract funding source. Once the pilot project is complete and a process is finalized, departments will receive further instruction.

— David Schmidt, assistant vice president for Research and Economic Development.