Reimbursement Policy

This is a page concerning a policy or procedure in development.
Once fleshed out, we'll consider it for adoption as official policy at Free Geek.

It is Free Geek's policy to reimburse employees, volunteers, and board members for all reasonable, ordinary, and necessary expenses incurred which are directly related to conducting Free Geek business.

Guidelines to implementing this policy

• Reimbursement will generally be made for travel expenses, lodging, meals, parking, registration fees, and other reasonable charges related to Free Geek's interests. Make this list more relevant to FG.
• The person requesting payment or reimbursement must indicate in writing the relationship of the activity to Free Geek business, must provide a detailed record of the expenditures, and must provide receipts or other appropriate documentation for most charges. A receipt or documentation for any charge over $???? is required.
• Moderately priced hotel facilities and meals are favored. Where the hotel facilities are dictated by the location of a particular meeting or conference, that factor will take precedence over comparative rates of other establishments.
• When air travel is required, Free Geek will pay for or reimburse for "coach class" tickets for staff members.
• Where a choice is present between using a personal car or commercial flights Free Geek reimbursement will be on the basis of the lower actual auto mileage and hotel costs, or coach class air fare plus estimated taxi fares.
• As a general rule, Free Geek will not reimburse for expenses when incurred by the spouse of an employee. However, when a spouse is included in a group dinner or other event dedicated to Free Geek business, Free Geek will pay for or reimburse the spouse expenses.
• Any significant travel or other expense by volunteers or employees must be approved in advance by who?? in order to qualify for reimbursement.
• Free Geek maintains car insurance. Accordingly, an employee who is renting a car on Free Geek business should decline the insurance coverage option. ?????
• As a part of the regular review of actual and budgeted expenditures, a report of all expenses, paid or reimburse by Free Geek, will be distributed to who????.

Petty cash

Free Geek maintains a petty cash fund of $????? Whenever possible, Free Geek prefers to disburse money only by check. For those occasions in which a check is not appropriate, the petty cash fund should be used. An individual should present evidence of payment and will be required to sign a petty cash voucher acknowledging receipt of money.

Additional snippets to work in

Travel expenses

When Free Geek staff members travel to conduct approved business for Free Geek and this requires the traveler to stay overnight out of town Free Geek will reimburse the traveler for reasonable expenses.

• Receipts are required for any lodging reimbursement such as hotels, hostels, bed & breakfast establishments, etc.
• Receipts are required for any ticketed travel expenses such as air, bus, or train tickets.
• If personal transportation is used, Free Geek can reimburse using standard mileage rates detailed elsewhere in this policy using the standard documentation procedures.
• Travelers are expected to use the most inexpensive reasonable travel options available.

Per diem reimbursement while traveling

• Free Geek will reimburse the standard rate as specified by the US General Services Administration as published on their website as "CONUS per diem rates" for meals and incidental expenses.
  • (Note: current rate is $46 per day. Current link: http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=21402)
  • Free Geek will not use the rates for specific cities in Canada, the US, and elsewhere unless the traveler produces evidence that those rates are more in line with reasonable business expenses.
• The first and last days of travel will be reimbursed at 75% of the rate. The days in between will be reimbursed at 100% of the rate.
• Travelers can voluntarily decline the per diem reimbursement. If doing so they may collect receipts

Meals

Reasonable meal expenses will be reimbursed, including gratuity. No alcohol purchases will be reimbursed and such purchases should be segregated from meal expense and paid for by the individual ordering them.

Gifts / Awards

Recognizing that it is an appropriate use of Free Geek funds to purchase awards and modest gifts in appreciation for volunteer service, reimbursement will be made for the purchase of reasonable plaques or similar items recognizing an individual's extraordinary volunteer service to the Free Geek and / or its component parts. Any gifts of merchandise for such purposes shall be modest and reasonable.

Reimbursement Procedures

• All requests for reimbursement shall be made in writing (preferably on the Free Geek expense voucher form) and shall be signed and dated by the person seeking reimbursement. Receipts should be attached for all expenditures, but any individual expense in excess of $25, except mileage, must be accompanied by a receipt or adequate documentation. Expenditures in excess of $25 lacking a receipt will not be paid without adequate explanation.
• Expense reports must be approved by the Executive Director or his / her designee, subject to review by the Treasurer on request.
• Expense reports should be submitted within 60 days of incurring the expense. It is critical to receive all reports from a fiscal year (January 1 - December 31) within 30 days of the close of the fiscal year.
• WHO??? is authorized to reject or modify payment to comply with these policies and guidelines. Appeal of WHO???'s decision shall be made to WHO??? who may present the appeal to WHO??? if appropriate.

Documentation

• There must be a business connection and the expense must be reasonable. This means that we must have an explanation of the business purpose for the expense.
• There must be reasonable accounting for the expense. Original statements, invoices and receipts are preferred for reimbursement. Handwritten receipts/invoices must contain the vendor’s name, address, and signature. Faxed copies of invoices are acceptable. Other documentation required includes the time, date, location, and a list of attendees for a meal reimbursement. Requests lacking the required documentation will not be processed until completed.
• All reimbursements must be repaid in a reasonable time. Requests for reimbursement should be made in a timely manner, not to exceed 90 (IRS states 60 days for travel reimbursement) days from the date of the expense. Payment of expenses in advance of an event, such as conference registrations, deposits, etc. will be made only to business and organizations, not individuals, and not more than 120 (or 90?) days in advance of the event. Payments to individuals for performing services will not be issued until the services have been performed or delivered, are not to be made in advance of the service to ensure completion.

Elements of good documentation

We could list these elements as essential pieces of documentation:

• What was purchased (the items or services bought)
• Where the money was spent (name of store, whatever)
• How much was spent (dollar amount)
• When the money was spent (date)
• Who spent the money (staff person's or volunteer's name, printed legibly)
• Who authorized the expenditure (staff person's legible name and signature)
• Why the money was spent (business purpose)

A receipt is documentation that partially supports the above elements, but the above elements should all go on a form that needs to accompany any reimbursement. The receipt should be required either for all expenses or for ones that meet a specifically defined criteria. If we don't specify a criteria that renders a receipt unnecessary, then we should establish a process for approving an expenditure when a receipt is lost or unavailable. RfS 21:36, 11 March 2010 (UTC)

Fines

Free Geek does not reimburse fines for moving or non-moving violations (ex. parking tickets).

Foreign Currency

When claiming reimbursement for expenses that are in a foreign currency, the Check Request should be completed in U.S. dollars and the rate of exchange must be documented. (Provide a copy of exchange rate document - recommended site for currency exchange rates is www.oanda.com.) Rate of exchange must be calculated based on the date the expense was charged.

Mileage

Free Geek uses the standard mileage rate as set forth by the Internal Revenue Service for the reimbursement of vehicle expenses. Actual charges for repairs, maintenance, or gasoline used in a personal vehicle are not reimbursable. A lower reimbursement level may be set for specific colleges or departments as deemed necessary by the WHO????. Free Geek will not reimburse for the use of a personal car within 10 miles of an employee’s official headquarters and/or place of residence.

If a privately owned vehicle is used on official Free Geek business and an accident occurs, the operator’s insurance is responsible for payment up to the maximum liability. Afterwards, the Free Geek’s insurance will pay up to the Free Geek’s maximum liability. Free Geek will not pay deductibles associated with insurance claims as a result of the use of a privately owned vehicle.

Free Geek will reimburse charges for gasoline only when its use is associated with a rental car. In accordance with IRS rules regarding accountable travel reimbursement plans, reimbursement for gasoline used in an employee’s personal vehicle will be made using mileage reimbursement only as stated above.

Personal Expenses

No reimbursements are allowed for expenditures of a personal nature. The Internal Revenue Service guidelines of reasonable and necessary business expenses are utilized in all cases of determination of appropriate reimbursements.

Purchases – Equipment

Assets purchased with Free Geek funds will become the property of Free Geek. The department initiating the purchase is responsible for properly safeguarding all assets purchased with Free Geek funds. Assets purchased with Free Geek funds are not the property of any individual. All items purchased with Free Geek funds should be shipped to Free Geek's address.

Other pages

• Reimbursement for Volunteer's Incidental Expenses
• Reimbursement for mileage