Purchasing & Accounts Payable

To minimize vendor payment delays and employee reimbursements:

• The Purchasing/Accounts Payable Purchase Order (P.O.) should have enough funds to cover expenses and should be posted at the time the order is placed.
• Have the vendor reference the valid P.O. number on the invoice.
• Preparers should check and resolve their queues daily in BruinBuy. See the BruinBuy User Guide for instructions on Queue Processing (Chapter 12). Supervisors and managers can review their staff's queue messages in BruinBuy under the QUS function which is assigned by departmental security administrators (DSAs) in the Distributed Administrative Computing Security System (DACSS).
• The receiving option in BruinBuy should be used only on orders that need to be tracked to ensure that items are received in a good condition. See Chapter 13 (Receiving) of the BruinBuy User Guide for information on when to use this function. If the preparer is not the person responsible for receiving or responding to justification requests, forward requests to the appropriate person and follow up as necessary.
• If an invoice has not been paid within 30 days, check the status of the payment in BruinBuy (see Chapter 15 on Information Access) and the associated queue messages, then contact the appropriate Accounts Payable representative (see Related Information on How to Locate the Correct Accounts Payable Representative).
• See Accounts Payable Service Standard in Related Information to see which date AP is currently processing.
• Review the Hold & Incomplete (H & I) status reports in BruinBuy for invoice and order problems.
• Collect the appropriate supporting documentation for all entertainment reimbursement requests prior to submitting them to AP. See BUS-79 and the Reimbursements in Related Information for complete requirements.
• Proof of payment is required for reimbursement requests. If the receipt or invoice does not indicate the amount paid and the method of payment (cash, credit card or check), a secondary document, such as a redacted credit card statement (account number blacked out) or a copy of the cancelled check, is needed.
• Submit original invoices and receipts only; fax copies only when requested by an AP representative.
• Avoid having faculty and staff advance funds on behalf of the University. Encourage employees to utilize appropriate purchasing methods for legitimate business expenses, such as LVOs, POs, BruinBuy, preferred supplier agreements or PCard (Procurement Card).