Accounts Payable Department

All travel and expense (T&E) Reimbursements for employees and non-employees are submitted through Chrome River our paperless electronic system.

• Pace University reimburses employees for necessary and reasonable expenses they incur while conducting University business.
• Good judgment is expected to be used in the selection of means of transportation, hotel accommodations, restaurants, etc.
• The University requests to have receipts for all expenses submitted for reimbursements.
• Please review the updated Travel and Expense Reimbursement Policy and Procedure.
• Travel and Expenses Reimbursement is available through direct deposit. A completed form must be on file with Accounts Payable in order to receive this benefit. Please go to the forms link to download the form.

Chrome River Expense Policy Addendum (PDF)

The 2024 standard mileage rates have been published by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The standard mileage rate employees may receive as non-taxable reimbursements, for miles driven on behalf of their employers, has increased to 65.5 cents per mile effective January 1, 2023. Pace University’s policy for mileage reimbursement follows Federal guidelines, therefore, in the event the IRS announces standard rate changes throughout the calendar year, our policy, website, and T&E systems will reflect said changes.

These rates apply to electric and hybrid-electric automobiles, as well as gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.

Reimbursements to employees for business use of personal automobiles from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024, remain at .585 cents per mile.

Please contact me at rbeatty@pace.edu or x2855 if you have any questions.

Thank you.

Mileage Reimbursement Rate Memo (PDF)

The Special Payment Request Form (SPRF) and Independent Contractor Payment Form (ICPF) are paperless online forms submitted through E-Procurement for processing. The SPRF form is only to be used for those items listed below and only in the event a purchase order is not accepted or has been encumbered. This form is not to be used to circumvent the purchasing policies. The form should be used for the following items:

• Annuities/Royalties
• Benefits (Employee/Death)
• Petty Cash Book Allowance
• Membership/Subscriptions
• Entrance Fees
• Program Refunds/Expenses
• Insurance Expenses
• Temporary Employee Agencies
• Postage/Mail Expenses
• Taxes, Licenses and Permits
• Payroll Department Use
• Legal Expenses
• Rent/Utilities/Leases
• College Fairs/Recruitment Expenses
• Library Expenses
• Charitable Donations

All other items should be encumbered through purchase orders.

The ICPF form is to be used to pay independent contractors who are receiving low risk payments. All independent contractors (consultants, speaker artists, etc.) and contracts must be entered into the Contract Management System (Contract Director).

All online forms must be submitted with documentation (invoice, contract or etc.)

There are six ways of initiating a payment

1) Travel and Expense (T&E) Reimbursements
All reimbursements are submitted through Chrome River to reimburse staff, faculty, non-employees and students for travel and related expenses.

2) Special Payment Request Form
The Special Payment Request Form (SPRF) is only to be used for those items listed below and only in the event a purchase order is not accepted or has been encumbered. This form is not to be used to circumvent the purchasing policies. The form should be used for the following items:

• Annuities/Royalties
• Benefits (Employee/Death)
• Petty Cash Book Allowance
• Membership/Subscriptions
• Entrance Fees
• Program Refunds/Expenses
• Insurance Expenses
• Temporary Employee Agencies
• Postage/Mail Expenses
• Taxes, Licenses and Permits
• Payroll Department Use
• Legal Expenses
• Rent/Utilities/Leases
• College Fairs/Recruitment Expenses
• Library Expenses
• Charitable Donations

All other items should be encumbered through purchase orders.

3) Purchase Orders
End-users must first encumber funds via a purchase order. The invoice should be sent from the vendor directly to Accounts Payable, not to the initiating department. Accounts Payable will associate the purchase order with the incoming invoice, and then will distribute the payment. All purchase orders over $1,000.00 will need a receipt of goods/services created through E-Procurement. This allows Accounts Payable to match the invoice to the receipt and make payments for goods and services which are received. This is known as a 3-Way Match.

4) P-Card
The Purchasing Card Program is designed as an alternative to a variety of processes including petty cash, check requests and low dollar purchase orders, and is not intended to avoid or bypass appropriate procurement of payment procedures. The card is a Bank of America credit card that is issued by the Purchasing Department.

5) Petty Cash Voucher
This form is to be used for students, faculty and staff to receive immediate cash reimbursement for appropriate out-of-pocket expenses totaling less than $100 per day.

6) Independent Contractor Form
This form is to be utilized for payment of services provided by non-Pace employees only. Honorariums are one example. All independent contractors (and consultants, speaker artists, etc) must be entered into the Contract Manager system.

The Commodity Matrix was developed to help University faculty and staff determine the appropriate buying method and budget object code for purchases of most commonly ordered equipment, supplies, and services from external suppliers.

Commodity Matrix (PDF)

Non Pace Employees

All new vendors who will be receiving a T&E reimbursement must be set up prior to entering the reimbursement. Please use the VMS (Vendor Management System). VMS is the automated system for adding new vendors and/or modifying existing vendors.

Pace Employees and Students

If an employee or student to be reimbursed is noting Chrome River for travel and expensepayments. Please copy and paste the information below and place into an email to accountspayable@pace.edu for activation. You should receive a response within 24 -48 hours.

The paper Travel Advance/Reconciliation Form (XLSX) is used to advance funds to Pace Employees. Travel advances are amounts issued upon authorized request to employees who are about to travel for University business, or are making arrangements for a future business event.

The Internal Revenue Service requires all employees who are provided advances by their employers for travel, entertainment and other expenses to submit either an adequate accounting of such expenses to their employers or report such reimbursement as income on their individual tax returns. Employees can satisfy the adequate accounting requirement by completing the Travel / Expense Reimbursement Form. These reports are to be submitted within 15 working days after completion of the trip and unused funds returned to the University with the report. It is the responsibility of the appropriate dean, director, principal investigator or officer to approve only those travel expenses, which appear reasonable and necessary.

Noncompliance by an employee with reporting regulations will result in:

• Denial of future cash advances,
• Deduction of the outstanding advance from a future request for reimbursement, or
• Inclusion of the undocumented travel advances to the employee’s W2 Wage and Earnings Statement as additional taxable income.

Pace University will advance funds, based on a reasonable estimate of the anticipated expenses, to support authorized travel. Advances of funds must be requested, justified, and approved, and will be limited to the minimum amount necessary for completion of travel. A request for an advance cannot be honored when an outstanding advance to the traveler has not been settled satisfactorily.

Unused portions of a travel advance should be returned to the University within the prescribed time period. To return unused travel advances, submit to Accounts Payable a completed Reconciliation form with a check payable to Pace University attached.

A completed Reconciliation contains:

• Banner#, name, address, correct index, account codes, dates, and amounts
• Business purpose of the expenses incurred
• Description of expenses as related to the sections (Air, Train, Auto, Meals and Entertainment and/or Other)
• Authorized signatures
• Original receipts and/or Missing receipt form

Student Payment Request Form (XLSX) is a paper form used to make payments to students based on these three criteria:

• Award
• Prize
• Non-Payroll Stipend

Payments which are considered taxable will be issued a 1099 Misc tax form therefore a SSN will be needed.

A completed Student Form contains:

• Payee name, address, correct index, account codes, vendor invoice# and amounts
• Payment description
• Authorized signatures
• Original documents as supporting documentation

COA Training

The COA online course will introduce financial system users to the Chart of Accounts. Participants will also learn how to use web tools to locate their departments’ chart numbers.

Who should complete course: Managers and support staff who are responsible for revenue and expense budget management.

Prerequisite: None

Finance Budget Management

This course is designed for managers and support staff who are responsible for revenue and expense budget management. Participants will learn how to navigate the system, create budget queries, process budget transfers, review general ledger transactions, review encumbrances, and approve documents. This session will introduce participants to the user-friendly, self-service interface and will provide essential tips for successful budget management.

Who should attend: Managers and support staff who are responsible for revenue and expense budget management.

Prerequisite: COA Training

E-Procurement

This course provides an overview of the University’s procurement policies and procedures related to furniture, IT equipment, offices supplies, and more. Participants will learn how to create and manage purchase orders via the user-friendly interface.

Who should attend: Managers and support staff who are authorized to procure goods on behalf of the University.

Prerequisite: COA Training

E-Procurement – Advanced features

This course provides an overview of the advanced features using e-procurement related to purchasing services and goods. Participants will learn how to use simple and advanced search options, create quick orders, retrieving requisitions and identifying/correcting data entry errors.

Who should attend: Managers and support staff who are authorized to procure goods on behalf of the University.

Prerequisite: E-Procurement and COA Training

Contracts Management System

This module is designed for those who are responsible for initiating, reviewing, and processing contracts. Participants will learn the policies, procedures, and computer application of processing contracts using the new imaging system.

Prerequisite: E-Procurement is recommended.

Kronos – 101

This module is designed for those who use the Kronos time and attendance system. Participants will learn about:

• Logging-in and navigating the Electronic Time application, workforce genies, workforce terminology, menu options, and timecard tabs
• Reviewing and approving an employee’s timecard
• Accessing their own timecards as well as workforce timecards
• Entering and deleting punches in a project view timecard and/or an hourly timecard
• Adding a comment to a punch
• Entering a labor account transfer and adding a pay code amount to a timecard

Kronos- Scheduling and Reporting (Webinar)

This webinar is designed for time card users who are responsible for managing time and attendance. Participants will explore scheduling and reporting options available in Kronos as well as essential tips and tricks for capturing information.

Prerequisite: Kronos – 101

Chrome River

This course provides instruction for Faculty and Staff to utilize the online Travel and Expense reimbursement system. Participants will learn how to navigate the system, enter and track expense reports and/or reconcile Pace University credit card transactions. Budget managers will additionally learn how to approve expense reports.

Who should attend: Managers and support staff who have Travel and Expense reimbursements to submit and/or credit cards to reconcile.

Prerequisite: None

If you are registering for Finance Budget Management or E-procurement, you are required to take the online COA Training as a prerequisite.

If you have any questions regarding our classes, please call the Financial Information System department at ext. 22899, or send an email to FIS@pace.edu.

Expense Types with Account (PDF)