01.01 We at Texas State are committed to the efficient procurement, maintenance, and transportation of equipment, apparatus, supplies and personnel; and the security and protection of all employees, students, and visitors. The following procedure contributes to the fulfillment of this policy.01.02 The purpose of this UPPS is to establish the policy for the University telephone service, which consists of information, installation, support, and maintenance.
02.01 An employee who places a personal toll call from a university telephone should use a credit card or bill the call to a non-university number.02.02 Collect calls should not be accepted by any employee.
02.03 Personal faxes can be sent or received at the following locations on campus: Mail Services/J.C. Kellam and the University Bookstore/LBJ Student Center.
02.04 The account manager shall disapprove any call charged n his/her bill which is not official business. In the event that a personal call is made, the call must be noted on the log, and the account manager must collect and deposit payment from employees for such calls. Employees making reimbursement are to be reminded of Section 02.01 of this policy by the account manager.
02.05 The account manager should notify Telecommunications Services, extension 5-2525, concerning any discrepancy on his/her telephone bill.
02.06 Account managers will retain all long distance and cellular phone call logs for a period of two (2) years. The monthly telephone bill may serve as the call log.
02.07 University employees must utilize their own PIN # to place long distance calls for University business. PIN #’s are not to be shared with other employees or students.
03.01 Each division/college shall set a policy and procedure to assure that all long distance calls charged to the University are business-related. (Ref. TX Penal Code Sec. 39.02 and State Ethics Advisory Commission Opinion No. 372, dated 08/08/97.)03.02 The Director of Telecommunications Services or designee will send telephone bills to each account manager, who should verify all transactions on the bill.
03.03 Departmental cellular telephone bills will be sent directly to the department from the Accounting Office. If cell phone bills are not approved and returned to the Accounting Office by ten (10) working days, approval will be inferred and payment will be made.
03.04 It will be the responsibility of the department head to distribute the bills to the various users. The individual users will initial, according to their log, all personal cellular telephone calls.
03.05 Consistent with Penal Code Section 39.02 and Ethics Advisory Opinion No. 372, the use of University assigned cell phones for personal calls is permissible as long as the use is incidental and does not result in cell phone charges in excess of the base monthly contracted amount. Employees assigned University cell phones will be responsible for billing amounts in excess of the base charge if they have used the phone for personal calls. In this case, account managers must collect and deposit funds for the excess charges from the employee. Deposits must be to the operating account from which the phone bill is paid.
03.06 It is the responsibility of each account manager to assure that all telephone bills are charged to the appropriate account(s).
a. There will be no retroactive adjustments after each monthly accounting period has been closed.b. Sponsored program account managers must assure that telephone expenditures comply with funding source provisions. If such expenditures are disallowed and/or over-expended, the sponsored program account manager must identify an alternative source of funds for the expenditures.
04.01 Equipment failure should be reported to Telecommunications Services at telcom@txstate.edu, or extension 5-2525. When reporting a failure, the telephone number, building and room number, nature of the problem, and the person to contact, should be provided.
05.01 The Office of Telecommunications Services, located in Sterry Hall/South, should be contacted at extension 5-2525 or via e-mail at telcom@txstate.edu for information on cost, type of instruments required, estimated time required for installation, etc., when new installation is required.
05.02 A memo from the department chair/account manager listing room number, building, and if the phone should be restricted or unrestricted should be given to the Telephone Service Manager prior to the installation of a new instrument.
05.03 Requests for the purchase, lease, and/or services of a wireless instrument shall be the responsibility of the account manager and shall require approval by the appropriate vice president. The utilization of a wireless instrument should be considered when it best meets a department’s communication needs, not solely for a user’s convenience.
05.04 A wireless provider must be chosen from the Texas Building and Procurement Commission’s approved vendor list that can be accessed through the Telecommunications Services website. The attached form, Attachment II-Request for Approval for a New or Existing Wireless Instrument, must be completed and attached to the purchase order before forwarding to Procurement Services.
06.01 Telephone information is printed in three (3) forms, each serving a distinct purpose.
a. University Directory – This directory provides telephone numbers in categories of departments, functions, and personnel. It serves as a personnel directory of faculty and staff and includes each individual’s department identification, office location, office telephone extension, home address, and home telephone number.
1) Faculty and staff have the option of not having their home address and telephone number listed. Survey sheets are forwarded to the Human Resources Office in August of each year to update this listing. A separate and confidential “Privacy Directory” supplement listing those employees who have opted not to have their home address and home telephone number printed in the University Directory will be produced for distribution to the President, vice presidents, and the Human Resources Office.
2) The section titled “The University Directory for 200_-___” is computer generated from the University’s human resource data base and from updated information acquired through an annual survey of individual employees using the Southwest Texas State University information worksheet. All employees in the computer personnel file for the September payroll will be included in the directory.
3) Account managers are encouraged to list only direct numbers, not numbers leading to recordings, to facilitate business use on campus.
4) Many offices have responsibilities that must be met to insure the timely and accurate production of the University Directory. These offices and responsibilities are specified in Attachment I.
5) Distribution of the University Directory will be on the basis of one (1) copy for each regular faculty and staff member. Additional copies of the directory will be printed and may be purchased from the Telecommunications Services Department. The directory is produced for internal use and will not normally be distributed free of charge to any outside individual or organization. The University Directory will also be made available electronically via Catsweb. Faculty and staff are encouraged to use the electronic directory whenever possible.b. Residence Hall Telephone Information – Residence Life includes in it Residence Hall Handbook a section on 1) how to use university phones, 2) how to secure long distance service, 3) a listing of emergency phone numbers, and 4) a listing of phone numbers of administrative offices and residence hall offices.
c. KWIKFONE – This directory is a one-page condensation of telephone numbers which serves as a quick reference.
07.01 A voice mailbox will be available to all faculty and staff. When requesting telephone service, a voice mailbox will be built unless otherwise specified. If voice mail is used, appropriate etiquette guidelines should be followed (see Attachment III).
08.01 Reviewers of this UPPS include the following:
Position Date Mr. Rick Bishop, Director, Telecommunications Services
August 1 E3Y
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.
Mr. Rick Bishop, Director, Telecommunications Services; senior reviewer of this UPPS
Mr. Robert Goss, Assistant Vice President for Technology Resources
Dr. C. Van Wyatt, Vice President for Information Technology
Dr. Denise M. Trauth, President