Property and Equipment UPPS
No. 05.01.01
Issue No. 5
Effective Date: 10/14/2008
Review: September 1 E4Y
01. POLICY STATEMENTS
01.01 University
personnel must exercise reasonable care to protect Texas State’s property and
equipment.
01.02 This
policy applies to all university property and equipment, regardless of the
source of funds from which these items were acquired. Property and equipment
donated to the University are included under this policy.
02. DEFINITIONS
02.01 Property
and Equipment – Generally, this includes assets with useful lives greater than
one year that are necessary to conduct the business of the University, such as:
audiovisual devices, computers, furniture, tools, machinery, buildings, and
land. For purposes of this policy, the term refers to all such items owned or
leased by the University or items on loan to the University. These items are
referred to as “university property” throughout this policy.
02.02 Capital
Assets – Those items costing $5,000 or more which must be capitalized and maintained
on the University’s inventory, in accordance with State Property Accounting
(SPA) requirements of the State Comptroller’s Office.
02.03 Controlled
Assets – Those items which cost less than $5,000 (below the capitalization
threshold), but which must be maintained on the University’s inventory in
accordance with SPA requirements because of the high-risk nature of the asset. A
complete list of Controlled Assets is available on the SPA website. Refer to http://www.window.state.tx.us/fm/spa.
02.04 Annual
Inventory – Review and certification of property and equipment in the
possession of the University, as mandated by the state.
02.05 Loan
of Property and Equipment – Use of university property by a non-profit entity
other than a Texas State employee.
02.06 Off-site
Use – Use of university property by a Texas State employee at a location other
than the University’s regular place of business.
02.07 Personal
Use – Use of university property by a Texas State employee for their personal
needs, unrelated to University business purposes.
02.08 University
Business Purpose – Activities or events that serve a valid public purpose.
03. RESPONSIBILITIES
03.01 Agency
Head – The University President is responsible for the custody and care of
property in the University’s possession and has designated a property manager
as provided in Government code § 403.273.
03.02 The
President has designated the Director of Materials Management as the
University’s property manager. In this capacity, he or she is responsible for:
a. Coordinating
with the General Accounting Office to assure accuracy of the property records,
in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
b. Conducting
appropriate inventories and reviews of university property;
c. Arranging
transfers of property to facilitate utilization;
d. Disposing
of surplus property by means of sale, salvage, scrap, or “cannibalization”.
e. Maintaining
appropriate management systems for property control;
f. Facilitating
the best possible management of university property;
g. Assisting
department heads in establishing departmental systems for property and
equipment management;
h. Reviewing
departmental requests for the loan of university property and equipment for
official use;
i. Evaluating
and recommending loan requests for the use of university property and equipment
by non-profit organizations; and
j. Establishing
policies and procedures to manage university property, in accordance with state
requirements.
03.03 Department
heads are responsible for the daily care, maintenance, and safeguarding of
property and equipment. They are responsible for:
a. Maintaining
a departmental property accounting system that enables prompt location of any
item assigned to their account;
b. Timely
notifying to the Materials Management Office of transfers and deletions of
property and equipment in their possession;
c. Conducting
and completing an accurate annual property and equipment inventory within the
time frames specified by the Director of Materials Management; and
d. Authorizing
the “off-site use” of certain property and equipment assigned to their
department for use by university employees.
03.04 The
Vice President for Finance & Support Services (VPFSS) or the Associate Vice
President for Financial Services (AVPFS) is responsible for approving the loan
of university property and equipment to a non-profit entity.
03.05 The
Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) is responsible for approving the disposition
of property and equipment that is assigned to sponsored programs.
04. PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT PROCEDURES
04.01 Department
Head Change – When a department head changes, the new department head should
request an inventory listing of university property in their span of control
from the Director of Materials Management. The new department head should
conduct an inventory and report his or her findings to the Director of
Materials Management. This procedure will prevent the new department head from
being held accountable and possibly liable for property not located during the
annual inventory.
04.02 Suspected
and Actual Losses – The department head must report suspected or actual losses
or theft of property first to the University Police Department (UPD), then to
the Director of Materials Management, immediately upon discovery of its
disappearance. If the lost or stolen property contains or includes digital
media that might contain sensitive or confidential information (such as the
theft of a computer, a cell phone, a PDA, or backup tapes), UPD will
immediately notify IT Security of the incident.
Procedures for documenting such losses are:
a. The
department head turns in a "Missing or Stolen Property
Report" to the Materials Management Department at http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/taxforms/74-194.pdf.
The department head is expected to make every reasonable effort to learn the
circumstances behind the loss or theft of university property assigned to his
or her account.
b. The
UPD, department head, and Director of Materials Management and IT Security (if
applicable) will review the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the
property. UPD is responsible for conducting a criminal investigation, as
needed. If the UPD, department head, or the Director of Materials Management
determine that there has been negligence on the part of a university employee
or student which caused the loss of or damage to university property, they will
report their findings to the VPFSS, who will determine if the department head
or employee will be subject to financial liability for the loss.
c. IT Security is responsible for investigating
and documenting the incident with respect to the loss or unauthorized
disclosure of any sensitive or confidential university information. If
applicable to the incident, the information security officer will ensure that
the University’s information security breach response plan is followed, that
breach notification requirements are met, and that the Texas Department of Information
Resources is notified as may be required.
d. The
Director of Materials Management, in collaboration, with the AVPFS and the
VPFSS will evaluate the situation and notify the Director of Audit and
Compliance, as deemed appropriate.
e. The
Director of Audit and Compliance will evaluate the situation and determine
whether and when such situations warrant notification to the Texas State
University System Director of Internal Audits or the Office of the State
Auditor. Such notifications will be done by the Director of Audit and
Compliance (or designee).
f. The
Director of Materials Management, in collaboration with the AVPFS, the VPFSS,
and the Director of Audit and Compliance will determine when such situations
warrant notification to the Attorney General’s Office. The Director of
Materials Management will make such notifications.
g. The
Director of Materials Management is responsible for maintaining complete
documentation of all such notifications to other departments and agencies.
05. PROCEDURES
FOR OFF-SITE USE OF UNIVERSITY PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT
05.01 Off-site use – Department heads shall maintain
a log for each item of departmental property or equipment authorized for
off-site use by university employees. At a minimum, the log shall include:
a. a description of the item (including the
serial number and Texas State property tag number if available);
b. the name and Texas State ID number of the
employee to whom the property was assigned or checked out;
c. the employee’s signature or initials and
assignment date, captured at the time of equipment assignment or check-out;
d. the receiving employee’s signature or
initials and return date, captured at the time of equipment return; and
e. the department head’s signature of approval
for items that are not routinely assigned or checked-out for off-site
utilization.
05.02 Loan
to Non-Profit Entities – In some circumstances, the University may loan
property and equipment to non-profit entities for their use, provided that such
use serves a public. The following procedures must be followed:
a. The
organization must be a non-profit corporation or association as defined by federal
law.
b. An
authorized official of the non-profit entity must make written request to the
Director of Materials Management, stating the reason the loan request is being
made, the specific property or equipment being requested, and the period of
time for which it is needed.
c. The
Director of Materials Management will contact the department head responsible
for the equipment and determine if they concur with loaning the equipment to
the non-profit entity. The Director of Materials Management will forward the
form to the VPFSS or the AVPFS for his or her approval.
d. Upon
recommendation from the Director of Materials Management, either the VPFSS or
the AVPFS must approve all requests for loans of university property to
non-profit entities.
e. The
Director of Materials Management will inform the non-profit entity whether the
request was approved or disapproved.
f. Requests
for the non-university use of university vehicles are generally not approved
except under an extreme emergency condition, such as a major natural disaster.
05.03 All
requests for loans of university property should be made at least ten work days
in advance of the actual date needed to allow time for approval and
arrangements. The "Non-University
Function Equipment Loan Request" must be used for this purpose.
05.04 Loans
of printed material and audio-visual software and hardware by the Alkek Library
are exempt from this policy. Refer to the Library’s policy LB/OL 06.04,
"Borrowing Privileges of Non-University Alkek Library Users".
05.05 Loans
of property and equipment associated with externally-sponsored programs may be
exempt from this policy, provided that the provisions of the sponsored program
require the loans. The funding source must provide written confirmation that
the loan is required under the contract or grant.
06. PROCEDURES FOR PERSONAL USE OF UNIVERSITY
PROPERTY
06.01 Personal
use of university property and equipment is generally prohibited. Under some circumstances, state law may allow
de minimus use with the prior written approval of the employee’s
supervisor. Minor and infrequent amounts constitute de minimus use. Examples
include an employee’s receipt of a personal communication on a university fax
machine or an employee who is taking a university class using one of their
office computers to type a term paper.
07. ANNUAL INVENTORY
07.01 Under
state regulations, the University must complete an annual inventory of certain
property and equipment and certify the inventory to the State Comptroller’s
Office.
08. SURPLUS OR SALVAGE PROPERTY
08.01 Materials
Management is responsible for the disposition and disposal of all university
surplus property. Refer to UPPS No.
05.01.02 for more specific information.
09. PROPERTY TRANSFER PROCEDURES
09.01 Interdepartmental transfers of property can be
accomplished through one of two methods both of which require completing an “Equipment
Transfer Form”.
a. Item given – One department gives an item to another
department.
b. Item sale – One department sells an item to another
department.
09.02 If a department wants to give its surplus equipment
to another department, both department heads must sign an “Equipment
Transfer Form.” Materials Management
must approve the transfer. The original department head is accountable until
this is done.
09.03 If a department has surplus equipment that is
being sold to another department at an agreed-upon price, an “Equipment
Transfer Form” must be completed and signed by department heads in both
departments and submitted to Materials Management for approval. A notation of
the “sales price” for the equipment must be noted on the form. Materials
Management will submit an inter-department transfer (IDT) to the Accounting
Office to charge the “buying” department and to credit the “selling”
department.
10. SPONSORED PROGRAMS
10.01 In
addition to other authorizations outlined in this UPPS, disposal of property
and equipment which is assigned to an externally-sponsored program requires
approval of the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP). This includes sale, transfer, obsolescence,
or inoperable items. OSP review is required to assure that disposal occurs in
accordance with sponsor guidelines. Proceeds from disposal of these items,
generally, must be returned to the sponsor.
11. REFERENCES
11.01 Texas
Government Code Ann. Sec. 403.273 (as amended) regulates the custody and care
of state property. Refer to http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/.
11.02 Texas
Government Code Chapter 2175 describes the manner in which surplus and salvage
property is managed.
11.03 Texas
Administrative Code, Chapter C, Rule §202.78, specifies disposal of computing
equipment provisions.
11.04 Texas
Government Code – Section 2054.130 describes the removal of data before
disposal of equipment or transferring equipment to another entity.
11.05 The
State Comptroller's "SPA Process Users Guide” (for State Property
Accounting). Refer to http://www.window.state.tx.us/fm/spa/.
11.06 Texas
State division policy, FSS/PPS 05.01.09, “Equipment Inventory Review” - Refer
to http://www.fss.txstate.edu/policies/05_01_09.html.
11.07 Attorney
General's Opinion No. M-623, dated May 4, 1970. This opinion determined that
personal property belonging to state universities could be loaned and exchanged
when the purposes would in some way benefit the University and the State of
Texas. The exchange of property may further the public purpose of promoting and
disseminating education and culture.
11.08 On
February 22, 1980, the Board of Regents, Texas State University System,
authorized the University to enter into reciprocal agreements providing for the
temporary exchange or loan of university property with other non-profit
entities, provided that such agreements reflect a valid state purpose.
12. REVIEWERS OF THIS UPPS
12.01 Reviewers
of this UPPS include the following:
Position Date
Director of Materials Management September 1 E4Y
13. CERTIFICATION STATEMENT
This
UPPS has been approved by the following individuals in their official
capacities and represents Texas State policy and procedure from the date of
this document until superseded.
Director
of Materials Management; senior reviewer of this UPPS
Associate
Vice President for Financial Services
Vice
President for Finance and Support Services
President