Newsletter 2023-2024 Volume 7
News
Monthly Closing Deadlines
The December 2023 period in the general ledger has closed. The current and future month-end processing deadline schedules are located at Monthly Closing Deadlines.
Car Rental Reservation Portal
Florida International University uses the State of Florida contract with Avis and Budget for renting vehicles. University employees needing a rental car for official business must use the following website to make their reservations: STATE OF FLORIDA RESERVATION PORTAL: https://www.carrental.com/abgPartners/sof/
Ensure the vehicle renter uses their FIU Credential (Email) when booking and selects the Payment Type as Pay at the Counter.
Car Rental Reservation Number
Reservations can also be made by contacting the Avis/Budget toll-free number (STATE OF FLORIDA RESERVATION DESK: 800-338-8211); renters should be prepared to provide the AWD or BCD when making a reservation. The FIU Avis Worldwide Discount (AWD) number for making reservations is B133407, and the FIU Budget Corporate Discount (BCD) number is T417711.
Direct Billing Option for Car Rental
You will need an Avis/Budget issued Billing Number. Billing Numbers are issued to allow Pro-Card Holders to reserve and pay rentals for other individuals (i.e., visitors, co-workers, students, and staff). You can request the Billing Number by completing the Avis Global Electronic Billing Terms of Agreement or Budget Applicant Program Terms of Agreement and submitting it to Raylene Clegg, Avis/Budget Account Services Representative, at floridahelp@avisbudget.com. Once you receive your Billing Number, you will be sent a step-by-step booking guide for using your Billing Number with future reservations. A Billing Number is not needed for rentals reserved and paid by the individual traveler for themselves.
Do not disclose Billing Numbers to others as it is tied to your Pro-Card.
Auto Rental (Foreign Travel)
When traveling to a foreign country, car rental is restricted to a compact vehicle, and Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) is the only insurance allowed. If the car rental company has mandatory fees, documentation of fees or written justification must be provided with the expense report. The traveler must provide written justification for renting a larger vehicle; if traveling with others, include a list of the other passengers with their respective Travel Authorization and Expense Report numbers. Provide a detailed list and explanation if traveling with equipment or extra baggage.
Unidentified Wire Transfers and ACH Payments
The Controller’s Office occasionally receives payments that cannot be applied to the appropriate department due to inadequate information. Click here for the list of unidentified wire transfers and ACH payments as of October 2023.
To claim a payment, please contact Cash Management and provide the following information:
- Payment details
- Activity/Speedtype to which the payment should be recorded
- Revenue Account to which the payment should be recorded
Payments that are not identified within 45 days of the wire/ACH date will be returned to sender.
Purchase of Controlled Substances and Hazardous Chemicals
The purchase of controlled substances is strictly prohibited with the Pcard; all controlled substance purchases must be procured via a purchase order.
The purchase of hazardous chemicals/materials with the university card is limited exclusively to Fisher Scientific on an emergency/expedited basis only. We have partnered with Fisher to ensure that the purchase complies with all EH&S safety regulations. The purchase of hazardous chemicals/materials from any other merchant is not allowed with the Departmental Card. Dry Ice will be allowed, under 25 pounds from the vendor of choice.
Reminders & Deadlines
Monthly Departmental Card Deadline
As a reminder, Departmental Card billing transactions regularly load the first business day of the month; program participants will have 10 days to process this activity in its entirety. This month’s billing statement (dated 12/29/2023) loaded into PantherSoft on Jan 2nd and must be completely processed by the end of business January 16, 2024.
Any charges not processed by the closing deadline will be automatically charged to the cardholder’s default accounting on file and will not be eligible for expense transfer.
Additionally, cardholders with three unjustified non-approvals in the same fiscal year will have their card limits suspended until they complete a retraining session.
Pending Travel Reports
Please approve Travel Authorizations, Cash Advances, and Expense reports in a timely manner. For a list of pending documents, please click here. For information regarding report status abbreviations and how to close or cancel Travel Authorizations and/or Expense Reports, please click here.