Payroll Services Travel Training

Introduction Travel Regulations CCSD follows the State of Georgia travel accounting policies and procedures The Travel Procedures Manual is located on Financial Services University (FSU) Form Bank Pre-approvals, Federal Per Diem rates, Vendor Pre-payments, Tax exemption forms, and reimbursements for overnight travel Mileage reimbursement for local day trips Contacts County-funded trips - Payroll Services Local School Student Activity-funded trips– Local School Accounting

Completing Required Travel Forms Always download CURRENT forms from FORM BANK All forms should be TYPED Employee 6-digit ID # should be on all travel documents All signatures should be signed in ink other than black County-funded trips- Originals routed to Payroll Services Keep Copy for your records Student Activity-funded trips- All documents maintained at school

Intranet Support Site : Form Bank

Plan ahead for Out-of-Town / Overnight Travel Pre-Authorization (FS-125) Get pre-approval 30-60 days in advance of trip Pre-Payments Vendor payments for Registration, Hotel and Airfare Finalize Trip (FS-100) Submit within 30 days of trip return

Overnight Travel Step 1: Pre-Approval Prepare FS-125 Authorization for Out-of-Town travel at least 30-60 days in advance This form reflects estimate of all expenses and funding source for trip Must have all required signatures Principal must sign all employee travel request documents If Principal traveling, their Area Superintendent must sign all travel request documents Checklist attached to FS-125 for guidance

Estimate of Travel Expenses Obtain pricing for Registration from the conference/workshop brochure Contact the hotel to obtain a room rate unless arranged by the conference personnel Check the conference/workshop brochure regarding what meals might be included in the conference Go to Form Bank to obtain the Federal Per Diem rates related to eligible meals for out of state travel Review Georgia Per Diem rates reflected on the FS-100 to obtain eligible meals for in-state travel Go online and obtain airfare pricing Go online and obtain other transportation pricing

Overnight Travel Step 1: Pre-Approval FS-125 reflects estimate of all expenses for trip Backup / supporting documentation must be submitted with this form Brochure or agenda showing any meals that are provided Copy of hotel charge estimate Copy of airfare or other transportation estimate

Estimate for Transportation Contact airline company of choice to obtain an estimated cost for flight Always consider the potential for price increases if the trip is not booked on the day you obtain the estimated cost Have option to use Nippon Travel Co. (800-331-9749) for obtaining airline tickets Always consider the potential for a price increase if you don’t book with Nippon on your first call. Nippon invoices CCSD directly and bill is paid by Payroll Services. Include estimated transportation costs (shuttle, taxi, etc.) on FS-125

General Reminders Always keep COPIES of all ORIGINAL documents sent to Payroll Services and Budget Services for your records A COPY of the approved FS-125 must be attached to all subsequent travel requests/documents (pre-payment requests) sent to Payroll Services or Accounts Payable while preparing for the trip Do not attach or staple pre-payment FS-119 requests to the original FS-125; they need to be separate from the FS-125 package Employee 6-digit ID# must be accurate on all travel forms Do not save and reuse forms as they may be updated with new information, rates etc. periodically. Go to Form Bank to obtain most current travel forms

Group Travel If you have a group of employees going on trip, Payroll Services must be able to identify and record travel expenses per employee when County Funds are utilized. CCSD is required to submit accurate travel expenditures per employee to the State Department of Education on an annual basis. If a group of employees are traveling together and plan to share rooms, you must attach a list of which employees will be sharing the expense of each room on the FS-119 Check Request to the hotel as well as note this on each of the travelers’ FS-100 Employee Expense Statements.

Step 2: Pre-Payments to Vendors Payment for Registration – Use the FS-118 Accounts Payable Check Request form to request payment to a vendor for registration; send form to Budget Services Use Pcard (registration only) Pre-payment for hotel expenses--- Use the FS-119 Form. CCSD will issue a check directly to hotel or employee can take with them to hotel. Pre-payment for airline tickets can be paid by the employee with their personal money and may be reimbursed prior to the trip. Employee requests for reimbursements of pre-payments should be submitted on an FS-119A, Payroll Request for Check for Travel Expense Prepayment with a paid receipt in the employee’s name. Otherwise, employee will be reimbursed when they submit the FS-100 Employee Expense Statement at the conclusion of the trip. Do not reuse previous forms to avoid inaccuracies.

FS-118 Request for Check Payment/ Reimbursement of County Funds Obtain current FS-118 form from Form Bank Form to pay or be reimbursed for Registration Fees Must have all required signatures and CCSD Legacy GL Account code Send completed form along with backup documentation to Budget Services

FS-119 Payroll Request for Check Payment for Travel Expense Prepayment – Vendor Paid Obtain current FS-119 from Form Bank Pre-pay hotel or airline List all employees and their E#s on form Must have all required signatures and CCSD Legacy GL Account code Send completed form along with backup documentation to Payroll Services

FS-119-A Payroll Request for Check Payment for Travel Expense Prepayment – Employee Paid Obtain current FS-119A form from Form Bank Use to Request Reimbursement for Travel Expense Prepayment made by an Employee Example: Airline Must have all required signatures Must reflect Munis GL Account Send completed form along with backup documentation to Payroll Services

Exemptions in State of Georgia State and local government employees traveling within the state on official business are exempt from paying the county or municipal excise tax on lodging using the FS-137 Certificate of Exemption As a government entity, CCSD may not be subject to Georgia sales tax by using the ST-5 Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption These exemption forms are located on the Form Bank and should be provided to the hotel upon reservation and/or pre-payment Some Georgia hotels may charge a $5.00 per day Occupancy Fee The Occupancy Fee is not included in the exemption therefore can be paid and reimbursed.

FS-137 Certificate of Exemption Use this form to exempt local hotel/motel excise tax Obtain from Form Bank Provide to hotel when making reservation and/or upon arrival

ST-5 Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption Use this form to exempt State of Georgia sales tax Obtain from Form Bank Provide to hotel when making reservation and or upon arrival

Travel Advances Limited and available only to an employee whose current annual salary is $50,000.00 or less. Employees may request advances in $250 or $500 increments only. Employees are allowed to hold one outstanding travel advance per trip at a time. This is an advance from CCSD to the employee and is expected to be repaid within 30 days after the trip has been completed. The full amount of the travel advance must be used for the travel expenses or the balance must be paid back to CCSD within 30 days after the trip is complete.

FS-118B Travel Advance Use to request a Travel Advance for a specific trip using County Funds Increments of $250 or $500 only Obtain current FS-118B from Form Bank GL Account code is preprinted on form Do not change the GL Account code

Overnight Travel: Step 3: Finalize Trip FS-100 Employee Expense Statement for Out-of-Town/Overnight Travel must be completed and approved within 30 days of returning from travel Group travel - it’s important that the paperwork be submitted as a combined package for all the employees who were on the trip Always plan appropriately and submit FS-100 timely to the proper departments for authorized signatures If form is to be submitted to multiple departments, each department will know to which department the form should be routed to next. Refer to the FS-412 Travel Expense Checklist to help complete the FS-100 in confirming you have all necessary documents and approvals. This will help reduce the possibility of delaying the applicable reimbursements. Expenses submitted more than 60 calendar days after completion of the trip or event, will be included in the traveler’s IRS Form W-2 as taxable income per IRS regulations.

FS-412 Travel Expense Checklist For Out-of-Town / Overnight Travel Use as a guide when finalizing travel paperwork Keep with your records

FS-100 Employee Expense Statement for Out-of-Town / Overnight Travel

Local Travel: Mileage, Parking & Tolls FS-156 Employee Expense Statement for Local Travel Reimbursement Use this form on a daily basis to calculate the mileage traveled between District schools/facilities. The FS-156 is also used for mileage and parking reimbursements incurred for local travel to non-CCSD schools/facilities, i.e. one-day conferences. County policy requires that travelers submit expenses substantiating the amount, date, use and business purpose of expenses, within 30 calendar days after completion of the trip or event. The FS-156 form must have applicable charge code indicated. Expenses submitted more than 60 calendar days after completion of the trip or event, will be included in the traveler’s IRS Form W-2 as taxable income per IRS regulations.

FS-156 Employee Expense Statement Local Travel Reimbursement Use to request reimbursement for local mileage, parking and toll expenses Obtain current FS-156 from the Form Bank Mileage Calculator located on Form Bank MapQuest good resource for calculating mileage Ensure GL Account code and signatures completed

Local Travel Reimbursement: FS- 156 Should be completed and signed by the employee at the end of a specific trip or at the end of each month Must be submitted to the employee's principal or department head for review and approval before it is submitted to Payroll Services for reimbursement. Forms not properly completed and/or approved will be returned to the approving supervisor, thereby, delaying reimbursement to the employee. Principals approve all FS-156's when reimbursement is made from Student Activity Funds. It is then submitted to the Local School Bookkeeper for reimbursement.

Travel Resources

Contacts for Travel Procedures Primary Contact: Paige Hill, Payroll / Travel Representative 770-426-3338 or Paige.hill@cobbk12.org Additional Contacts: Kim Coonfield, Payroll Accountant 770-420-4938 or Kimberly.coonfield@cobbk12.org Paige Smith, Assistant Director of Payroll Services 770-426-3502 or Paige.smith@cobbk12.org Lisa Carter Leach, Director of Payroll Services 770-426-3503 or Lisa.carter@cobbk12.org