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RESOLUTION TO AMEND THE CITY OF JONESBORO EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK'S TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT POLICY
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BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF JONESBORO, ARKANSAS, THAT THE EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK BE AMENDED AS FOLLOWS WITH REGARD TO THE TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT POLICY AND TO INCLUDE ALL DEPARTMENTS AND OFFICES OF THE CITY OF JONESBORO.
Any employee, during the course of his/her employment with the City of Jonesboro, may be required to travel outside the city limits of Jonesboro on official business, thereby incurring certain expenses for accommodations and meals.
All employee travel must have proper authorization by a supervisor prior to its occurrence. There must be kept on file within the department a dated and signed approval until completion of the trip, at which time the approval and request for reimbursement are to be submitted to the Finance Department.
This policy shall be referred to as "Travel Reimbursement Policy" and include the following directives.
TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT: each employee who has incurred allowable reimbursable expenses shall submit to the Department of Finance the completed "Employee Travel" form to include proper "Authorization" and "Request for Reimbursement" portions following the outlined instructions.
Reimbursement is limited to actual expenses for meals and lodging within the prescribed limitations. The maximum must not be claimed unless expenditures equal or exceed the amount claimed. The employee is responsible for obtaining receipts to support all items included in the reimbursement request. Expenses will not be paid for spouses that accompany employees on out of town trips.
Allowable Reimbursable Expenses shall include:
MEALS: Reimbursement for meals without overnight travel is not allowed except for the following circumstances.
1. When staff are required to accompany and transport inmates for the purpose of medical attention, transfer to another facility, etc.
2. When staff are required to attend official conferences or seminars and the meal is included in the conference but handled separately from the registration fee. A copy of the meeting agenda should be attached to the Request for Reimbursement form.
LODGING: A maximum allowance of $65.00 plus tax per day for in-state travel, and $75.00 plus tax per day for out-of-state travel. Sales tax rate must be shown on the reimbursement form. The travel day shall commence at 6:00 a.m. to include breakfast, lunch, dinner and one night's lodging, and shall end the following morning at 6 a.m. Meals will be reimbursed at no more than $4.00 for breakfast, $8.00 for lunch and $12.00 for dinner. Reimbursement limits include gratuity.
Breakfast on day of departure is not allowed if departure is after 6:00 a.m.; Lunch on day of return is not allowed if return is before 1:00 p.m.; Dinner on day of return is not allowed if return is before 6:00 p.m. If a meal is provided by a common carrier, reimbursement is not allowed for that meal (e.g. airline serving lunch).
REGISTRATION FEES: If a registration fee or tuition cannot be paid by the Department of Finance prior to the meeting, then a copy of the registration form and a receipt shall be required for reimbursement to the employee.
MILEAGE: City maintained vehicles are to be used for all travel. In the event that a City vehicle may not be available, private owned vehicle mileage will be reimbursed following the outlined directives: The employee may claim reimbursement at the rate of twenty-five cents ($.25) per mile as determined by the shortest major highway route between cities. Vicinity mileage is reimbursable if the place of lodging is over 25 miles from the location of the meeting.
When common carriers (airplane, bus, train, car) are needed to transport persons on official business, the requesting department shall make all the travel arrangements and have the department billed directly. However, the employee may make and pay for the arrangements and request reimbursement. Travelers by commercial air will utilize coach accommodations. If first class fare is utilized, a coach non-availability certificate from the airline will be required for support.
INCIDENTAL EXPENSES: Some incidental expenses may be reimbursable when supported by proper justification and receipts. Allowable expenses include parking fees, emergency car repairs of city vehicle, taxi fare, bus fare, necessary office supplies, fax, copier.
NON-ALLOWABLE EXPENSES: Entertainment, flowers, laundry, valet service, alcoholic beverages, personal mileage, personal telephone calls.
USE OF CITY CREDIT CARDS: The authority to use oil company credit cards shall apply only to City Employees who operate City owned vehicles in the performance of their official duties. No meals or lodging are to be charged on an oil company credit card. Oil company credit cards can be obtained through the Purchasing Agent's office in the Department of Finance. The VISA credit card is to be used only for meals and lodging when conducting City business. Items that are not reimbursable are not to be charged. All VISA card invoices are to be submitted to Accounts Payable in the Department of Finance upon completion of travel.
It shall be the responsibility of each Department Administrator to examine and approve all travel and reimbursement requests, provide written authorization and justification if there exist any variance from the travel policy directives, and to always be cognizant of the costs for employees to attend seminars, meetings and training institutes, for determining feasible use of financial resources provided in your annual operating budget.
VARIANCE APPROVAL: If it is determined that anticipated travel expenses will exceed the maximum limits outlined in the Travel Reimbursement Policy, (e.g. hotel room rates) a written advance request in letter format must be submitted by the Department Administrator for approval from the Mayor before the travel occurs. This request should contain all justification for variances from the maximum limits prescribed.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 3rd day of May, 1993.