Office Hours
The Accounts Payable Department is open: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Accounts Payable Department is responsible for paying vendors and for reimbursements and advances to faculty, staff and students. Purchasing/Payment Process
Check Processing:
Checks are processed by Accounts Payable once a week. Check Requests received by 12:00 PM on Friday are available the following Friday after 12:00 PM in the Cashier's Office. In the event of a three-day weekend, Check Requests should be submitted by 4:00 PM the previous Thursday. If there is more than one holiday during a week (Thanskgiving and Winter Break) there will be no checks processed that week.
Upon request checks may be mailed to home or business addresses but not through campus mail. Invoices are paid per the vendor terms when due. Please have original receipts, invoices or supporting documents to be reimbursed by the college.
Expense Reimbursement:
Employees and students may spend their own funds for college related expenses and submit a request for reimbursement. The request is submitted to Accounts Payable on a Request for Check/Cash Reimbursement Form. Please have the budget officer or other designated signer sign the form. If the payee is the budget officer, the appropriate Dean or Vice President must sign the form. Source documentation, such as an original receipt or returned check, must accompany the check request. A brief description of the business purpose for the college to pay for the expense must be noted on the request for reimbursement. For example: "purchase of snacks and drinks" is not a business purpose; "purchase of snacks and drinks for residence hall study-break" is a business purpose.
Reimbursement requests under $100.00 are reviewed and sent to the Cashier's Office for cash reimbursement. Requests over $100.00 are reimbursed by Accounts Payable check.
Gift Certificates:
Effective September 1, 2007 requests for reimbursement for gift certificates valued over $25.00 given to Lewis & Clark employees (including student employees) must be supported with a listing of the recipients of the gift certificates. These will be subject to tax withholding and wage reporting. Petty Cash Reimbursements
Submit Petty Cash requests for under $100.00 to Accounts Payable for approval. After the request has been approved, the reimbursement request will be in the Cashier's Office. Please contact the Cashier's Office to verify whether or not your Petty Cash Request has been authorized and ready for pickup. The Cashier's will issue you a cash reimbursement and ask for a signature for verification of receipt of funds.
OfficeMax Orders
Purchases from the OfficeMax catalogue can be made by filling out an OfficeMax requisition form and submitting it to the Business Office. These forms are available outside of the Business Office. The OfficeMax requisition should be complete with item numbers and descriptions, department account number, and budget officer signature of approval. Orders received by noon on Wednesday will be delivered to the department by Facilities Services on Friday. Departments receive a discount of 40% off of the prices published in the catalogue for most items. Orders can also be placed online via the web. Contact Accounts Payable for information.
Payments to Independent Contractors
The Accounts Payable Staff in the Business Office processes all payments to independent contractors. Independent contractors are vendors who perform services for the college but are not employees of the college. They include many occupations where the worker is considered self-employed.
The compensation paid to the independent contractors is taxable. Accounts Payable does not withhold taxes from the payments. The income is reported to the recipient and to the IRS at the end of each tax year on Form 1099. For this reason, it is very important that the payments to the independent contractors are made by Accounts Payable. Please do not pay anyone who has performed a service with cash or personal check. By doing so you would place the college in violation of the Internal Revenue Code and our ability to reimburse you is at a risk.
In Order to make a payment to an independent contractor, submit a completed Check Request or approved invoice to Accounts Payable. Along with the payment request, attach a W-9 form that has been completed by the contractor. The W-9 form provides the tax identification number (TIN) of the contractor and certifies that the TIN is correct and that the contractor is not subject to backup withholding. These forms are available for downloading or in the forms cabinet outside the Business Office.
If the individual is from a foreign country, please contact the Business Office as soon as you decide to contract services. It takes several weeks to complete the paperwork necessary to pay nonresident aliens. For more information, please go to Guest Basics.
Purchases from Vendors
Purchases under $1,000.00 do not require a purchase order unless required by the vendor. The department can place an order with the vendor. When the goods or services have been received, the budget officer or designated signer must note the correct account number for the charge on the invoice and sign the invoice authorizing payment. The signer is responsible to verify that the department budget is adequate to pay the invoice. The department forwards the invoice to Accounts Payable for payment. Purchases over $1,000.00 require a purchase order. The department must generate a Requisition. Requisitions
A requisition is required to generate a purchase order. Requisitions for operating purchases (6XXX through 8XXX object codes) are processed if the actual department expenditures, encumbrances, and requisitions do not exceed the department's operating budget. Requisitions are required for all operating budget purchases over $1,000.00 or if the vendor requires a purchase order. A purchase order should be created through the requisitioning process at the time the order is placed. The college is not obligated to pay an invoice for goods/services that require a purchase order if a requisition is not processed at the time of the order.
Departments submit requisitions to the Business Office. The requisition must include the budgets officer's signature, the operating budget account number, adequate description of goods or services, and the complete address of the vendor.
Departments that order frequently may request access to enter their requisitions online. It is the responsibility of the department to ensure that only authorized purchases are entered.
The Business Office verifies that the department has adequate budget for the purchase. Budget revisions are not necessary between object codes within a department's operating budget. The Business Office is only concerned that the overall operating budget is in a positive position in order to purchase. If the department's operating budget falls into a negative position, the requisition will not be processed.
The requisition is sent to the Business Office or entered online. Requisitions received or entered by 2:00 PM are processed that day. The purchase order is sent to the department by interoffice mail the following morning
Purchase Orders
The Business Office generates a purchase order from the information received on the requisition. A purchase order forms the contractual obligation between the college and the vendor where the vendor is obligated to ship goods or provide services to the college in return for the college's promise to pay the agreed upon price. The purchase order creates an immediate encumbrance against the budget line item.
The Business Office generates two different types of purchase orders:
Regular Purchase Orders are issued to order goods and services from a vendor. The order is item specific and includes a full description of each item ordered. The purchase order is closed when the items are received and the vendor's invoice is paid by Accounts Payable.
Blanket Purchase Orders are issued when goods and services are received on a routine basis, such as monthly utilities and maintenance contracts. These blanket purchase orders are authorized at the beginning of each fiscal year. Monthly or quarterly invoices can be paid automatically from this yearly authorization.
Blanket purchase orders are also issued to be kept on file with vendors and repetitiously used similar orders, such as the purchase of sheet music by the Music department or purchase of plants by Facilities Services. These blanket purchase orders authorize the vendor to accept orders from authorized personnel at the college for a preauthorized dollar amount of goods and services over a designated period of time. The vendor invoice will reference the blanket purchase order number.
Purchase Order Disbursement
Purchase Orders are printed on a three-part form that is disbursed as follows:
- The Vendor/Original copy is sent to the vendor by the requesting department
- The Department/Requisitioner copy is kept in the requesting department's files.
- The Receiving/Purchasing copy is retained by the requesting department until the goods or services have been received. This copy should be signed and returned to the Business Office along with the invoice. For blanket purchase orders, the Receiving/Purchasing copy is returned when the blanket is closed.
The department matches the invoices referencing a purchase order number to the information contained on the purchase order. Discrepancies in price, quantity or items received are resolved through discussions between the initiating department and the vendor. The budget officer signs the Receiving/Purchasing copy of the Purchase Order indicating that all goods/services have been received and payment of the invoice is approved. This copy is attached to the invoice and sent to Accounts Payable for payment.
Please click on Business Office Forms to select the form you wish to download.
Please note: Adobe Acrobat Reader is needed to download these forms. Get Adobe Acrobat Now. Questions?
Accounts Payable is in the Business Office located on the lower level of the Manor House and can be reached by calling 503-768-7809. Or if you prefer, email at ehlers@lclark.edu. Lewis & Clark College
Business Office
0615 SW Palatine Hill Rd
Portland, Oregon 97219-7899
503-768- 7815
| 
