A quick guide to making purchases
E-Form
An e-form needs to be filled out and filed for almost all types of purchases. As a method of payment, an e-form can be used at certain vendors, a list of which can be found on the ABC website. The vendor list includes local supermarkets, restaurants, printers, and sellers of apparel, promotional items, flowers, party supplies, hardware, and more!
The process of making a purchase with an e-form is relatively simple. The group fills out an EAF, the rep approves the EAF, the group fills out an e-form and has it signed by its SDA advisor, the group gives the white copy of the e-form to the vendor at the time of purchase, and the group brings back the green copy (with the receipt, taped to a white piece of paper, attached) to SACBO and the pink copy to the advisor.
Reimbursement through Travel and Business Expense Form
Often a group will need to make a purchase from a place that's not on the vendor list, or just won't have a signed e-form at the time of purchase (an emergency purchase). So a student will make the purchase out-of-pocket and will be reimbursed by Columbia. NOTE: ALWAYS REMEMBER THE RECEIPT!
A reimbursement also requires an EAF. Once the rep approves the EAF, the group fills out an e-form (there's a check-box for reimbursement) as well as a travel and business expense (TBE) report and has them signed by its SDA advisor, brings the e-form, TBE report, and the receipt up to SACBO, provides any other requisite forms, and waits for Columbia to cut a check. (If you need a reimbursement for a purchase of $50 or under made with cash, you can do a reimbursement through petty cash--see below).
P-Card (Advisor)
Sometimes, it's easiest (or even necessary) to use an advisor's p-card for a purchase. P-cards are particularly useful for online purchases from non-vendors. No travel-related purchases can be made with a p-card.
As with the above methods, the group needs to submit an EAF, the rep needs to approve the EAF, and the group needs to have an e-form signed by its advisor. The advisor must make the purchase himself; the p-card can't be taken from his possession. Then the group brings the green copy of the e-form with an invoice up to SACBO.
Purchase Order
A purchase order (PO) is basically a more complicated version of an e-form (or an e-form is an easy version of a PO). Purchases from sellers not on the vendor list sometimes require a PO.
The procedure for a PO is the same as the one for an e-form. The advisor will tell the group if a PO is necessary, and will help the group do the PO.
Petty Cash
A group can use petty cash for a purchase of $50 or less from a vendor not on the vendor list. Petty cash can also be used for change if a group is charging cash admission to an event, and as a reimbursement for a purchase made with cash for $50 or under (your SACBO advisor will tell you if you should do a reimbursement through petty cash).
After the rep approves the EAF and the group has its advisor sign an e-form, the group brings the e-form up to SACBO and gets the cash (provided SACBO has cash on hand). The group must make the purchase and bring back the receipt and change to SACBO within 48 hours (not counting the weekend).
Inter-Departmental Invoice (IDI)
All tech, catering, and facilities expenses are drawn directly from a group's account. That makes these purchases both very easy to make and very difficult to track. No approval is necessary (or possible) for IDIs.
A group simply submits a tech, catering, or facilities request online and the corresponding department sends an invoice to SACBO. It's a group's responsibility to make sure that all IDI's are correct by comparing its DARTS statement with its own internal records. Columbia departments have been known to charge groups inappropriately...so don't hesitate to challenge those IDIs, or, even better, demand a full quote before the service is rendered.